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'Crime deters tourists from SA'
23/07/2007 14:48 - (SA)
Cape Town - South Africa's rampant crime was a major threat to the growth of the country's tourism industry, Tourism Minister Marthinus Van Schalkwyk said on Monday.
Speaking at the National Conference of the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry, Van Schalkwyk said crime was one of the main factors preventing potential tourists from visiting the country.
"Research conducted by SA Tourism, has indicated that while South Africa is in many respects an attractive tourist destination, fear of crime could be a possible deterrent to potential visitors," he said.
The 2005 SA Tourism brand tracking survey, Van Schalkwyk said, revealed that more than 22 million potential tourists did not want to visit the country because of fears of crime.
"Crime is therefore an issue we as industry have to deal with if we want to reach our target of 10 million arrivals by 2010," he said.
Currently ranked number 23rd by the Union of International Associations as a top meeting destination in the world, South Africa has set itself a target to achieve number 10 by 2010.
Van Schalkwyk conceded a lot of work around challenges such as crime and weak transport infrastructure, had to be undertaken at a massive scale if that goal was to be achieved.
"This is an ambitious goal and requires a concerted and collaborative partnership with industry.
"Getting to that position will take an unusual amount of work, an unusual amount of confidence, and an unusual amount of selling our proposition to meetings and incentive planners around the globe," he said.
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