JOHANNESBURG, Feb. 11 (Xinhua) -- South Africa will start receiving group visa applications from selected tour operators on behalf of Chinese and Indian tourists in mid-February, an official from the Department of Home Affairs said on Tuesday.

Yusuf Simons, Western Cape provincial manager at the Department of Home Affairs, said in an interview with Xinhua that South Africa has selected 65 tour operators from South Africa, India and China for the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS) to submit group visa applications by Chinese and Indian tourists to visit the country.

The TTOS was announced last year to boost tourism arrivals from China and India, as Chinese tourists account for only 1.8 percent and Indian tourists 3.9 percent of all international visitors to South Africa.

"The TTOS was created to attract tourists from China and India. The population of India and China is one third of the world's population, so we are trying to divert many tourists from those two countries to South Africa as a preferred destination. The selected 65 tour operators will start submitting applications from the middle of February," said Simons.

He explained that tourists from China and India prefer traveling in groups, and they would like to make their applications seamless. "The TTOS is expected to increase the tourist arrivals from the two countries, growing the South African economy and creating jobs."

"Research has shown that for two tourists who visit South Africa, a job is created. If we increase the number of tourists from those countries, the jobs created will be extensive," Simons said.

"The turnaround period to finalize applications will be reduced to two to three days, instead of waiting for three weeks. The online process requirements have been reduced," he added.

The official said the TTOS is in its pilot phase, and his department expects to add more tour operators to attract more tourists from the two populous countries.

Simons noted that many tourists from China and India have shown great interest in visiting South Africa. Some tourists from the two countries have been encountering challenges in applying for visas because of the language barrier.

A total of 41,651 tourists from China visited South Africa in 2024, an increase of 11.4 percent from 2023, according to South Africa's Department of Tourism. Meanwhile, South Africa recorded 75,541 tourists from India in 2024, down 5.3 percent from the previous year. Enditem

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