Tourism direct GDP (2024) | Tourism direct employment (2024) | Travel exports (2024) |
|---|---|---|
4.9% of total GDP (up 0.5 percentage points since 2023) | 5.7% of total employment (up 1.0 percentage points since 2023) | 39.5% of total service exports (up 0.3 percentage points since 2023) |
OECD Tourism Trends and Policies 2026
National tourism strategy: National Tourism Sector Strategy 2016-26
Responsible government agency: National Department of Tourism
National tourism budget: ZAR 2.4 billion (2024-25)
Key tourism policy priorities and actions:
Improving access for tourists – Improving access for visitors in relation to immigration and transport connectivity, including through the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme.
Preparing the tourism sector for future crises – Developing and regularly reviewing the scenario-based Tourism Crisis Management Framework to enable South Africa to respond and manage crises.
Creating a safer tourism – Implementing the research-based tourism safety programme in collaboration with law enforcement agencies.
Tourism plays a significant role in the South African economy and remains a priority sector to respond to socio-economic challenges in the country. In 2024, tourism directly contributed an estimated ZAR 361.7 billion and 954 000 jobs to the South African economy, accounting for 4.9% of GDP and 5.7% of the total workforce.
International tourist arrivals totalled 8.9 million in 2024. While this represented a 5.1% increase compared to 2023, it remains almost 13% below 2019 levels. The top three source markets in terms of international arrivals were Zimbabwe (24.5%), Mozambique (17.8%) and Lesotho (10.9%). Inbound tourism expenditure in 2024 reached ZAR 113.9 billion, up 12.2% from 2023 (ZAR 101.5 billion), but still down on the peak of ZAR 121.5 billion in 2019.
South Africa’s domestic tourism continues to play an important role in the country’s economic rebound, with a peak of 40.2 million domestic tourists in 2024, 6.1% above 2023 levels. Total domestic tourism expenditure (including same-day expenditure) was ZAR 136.4 billion in 2024, 12.4% higher than in 2023.
Tourism continues to be a concurrent function in South Africa’s supreme law, the Constitution (1996), with all three spheres of government (national, provincial and local) having jurisdiction and direct responsibility in developing and implementing tourism policy.
The Minister for Tourism is the executive authority for national tourism policy and development in South Africa. The Minister oversees South African Tourism, the national public entity responsible for marketing South Africa nationally, regionally and internationally, and the Department of Tourism, responsible for promoting the inclusive growth of tourism through research, policy, destination development, international relations and sector support services. The National Tourism Stakeholder Forum and Tourism Leadership Dialogue provide engagement platforms for the co-ordination and integration of activities with public and private sector stakeholders. Horizontal co-ordination is pursued through bilateral engagement and co-operation with key ministries on areas such as visa policy, air connectivity, licensing and tourism safety.
The Department of Tourism participates in international engagements, multi-lateral organisations, and in bilateral relations through signed memoranda of understanding with key countries in Africa, the Middle East and the rest of the world.
Provincial and local governments have responsibility for regional tourism development. At the provincial level, a Member of the Executive Council in each of South Africa's nine provinces is responsible for tourism. The Minister of Tourism and the Executive Councils co-ordinate and align policy, strategic performance plans, priorities, and objectives, through the Minister-Members of the Executive Council (MINMEC) inter-governmental forum. At the local level, a municipality led by the Member of Mayoral Committee responsible for local economic development is responsible for tourism development. The Tourism Business Council of South Africa plays an active role in tourism policy advocacy and takes part in the National Tourism Stakeholder Forum where government priorities are advanced.
The total allocated budget for 2024-25 is ZAR 2.4 billion, which represents a 5.7% decrease compared to 2023-24 financial year. In 2024-25, corporate management was allocated ZAR 359.4 million; tourism research, policy and international relations (including South African Tourism, the Department of Tourism’s only entity) were allocated ZAR 1.3 billion; destination development, ZAR 367.8 million; and tourism sector support services, ZAR 318.1 million.
Source: OECD, adapted from the Department of Tourism, 2026.
