Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism

(1)The Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS) is a South African initiative aimed at streamlining visa applications for group tourists from China and India. It involves the Department of Home Affairs partnering with selected tour operators to offer a digital platform for submitting and processing visa applications. This scheme aims to boost tourism by reducing red tape and improving visa processing times for these key markets. The scheme offers participating tour operators faster turnaround times for visa applications and reduces bureaucratic hurdles. Tourists benefit from a more streamlined visa application process, potentially leading to increased visitor numbers for the tourism industry.

The TTO Scheme’s key benefits include:

• Enhanced Destination Credibility: By certifying tour operators that meet strict standards, the scheme boosts international confidence in the province's tourism offerings, especially for group travel and high-value markets.
• Support for Transformation and Inclusivity: The scheme includes mechanisms to support emerging and historically disadvantaged tourism operators to access new markets and participate more fully in the tourism economy.
• Strengthening Partnerships: It enables closer collaboration between government, the private sector, and international diplomatic missions, which is key to addressing regulatory or market-entry barriers.
• (2)Tourist arrivals from India and China are likely to increase as a result of the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme. These two markets represent high-growth potential for the Western Cape, particularly during off-peak seasons. 
• The scheme supports growth by:
• Barrier Removal: China and India are markets characterised by last-(a key barrier to growth for South Africa. The newly implemented scheme has reduced processing times to 2-3 days and it can be expected that the removal of this barrier will lead to growth.
• Enabling Market Readiness: It helps meet the stringent requirements of countries like China and India, which prefer to work with accredited, government-endorsed operators when sending tour groups abroad.
• Facilitating Group Travel and Charter Deals: The credibility of trusted operators allows for easier negotiation of group travel arrangements, charter flights, and inclusion in international travel trade catalogues.
• It is worth noting that tourist arrivals from India and China to South Africa have not yet fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels. As of the end of 2024, South Africa recorded 75,541 tourist arrivals from India, representing approximately 79% of the 95,621 arrivals recorded in 2019. China, having reopened for international travel later than most countries following the COVID-19 pandemic, continues to show slower recovery. In 2019, South Africa welcomed 93,171 tourists from China, whereas by the end of 2024, only 41,418 arrivals were recorded, 44% of pre-pandemic levels.
• In alignment with the Growth for Jobs Strategy, the TTO scheme contributes to:
• Doubling Tourism by 2035 by unlocking new markets and stimulating year-round demand.
• Resilience and Diversification of the provincial economy by reducing over-reliance on traditional source markets and spreading the benefits of tourism more widely.
• Job Creation and Economic Inclusion through expanded tourism activity in both urban and rural areas.