BY Ndumiso Mlilo
South Africa's tourism sector is using the Covid-19 era to improve their services and resume on a higher note, the South African Tourism (SAT) said at a webinar this week.
SAT chief executive Sisa Ntshona also expressed optimism the country will weather the Covid-19 storm and be a force to be reckoned with.
"The Covid-19 has given us the opportunity to press the reset button on how we can emerge from this. I have hope this sector will bounce back, it's a matter of time. We are using this time to sharpen our axes. We understand the frustration the sector has to get it going," said Ntshona.
He said they have been using the Covid-19 lockdown to improve the sector. South Africa's business tourism is allowed to resume operation now.
Ntshona said the sector has come up with risk-adjusted interventions to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and restore confidence in travellers. The country's tourism is supposed to fully operate at level one with the exact date yet to be determined.
Meanwhile, IOL Travel reported earlier this week that Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA)hosted a webinar with over 1 600 key stakeholders within the tourism and hospitality sector on Monday afternoon to discuss the future of tourism in the country.
TBCSA suggested that the South African government "break down the industry into smaller sections to increase the possibility of small wins".
This follows pleas from the organisation for leisure travel to be allowed in level 3 lockdown. TBCSA CEO Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, said the meeting was aimed to provide feedback on efforts by the council to lobby government for a phased reopening of the industry and discuss the current state of the tourism industry.
Tshivhengwa revealed that the tourism sector needed to be sensitive to the fact that as coronavirus infection numbers grow, it becomes difficult for the government to give concessions to the industry.