S. Africa eyes more visitors with visa push

South Africa is preparing to roll out a global campaign to promote its tourism industry, aimed at attracting more visitors from key markets such as China and India — two of the world's largest and fastest-growing sources of travelers.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Meetings Africa 2026 in Johannesburg on Tuesday, Patricia de Lille, South Africa's minister of tourism, said the campaign follows the successful pilot of the country's digitized visa system during the G20 summit held in November in Johannesburg. Travelers from China, India, Indonesia and Mexico were processed under the new system.

She described the pilot as seamless, signaling a breakthrough in addressing long-standing visa bottlenecks that have constrained tourism growth in South Africa.

"We shouldn't assume that people know about the digitized visa system, especially the main source markets like India and China," de Lille said, adding South Africa will launch a campaign to promote the system.

She explained her ministry has been working closely with China's tourism authorities over the past two years to increase Chinese arrivals to South Africa.

The minister has instructed the South African tourism offices in Beijing and in Shanghai to appoint local destination marketing companies to position South Africa as a destination of choice for China. Similar efforts are underway in India to strengthen destination marketing and grow arrivals from both markets.

Highlighting tourism's economic impact, de Lille said that for every 13 international arrivals, one permanent job and three indirect jobs are created in South Africa.

Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, chief executive officer of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, said China and India will be critical to achieving the country's target of 15.6 million international tourist arrivals annually by 2030.

"If we don't grow those two markets, we will not come close to our target," he said, adding that the industry aims to attract 500,000 visitors annually from each country.

Priority market

He described China as a priority market due to its large population and expanding middle class. South Africa is developing a comprehensive "China-ready" strategy to prepare for the country's growing outbound market.

The strategy includes adapting to Chinese digital platforms, payment systems and cultural preferences. Efforts are also underway to address language barriers through training programs, including Mandarin language instruction and culinary training for chefs to better cater to Chinese visitors.

Tshivhengwa also highlighted the Trusted Tour Operators Scheme launched in early 2025. Although visitor numbers have not yet reflected significant growth, the initiative has simplified the visa application process.

The fully digital visa facilitation platform allows government-approved tour operators to submit visa applications online on behalf of their clients, with typical processing timelines of three to five working days.

Air connectivity has also been identified as a top priority under the Tourism Growth Partnership Plan — a joint strategy focused on five key interventions to unlock tourism expansion, with improved air access leading the list.

South Africa is currently discussing with China and India to increase direct flight capacity.

"We are discussing with airlines in China to increase flight frequencies. South African Airways will be relaunching the Hong Kong route, which will strengthen connectivity into the Chinese mainland," de Lille said.