Tourism is not only about visiting South Africa’s most beautiful places, but it is also an accelerator of job creation, bolsters the economy and reinvigorates villages, townships, small towns, heritage sites and national parks.
This according to President Cyril Ramaphosa who has touted the sector as one of the industries capable of attracting “investment, earn foreign revenue, strengthen localisation and create employment at scale”.
During the launch of Phase three of the Government-Business Partnership, the President urged both the public and private sector to “remove the barriers holding the sector back”.
“Tourism is one of the fastest ways to generate jobs across a wide range of skills. Every additional visitor supports employment in accommodation, transport, food services, entertainment, retail and the creative industries.
“We must improve air access, modernise visa processing, strengthen destination marketing, enhance tourist safety and expand investment in tourism infrastructure. We must ensure that the benefits of tourism extend beyond the established destinations to our villages, townships, small towns, heritage sites and national parks,” President Ramaphosa said.
The raw numbers back up the President’s stance.
In July alone, some 991 696 international tourists came to South African shores – a 12.5% growth from July 2025.
“Cumulatively, this growth brings total international tourist arrivals between January 2026 and July 2026 to 6 576 169, representing growth of 12.4% compared to the same period last year.
“During this period, arrivals from Africa increased by 14.3% year-on-year while overseas arrivals grew by 5.7%,” the Tourism department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, statistics indicate that in 2024 the sector sustained some 954 000 direct jobs and contributed 4.9% to GDP – in an era marked by slow economic growth.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille added: “The data reveals that the growth is becoming geographically diversified, which has been one of our strategic priorities.
“Together with the private sector and stakeholders we’ll continue to build on this momentum through the recently launched digital visa, the Electronic Travel Authorisation [ETA] system”.
On the ETA system, Home Affairs Minister, Dr Leon Schreiber, described the new system as revolutionary for South Africa’s immigration and tourism management.
The system was officially launched at the OR Tambo International Airport in a ceremony led by President Ramaphosa.
The system combines advanced biometric verification with automated risk analysis, delivering both enhanced security and faster processing for legitimate travellers.
“[The] ETA represents a quantum leap forward for our country’s immigration system, both by unlocking economic growth through tourism, investment and legitimate travel, and by landing a decisive blow against visa fraud and illegal immigration,” Schreiber declared.
The system uses automated risk analysis to identify indicators of fraud at a “speed and scale no human could achieve”
“If the application is approved, the traveller will receive their ETA within 24 hours, which they can then store directly in the digital wallet on their smart phone.
“Once an approved traveller arrives at the immigration counter, they are again required to look into a camera, where biometric verification enables us to confirm that the person standing at our border is the same person who received authorisation to travel to our country.
“In other words: the face of the traveller becomes the key that determines whether they may enter, rather than physical documents that can be manipulated,” the Minister explained.
Tourists and travellers arriving at OR Tambo International Airport, Cape Town International Airport, King Shaka International Airport, and Lanseria International Airport have access to the system.
Land and seaports over the coming months to roll out facial recognition
Facial recognition and EMCS 2.0 will, over the coming months, also be rolled out at all land and seaports.
Work also continues to “expand the platform also to process more complex visa categories, including study visas, spousal visas, and work visas”.
“By the time this work is complete, South Africa will have one of the most sophisticated, efficient and secure digital visa and entry/exit systems anywhere in the world.
“[The] ETA is the embodiment of our commitment to the vision of turning South Africa into a world leader in smart and secure migration management and digital government,” Schreiber said. – SAnews.gov.za
