Tourism news flashes
- Figures for 2010:At the national launch of Tourism Month 2008 at Rustenburg in North West, Minister for Environmental Affairs and Tourism Marthinus van Schalkwyk said that South Africa is on course to achieve its target of receiving 10 million foreign visitors by 2010. For the first five months of this year the number of foreign visitors to SA increased with 7,6% to just about 4 million. Meanwhile, it is reported that the SA government has spent up to now about R23 billion in preparations for FIFA 2010, most of which went into the construction of five new stadiums and the upgrading of another five. As to sponsorships, FIFA has so far procured sponsorships for 2010 in SA to a total amount of $3,1 billion, almost twice the total of $1,8 billion for the previous FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea.
- New TEP:According to the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, theTourism Enterprise Programme has changed its name to Tourism Enterprise Partnership (TEP), who is promising more involvement in the tourism industry to reach better results. The new TEP aims to link businesses to the market through partnerships, 50 % of the budget of which is to be allocated to skills development and linkages between businesses and channels such as leisure, business and domestic travel.
- Positive outlook for tourism in 2008: According to Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, in the SA Parliamanet, South Africa is looking forward to even better tourist numbers this year after topping the 9 million mark in foreign arrivals in 2007. He says that with the exciting global projects being rolled out by SA Tourism in the new fiscal year, he is more confident than ever that South Africa will exceed the target of 10 million foreign visitors by 2010. "To help us spread the benefits of tourism more widely, the reinvigorated Tourism Enterprise Partnership will further boost the development of sustainable enterprises, job creation and transformation. By the end of 2007, 4 166 SMMEs were empowered through the established of business linkages and received training in the development of business and marketing plans. The value of linkages created for SMMEs amounted to R3,4 billion by the end oflast year," Van Schalkwyk said.
- Further increase for 2008 arrivals: According to Statistics SA, the total arrivals in SA from overseas and African markets for February 2008, has increased with 10,2%, meaning a 6,7% increase in comparison with the 5,5% arrivals in January 2008. The key overseas source markets for February were Germany (up 3,3%), USA (up 13,6%), France up 21,5%), Australia (up 12,8%), Sweden (up 10,4%), Canada (up 18,4%), India (up 13,4%) and China (up 41,2%). African arrival rates increased by 11,3%, with an 11,2% increase from SADC countries.
- Arrivals from Africa up 5,2%: According to latest figures from Stats SA, travellers to South Africa in January 2008 amounted to 1 552 234 foreign travellers of which 658 900 were African. This amounts to an increase of 5,2% for Africa. Stats SA also said that road transport was the most common form of entry, accounting for 65,1% of travel. 89,4% of overseas travellers used air travel, comparing to 10,4% using road transport. Overall, 91,1% of overseas travellers came to South Africa on holiday. Overseas travellers came mainly from Europe (68,5%), followed by North America (11,8%), Asia (9%), Australasia and Central and South America (4,7% and 3% respectively).
- SA grows slice of world tourism market: According to figures announced by Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, in March 2008, overall foreign arrivals in South Africa has increased by 8,6% from January to November 2007. Speaking at the opening of the Business Tourism Conference, in Johannesburg, Van Schalkwyk noted that the growth in African air markets was led by Kenya at 15,4% and Nigeria at 14,8%. Arrivals from the Americas total 255 822 visitors, making the US market the second largest source market for South Africa. Arrivals out of Europe were up by 2,6% for the year to date, driven largely by an increase of 9,6% out of France. However, there was a loss of 2,2% in arrivals out of Germany as a result of market-specific economic activity. Growth out of Asia and Australasia was led by expansion in two markets, namely India growing by 19,1% and China which grew by 11,8%. Australia maintained satisfactory growth levels with an increase of 6,5% for the year to date. Business tourists currently make up 5% of South Africa's total tourism market.
