JOHANNESBURG, Feb. 29 (Xinhua) -- South Africa is confident of surpassing pre-COVID-19 levels in international tourist arrivals, thanks to intervention measures the country has put in place, Deputy Minister of Tourism Fish Mahlalela said Thursday.

In 2023, South Africa recorded 8.5 million international visitors, 48.9 percent higher than in 2022, Mahlalela said in an interview with Xinhua, noting that the country received over 10 million international travelers in 2019.

"We are currently sitting at 8.6 million tourist arrivals, and we are in the mode of recovery. We have not yet reached where we were in 2019, but we believe that this year, we will be able to reach that target and increase even more," said Mahlalela.

To boost the tourism sector, the South African government is working with the private sector to create an environment that enables tourists to visit the country, according to the deputy minister. "South Africa is currently investing in attracting meetings, conferences, exhibitions and tourists to the country to grow the economy."

"South Africa is working to improve the visa regime to make travel to the country easier, and it has negotiated with some airlines to resume direct flights to the country to enable tourists to travel," he said, adding that the country has deployed tourism monitors in various tourist resorts to beef up security. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)