Cheer up! View us through tourist eyes
TRYING to suggest that the economy is reaching a turning point, albeit an unimpressive one, is a hard sell, especially amid the anecdotal stories of rising prices, struggling consumers and general economic gloom. So to avoid becoming trapped in the despair and self-perpetuating pessimism, it’s important to take stock of economic sectors where fundamentals are indeed improving.
The economy registered an impressive R6.7-billion trade surplus in September, not simply because of lacklustre consumption but because of improvements in the exportintensive mining and manufacturing sectors — as well as a rebound in commodity prices. Wages were agreed in the platinum sector without the need for a strike, and the currency has firmed against all major crosses in recognition of the strength of our institutions in the face of attempts to subvert them.
The inherent resilience of our economy has been severely tested and will continue to be so as business and consumer confidence languish in contractionary territory.
Nevertheless, it is worth stepping back and getting the perspective of outsiders not constantly overwhelmed by the depressing headlines we have become numb to, and there is no better perspective than that provided by developments in our tourism sector.
Now that the Ebola fears have subsided, and the self-induced biometric and visa deterrents have been lifted, foreigners are again choosing to visit South Africa, bringing with them much-needed foreign exchange and job-creation opportunities.
South Africans rightly bemoan inflation, but, from an outsider’s perspective, our country offers the best value for money.
Earlier this year, Mercer’s Cost of Living Index ranked Cape Town and Johannesburg second and fifth respectively (out of 375 cities) as the cheapest cities in the world to live for expatriates. South Africa was also named the top adventure destination in the world for 2016 and the third top global destination (after Italy and France) in the Virtuoso International Luxury Travel rankings — just two recent accolades among many.
Granted, the rankings were aided to some extent by currency depreciation, but they offer a glimpse of how outsiders view our country, and rising tourist numbers are an endorsement of these awards.
In August, 805 000 foreign visitors arrived to spend their holidays in South Africa, 15.4% more than at the same time last year. Holidaymakers from Europe, the US and Asia were up 23.6%, 11.4% and 38.7% respectively, and the country is on track to see 10 million holiday visitors a year. These numbers exclude the more than 21 000 business travellers and 6 000 students who arrived in August.
The latest available review of the tourism sector from Stats SA, published last year, shows that inbound tourists spent almost R100billion in South Africa in 2013, which provided a R31-billion trade surplus for the sector that year. The figures show that each traveller spends roughly R10 000 a visit. Looking at the production accounts in the same report, the gross direct value added by the tourism sector in the same year amounted to R180-billion, more than 5% of the total gross value added, and accounted for about 655 000 direct and indirect jobs (4.4% of employment).
The merits of aggressively pursuing growth in the tourism sector are clear: job creation and revenue generation. Moreover, with the country’s high level of unskilled or semi-skilled labour, the tourist sector provides a perfect point of entry for many looking to get a job and hone a skill set.
Tourism is no panacea for the difficulties afflicting our economy, but it has the potential to offset some of the weaknesses in other sectors of our financial system. It is for this reason we can’t afford any missteps on the path to achieving this goal.
The message from outsiders, borne out by the tourist numbers, is that visitors want to come to our country — but there are many alternative destinations should we make it unnecessarily difficult for travellers.