The 2024 Tourism Business Council of South Africa Leadership Conference has concluded at Sun City, in the North West Province. In its third year, the Leadership Conference brought together stakeholders from the public and private sectors, as well as dignitaries, guests, and delegates who contribute to the local and global tourism industry value chain. For two days, delegates engaged, debated, and discussed urgent matters in the South African tourism sector, under the theme Tourism Matters.
South Africa remains on track to achieve its goal of 15.6 million annual arrivals by 2030 – and there has been considerable progress in getting more people to visit the country and explore all its splendour. Public-private partnerships have particularly been key to ensuring smoother operations in the industry.
“We have held fruitful discussions in the last two days. As always, we will collate the information gathered here and put together an action plan. Some issues will keep coming up until a resolution or a way forward is found. Our goal and mission is to ensure that the gathering is more than just a talk shop,” says TBCSA CEO Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa.
Since the last Leadership Conference, there have been developments in the issuing of visas and the related legislative framework. Our partnership with the Department of Home Affairs has yielded positive outcomes that will benefit the industry and the country. Minister Leon Schreiber and his team have been working tirelessly to ensure South Africa is on a path to improved and automated visa regimes. The Home Affairs department has committed to clearing the backlog in the issuing of outstanding visa applications for skilled workers and others – and recently announced South Africa’s new remote working visa in response to evolving global work trends. Minister Schreiber and his team remain committed to supporting us in reaching our goals of growing tourism while ensuring that national security is not compromised.
Tourism Master Plan
The tourism industry will also benefit greatly from the Tourism Sector Master Plan which has the support of the Cabinet, highlighting yet again the importance of the support from the public sector in our collective goal of inclusive growth. With Tourism Minister Patricia De Lille at the forefront, the gains achieved in the last year are nothing short of remarkable. As an industry, we are eagerly anticipating the gazetting of the Tourism White Paper – an important guideline in the creation of an enabling regulatory environment.
On the transport front, discussions continue on how best to increase South Africa’s aviation capacity. In our quest to bring more visitors to the country, there has to be a concerted effort to ensure those visitors have various options in terms of modes of travel. The good news for tour licence operators is that the backlog in the issuing of operating licences has been cleared. Deputy DG of Public Transport at the DOT, Mathabatha Mokonyama has re-affirmed the department’s commitment to roll out an online application system. This will make it easier to alleviate delays and other impediments to the issuing and renewal of tourism vehicle operating licences. Work continues to support the National Public Transport Regulator, which adjudicates the applications for tourist transport operating licences and the accreditation of tour operators. As an industry, we stand ready to lend a hand to ensure seamless operations.
On a positive note, amendments to the National Land Transport Regulations now provide tourist operators with a 21-day grace period when applying for renewals of operating licences. Operators and prospective applicants are now also able to apply for accreditation and operating licences simultaneously. Applicants may now request an extension of 30 days to submit the requested documents and load their operating licences per the regulations.
Re-imagining a new future
As the industry finds new frontiers to unlock potential, sports and events tourism has become a critical space for opportunity. Sports, Arts, and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie has invited the tourism industry to lead the way in unlocking opportunities in sports and events tourism. He says the industry ought to re-imagine its role, potential, and approach and take the initiative to position South Africa as an important destination for major events. For sports fanatics, the minister provided feedback on the developments regarding bringing Formula One (F1) to South Africa.
“We have been in talks with the relevant stakeholders, and I am happy to say those engagements have been fruitful. They have given us a list of requirements that need to be fulfilled. And when we next meet in Doha, we will have an update on where we stand in terms of securing those rights,” says McKenzie.
The TBCSA remains committed to playing its part in ensuring partnerships with the government in areas of interest. Our priority is to ensure that the private sector can do its work effectively and ensure that the environment is conducive for operation. We also recognise that continuous engagements and partnerships with our public partners are important in helping us reach our goals.
Our national air access initiative continues to be a work in progress, and we will need all our partners to support local and global air access fully. We will play our part in educating communities about the benefits of tourism and seek their collaboration in partnering with us. When we contribute to the development of infrastructure and invest in tourism development, we also foster relations and create ecosystems that aid in ensuring the safety and security of tourists, while empowering their communities as well. We remain committed to investing in tourism marketing, and strengthening our private-public partnerships, especially in key growth markets.
