More than 9.5 million foreign tourists spent R74.2 billion in South Africa last year, according to Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk on Thursday.
This was 23.5 percent more than foreign tourists spent the year before, an increase that was "especially encouraging", he said in a statement. Foreign tourists spent R60.1 billion in 2007.
A total of 9,591,828 foreigners visited South Africa last year, compared to 9,090,881 in 2007.
In a statement ,van Schalkwyk said, "The South African industry continued to perform well in spite of pressures exerted by the global financial crisis that had seen growth in the global industry shrink to 1.3 per cent last year. South Africa had recorded 5.5 per cent arrivals growth over the period."
“I am especially encouraged by the fact that foreign direct spend in 2008 had grown by an estimated 23.5 per cent, bringing the total revenue generated by tourism to more than R356 billion since 2003," he added.
Regional and short-haul tourists remained the largest and most lucrative market. The most popular provinces visited by foreign tourists last year were Gauteng and the Western Cape, which snared 32.3 percent and 26.9 percent of visitor nights respectively. The third most popular province was KwaZulu-Natal, with 10.7 percent of visitor nights.
Looking towards to the future Van Schalkwyk said the hosting of sporting events, such as the Indian Premier League, the ICC Champions Trophy, the British and Irish Lions Tour, the Confederations Cup and the 2010 FIFA World Cup, will bode well for the country’s tourism industry.
"These events will help the industry weather the global economic storm and it gives us an opportunity to prove our global competitiveness. Our successful hosting of these events will also entrench South Africa both as a capable and a desirable leisure destination," the Minister said.
Sapa / SAGN
