South Africa was ranked 55th among 119 countries
and emerged as the leading country in the rankings for the African continent in
the second edition of the index released earlier this week by the WEF.
The 2024 TTDI, which covers 119 economies and measures the
set of factors and policies that enable the sustainable and resilient
development of the travel and tourism sector, also revealed that South Africa
is home to the largest travel and tourism economy in Africa.
“We are extremely pleased with this ranking as it affirms
our commitment and work to elevate the significance and contribution of the
tourism sector in South Africa,” said South African Minister of Tourism
Patricia de Lille, as quoted in the statement.
In the 2024 index, South Africa moved up seven places
compared to its previous ranking and scored high for price competitiveness,
information and communication technology readiness, natural resources, and
travel and tourism socio-economic impact.
“The tourism sector has achieved robust growth over the past
year, and this is due to closer partnerships and collaborations with the
private sector to grow tourism to its full potential,” said the statement.
According to the statement, in 2023, South Africa welcomed
close to 8.5 million international visitors, of which 6.4 million were from the
African continent, representing a significant increase of 48.9 percent compared
to 2022 arrivals.
During the first quarter of 2024, South Africa received 2.4
million visitors from the rest of the world, a notable 15.4 percent increase
compared with the same period in 2023.
“We are delighted by the growth, and our mission remains to
exponentially grow arrival numbers and the overall performance of the tourism
sector. The sector already makes a significant contribution to South Africa’s
gross domestic product and job creation efforts, but there is still so much
more to be done,” said De Lille in the statement.
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