Tourism development and growth in South Africa is guided by the National Tourism Sector Strategy 2016-2026, which aims to promote rapid and inclusive tourism development, focusing on South Africa’s competitive edge in nature, culture, and heritage, and underpinned by Ubuntu and supported by innovation and service excellence. This is supported by the Tourism Sector Master Plan, which adjusted the Tourism Sector Recovery Plan timeframes and seeks to continue to monitor the implementation of strategic interventions until 2026. Furthermore, in its latest five-year Tourism Growth Partnership Plan (2025-2030), South Africa prioritises the positioning of tourism as a key driver of inclusive economic growth and job creation.
Improving access to South Africa for visitors in relation to immigration and transport connectivity entails working collaboratively with immigration and transport authorities to remove regulatory barriers. Over the last two years, progress has included the implementation of the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme, an initiative designed to expedite group visa applications for the Chinese and Indian tourism markets. The scheme replaces the manual, paper-based processes that required prospective tourists to apply for a visa in-person, by having Tour Operators upload applications through an online system and assume responsibility for the tourists they bring to the country. Under the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme, tourist visas are processed and receive digital outcomes, on average, within 24 hours. In 2025, 110 operators were approved to implement the scheme in China and India. The broader visa regime is currently shifting towards Electronic Travel Authorisation, which will cover many more visitors. The private sector also plays an instrumental role in policy advocacy when it comes to access issues.
Preparedness is crucial to help mitigate the impact of future crises. South Africa has developed a scenario-based Tourism Crisis Management Strategy, approved in May 2024, to enable South Africa to respond and manage future crises. The strategy seeks to identify and engage relevant structures for disaster management in the country and ensure tourism participation in these structures. The intention is to regularly review this strategy to ensure it remains relevant.
South Africa is also working to ensure the safety of tourists. The implementation of the research-based tourism safety programme, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies, is ongoing. To formalise the relationship between the Department of Tourism and law enforcement authorities, particularly the South African Police Services, a five-year Memorandum of Understanding was entered into in December 2019, committing both the tourism and law enforcement authorities to focus on crime and criminal activities targeting tourists and visitors in identified hotspots. A review of the existing Memorandum of Understanding is underway and is planned for completion by end March 2026.
A 2024 review of the overarching policy guiding the tourism sector found the South African Tourism sector was not shifting to recommit to the responsible tourism agenda. A key outcome of the resulting Tourism White Paper (see box below) was the discouragement of unsustainable conservation practices. Other initiatives to contribute to the responsible tourism agenda in South Africa include universal accessibility initiatives for state-owned tourism products and the implementation of energy efficient initiatives through government subsidies.
In December 2024, South Africa assumed the G20 Presidency, marking the first time an African nation had held the G20 Presidency. The G20 South African Presidency theme was ‘Solidarity, Equality and Sustainability’. The Tourism Working Group priorities for the G20 in 2025 included people-centred AI and innovation for startups and MSMEs; tourism financing and investment; air connectivity for seamless travel; and enhanced resilience for inclusive, sustainable tourism development.
The tourism sector in South Africa has, in the past, underperformed relative to its potential. This could be attributed to various challenges such as regulatory and administrative barriers to tourism growth, a perception of the country as unsafe for visitors, or an inability to comprehensively respond to crises and tourism policy not responding to current trends. In response, South Africa reviewed the overarching policy guiding the tourism sector, with Cabinet approving a Tourism White Paper in September 2024. The White Paper was published and approved for implementation by the Minister for Tourism in October 2024. Some of the major policy interventions to be tackled by the government and private sector included:
Creating an enabling regulatory environment by establishing a differentiated system of regulation for short term rentals and a framework for reporting.
Improving the ease of access for visitors regarding immigration and air access.
Recommitting to the responsible tourism agenda and sustainable development goals.
A focus on enterprise and supplier development as a critical lever for transformation in the tourism sector.
Investment in rural and peri-urban routes of high tourism potential.
The review is considered an historical achievement for South Africa as the tourism sector was previously governed by the 1996 Tourism White Paper. A key lesson learned in the review process was the importance of including tourism stakeholders at the beginning of the policy review process to contribute towards policy areas requiring attention to ensure support throughout the process. The appointment of a diverse Panel of Experts also helped to drive the policy review process at a national level, while providing technical support and enhancing policy outcomes.