South Africa targets developing tourism industry, attracts more Chinese tourists

South Africa is developing its tourism industry and planning to attract more Chinese tourists compared to the numbers recorded in the previous years. According to a South African official, the country is striving to make their travel easier and more enjoyable.

Derek Hanekom, South African Minister of Tourism said in a Chinese New Year celebration held by the Chinese embassy that South Africa has about 100,000 Chinese tourists annually, "we could massively grow this number." In 2018, South Africa and China signed memorandums of understanding, among them was visa simplification for Chinese business and leisure travellers to promote tourism, Xinhua reported.

Hanekom said this was one step toward making it easier for Chinese travellers to get visa to South Africa. He revealed that South African government is considering issuing 10-year-multiple-entry visa and e-visa to Chinese tourists. Department of Home Affairs is exploring the possibility of recognizing prior or other visa in Chinese passport, such as Schengen visa, U.S. visa or Australian visa.

He also promised that the visa application-approval process will be reduced to five days. As for the safety problem, Hanekom said, "We are all aware of the challenge. We're taking it very seriously." The government is fighting crime and corruption harshly, those places that visitors typically visit are "safe by any international standard."

Hanekom said some local guides and hotel waiters had been taught Mandarin to enhance Chinese visitors' experience. The training will be extended to more people in the next few years. "South Africa offers a range of wildlife experiences and amazingly diverse cultural and heritage offering that not many countries can match," Hanekom said. "We extend a warm welcome to them (Chinese) to include South Africa in their travel plans."