In order to improve the tourism sector, South Africa should consider a visa waiver program for Chinese nationals as the country’s tourism guru.
The Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) CEO Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa said that they need to be bold and show their intent and issue a waiver for Chinese tourists for the next three years and evaluate the impact of that.
The potential Chinese tourists are discouraged by the visa requirements and South Africa needs to create a demand to get people from outside to visit the country and help people in building their economy.
He went on saying that they should say to China what they need is passport for 30 day stay in the country and see if we will reap the rewards. They have a framework for China and they are ready.
Tshivhengwa said the government has set tourism as one of its priority areas, and a world-class e-visa system is a must.
In 2018, the number of tourists in South Africa amounted to about 16.4 million. Arrivals from China was about 100,000. This was according to TBCSA.
Tags: Chinese tourists, Visa waiver
