Story audio is generated using AI
The number of foreign travellers who entered the country dropped 6% month on month to nearly 1.09-million in June but was up 4.3% versus a year ago, Stats SA data showed on Wednesday.Nearly 2.8-million travellers, including arrivals, departures and transits, passed through South Africa’s ports of entry or exit during the month, comprising more than 715,000 South African residents and almost 2.1-million foreign travellers, the report says.Tourists from the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) accounted for 81.2% of all visitors for the month, led by Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho. Other African countries contributed 1.5%, with visitors from Kenya, Ghana and Nigeria accounting for most of that segment.(Karen Moolman) This suggests that tensions between Pretoria and countries such as Ghana and Nigeria over anti-immigrant sentiment largely directed at undocumented foreign nationals have not significantly deterred their citizens from visiting South Africa.Tourists from outside the continent constituted 17.2% of all visitors in June, with the US, the UK and Australia accounting for 49% of overseas visitors.About 97.3% of all the tourists in June were in South Africa for holiday purposes, Stats SA said.The data points to the resilience of the sector despite a spike in the cost of air and other forms of travel, as the war in the Middle East has pushed the cost of jet and other fuels up significantly since early March.The numbers, however, show that visitors from the Middle East slumped 19.7% year on year in June. Those from Asia were also down 14.8% while visitors from North America fell 2.1%, but arrivals from Australasia (13.2%), Central and South America (13%), Africa (12.1%) and Europe (3.9%) were all up.On Tuesday, another Stats SA report showed that total income for the tourist accommodation industry increased by 2.5% year on year in May at current prices compared with a year ago. Stripping out receipts from restaurants, bar sales and other sources, income was 2.2% year on year, easing from 5.9% in April and 13.7% in March.WATCH | Middle East conflict opens tourism window for South AfricaAll in all, as geopolitical risks recede and travel sentiment improves, the South African tourism sector is likely to benefit from ongoing efforts to enhance the visitor experience, including visa reforms, improved air connectivity, targeted safety initiatives and investments in tourism infrastructure, Investec economist Lara Hodes said.“Indeed, tourism continues to be a critical driver of economic growth and employment in South Africa,” she added.Earlier this month, the department of tourism touted data showing international tourist arrivals increased by 12.8% to 4,220,586 in the five months to May compared with the same period last year as testament that “our decision to invest in tourism infrastructure, improve ease of access and diversify our tourism offerings across the country is paying off”.Indeed, tourism continues to be a critical driver of economic growth and employment in South Africa.— Lara Hodes, Investec economist“South Africa’s greatest competitive advantage lies in the combination of our people, our natural beauty, our rich heritage and our world-class infrastructure. Together, they continue to position our country as a destination of choice,” minister Patricia de Lille said at the time.De Lille also flagged strong growth from Brazil, with Latam Airlines launching its direct service between Cape Town and São Paulo, a move she said aligned with the cabinet-approved tourism route development marketing plan, which is focused on strengthening direct connectivity and unlocking new source markets.Turkish Airlines is also set to increase its direct services between South Africa and Turkey to 20 weekly flights from October, the department said. The airline will operate 10 weekly direct flights between Istanbul and Johannesburg and 10 between Istanbul and Cape Town, up from the current seven weekly flights to Joburg and seven to Cape Town.Business Day