- Government says SA on track for 2010: The SA Government has once again assured the local and international community that South Africa will be ready in time to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup. "We are ready and on track," said Minister of Sport and Recreation, Makhenkesi Sitofile on 18 March 2008, adding that FIFA and the 2010 Soccer World Cup Local Organising Committee (LOC) had indicated the same following a five-day inspection tour. He said the tour to the World Cup stadiums and host cities in February had provided evidence that preparations for the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 and World Cup were going full steam ahead. Minister Sitofile was speaking during the handing over ceremony of the 2010 Mid-Term Government Report compiled by the 2010 FIFA World Cup Government Unit. The state of readiness report provides feedback from various government departments as part of implementing 2010 FIFA World Cup government guarantees and obligations. Among some of the major milestones included in the report, is the programme proceeding to meet the October 2009 deadline of stadia construction. "At the end of 2007, all major construction projects were on track with varying stages of progress, but overall good success and preparedness for the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2009," the report said. The capacity of South Africa to deliver the 10 match stadia in good time has remained the focus of the media, local and international public. Concerns raised by FIFA's agent, Match, as to whether South Africa's transport infrastructure would be in place to ensure seamless travel from places of accommodation to match venues, have since been addressed by the Department of Transport. The report states that departments are addressing the slow progress in implementing transport infrastructure projects by increasing building capacity. Government has spent over R20 billion in infrastructure as part of the larger spending programme towards the World Cup. At the briefing Deputy President Pumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka noted the escalating expenditure in the construction of stadiums. "On the issue of cost, tax payers must rest assured that as government, we are looking at ways to curb escalating cost," she said. According to the report the monitoring and evaluation of infrastructure projects in the host cities are going well and will be reinforced with the appointment a professional team of experts, who will be assisting the department in reporting progress, financial performance and troubleshooting areas of potential delays and maladministration.
- SA grows slice of world tourism market: According to figures announced by Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, in March 2008, overall foreign arrivals in South Africa has increased by 8,6% from January to November 2007. Speaking at the opening of the Business Tourism Conference, in Johannesburg, Van Schalkwyk noted that the growth in African air markets was led by Kenya at 15,4% and Nigeria at 14,8%. Arrivals from the Americas total 255 822 visitors, making the US market the second largest source market for South Africa. Arrivals out of Europe were up by 2,6% for the year to date, driven largely by an increase of 9,6% out of France. However, there was a loss of 2,2% in arrivals out of Germany as a result of market-specific economic activity. Growth out of Asia and Australasia was led by expansion in two markets, namely India growing by 19,1% and China which grew by 11,8%. Australia maintained satisfactory growth levels with an increase of 6,5% for the year to date. Business tourists currently make up 5% of South Africa's total tourism market.
- New Protea Hotel in Bloem Zoo: A new Protea Hotel, called the Hotel Protea Willow Lake, is being erected on part of the premises of the Bloemfontein Zoo - the first zoo in South Africa to have a hotel on its grounds. Eizon Investments (Pty.) Ltd. of Bloemfontein is developing the 94 room hotel in conjunction with the Protea Hotel Group at a projected cost of R60 million. The new hotel forms part of a range of building activities taking place at the zoo which also include a new animal hospital, offices, stores, facilities for zoo workers and a meeting venue for the Friends of the Zoo also being built by Eizon Investments. The entrance to the new hotel will be on Charles Street across from Eskom, while the animal hospital is more to the south at the corner of Kings Way and Parfitt Avenue. Strict ecological and environmental requirements are being applied with the construction of the hotel, which is expected to be finished by April 2008.
- Tourism to contribute 12% of GDP by 2010: According to CEO of SA Tourism, Moeketsi Mosala, the SA tourism industry is to make up about 12% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the time the 2010 FIFA World Cup comes around. Speaking at the launch of the Tourism Month and the relaunch of the Sho't Left Campaign held in Qunu, Mosala said: "The industry currently contributes about 8.2% of the national GDP, which is a R79 billion contribution." Mosala also observed that on a monthly basis SA deals with some 650 000 travellers. In 2006, 8.3 million people passed through the country. As to 2010, he said: "We are expecting some 450 000 international travellers in the space of six weeks.
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