While no mention was made of tourism in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation address, all eyes will be focused on Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana to address tourism growth challenges when he delivers the Budget Speech in Parliament tomorrow (February 21).
The tourism and hospitality sector is a key contributor to the country’s GDP. Many other industries’ growth and success are linked to the tourism industry, including manufacturing, agriculture, art, and culture, and therefore offer massive job creation potential.
However, there are significant barriers to tourism growth and recovery, and the industry is hopeful the budget will address some of these challenges by allocating funds to unblock these obstacles.
CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA), Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, outlined three critical areas he hoped would be addressed in the Budget Speech.
“Our industry needs more money for destination marketing to attract tourists to our shores….
