Tourism bouncing back from COVID setbacks – but crime, corruption limiting growth
Although Stats SA says the tourism industry is back to pre-pandemic levels, Business Unit SA’s CEO says growth would have been more significant had other issues improved.
Stats SA says the tourism industry is back to pre-pandemic levels. Picture: Pexels
JOHANNESBURG – Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) says the tourism sector has shown signs of recovery coming back from the onslaught of COVID-19.
Four years since the COVID-19 state of disaster was announced, the country is still counting the costs of the pandemic.
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A travel ban by government saw a decline in revenue from domestic and international visitors, leading to a drop in tourism-related expenditure and employment.
But Stats SA says the tourism industry is back to pre-pandemic levels.
Domestic visitors spent R435 billion in 2022, a sharp rise from the R286 billion in 2021.
CEO of Business Unity SA, Cas Coovadia, says businesses are benefiting from this bounce-back.
“I think we’re slowly getting back. If you look at some of the results that were coming out a year ago, then they seem to be reasonably positive. But if you look at the results now, mining and banking a few weeks ago, then those seem to be a bit tough, and that’s as a result of a poor environment for business growth and business development.”
Coovadia said the private sector was working with government to address challenges in the business sector to keep the economy afloat.
“On issues like logistics and energy, issues like crime and corruption, those are all inhibiting factors to business growth. I think had we been in a better position with those, the post COVID growth would have been more significant.”