SA Tourism (SAT) has scoffed at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s plans for tourism industry as “unrealistic and unattainable”.
The president suggested that 21 million people will visit South Africa over the next decade.
However, SAT indicated that a more realistic tourism target will be 16.5 million by 2030.
Official opposition, Democratic Alliance (DA)’s shadow minister of tourism Manny de Freitas blasted Ramaphosa for ‘living in a different reality’ to the rest of the country.
“On Tuesday, SA Tourism confirmed to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Tourism that the President’s target of 21 million visitors over the next 10 years was unrealistic and unattainable,” he was quoted as saying by the South African.
“Like most of his promises, this was a pipe dream. The reality is that President Ramaphosa cannot expect South Africa to welcome high numbers of tourists to our shores when our economy is floundering, crime is on the rise and our aviation industry is being held to ransom by industrial action on the part of unions.”
Meanwhile, the Portfolio Committee on Tourism said the statement issued by De Freitas represented his views and not that of the committee.
“As a collective of the committee we are satisfied with the responses and plan developed by the South African Tourism Board and the Department of National Tourism to work towards the target,” it said.
“…[we] have therefore recommended that they work with other tourism agencies and government departments for collaboration and coordination of programmes for both the international and domestic markets.”
