The number of tourists visiting South Africa almost halved last year, boosted by new favorable visa policies and increased arrivals from BRICS countries, the country’s tourism ministry said last week.
South Africa received 8.5 million international tourists last year, a 49 percent increase compared to the previous year, South Africa’s Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said.
Africa accounted for 6.4 million visitors, or 75 percent of all arrivals, while about 200,000 people from Asia arrived in South Africa, an increase of 69 percent from 2022, he said.
βThis recovery can be attributed to consistent efforts to promote South Africa as a welcoming, responsible tourism destination, highlighting experiences that align with intrepid, green economy-conscious travelers,β said de Lille.
The country also received an increasing number of tourists from Kenya. Effective January 1, 2023, South Africa has allowed Kenyans to visit the country visa-free for up to 90 days within a calendar year. This has helped increase the overall number of international tourists, de Lille said.
South Africa held the BRICS presidency last year and hosted the 15th BRICS Summit, attracting a number of tourists from the five BRICS countries. There was a 44 percent increase in Indian tourists visiting the country last year with about 80,000 arrivals, South Africa’s tourism ministry said.
A new member of the BRICS family, more than 6,500 tourists from the United Arab Emirates visited South Africa, a 110 percent increase compared to 2022 figures.
The number of Chinese tourists to South Africa increased by 205 percent last year. De Lille said efforts are being made to improve visa processing in South Africa and allow more Chinese visitors.
Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, said: “We are recovering as a country from COVID-19 and this could be a result of the attractive destination marketing we are doing.”
The author is a freelance reporter for China Daily.