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Statement by the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) on the Dissolution of the South African Tourism Board

21 August 2025

The Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) has noted with disappointment the decision to dissolve the South African Tourism (SAT) Board.

In the last 24 hours, the TBCSA met with both the Minister of Tourism and the now-dissolved Board. Following those engagements, our view was clear: the Board had the right mix of expertise and leadership to help address instability within SAT. The Minister’s decision to dissolve it is therefore not aligned with the position we shared and raises serious concern within the sector.

While we recognise that the government has cited governance challenges as part of its rationale – and we note that the appointment and removal of the Board is a prerogative of the Minister – equally so, the dissolved Board shared serious challenges it faced in executing its mandate. We believe the Board had begun to bring stability and continuity at a time when this was most needed. Industry stakeholders had confidence in its composition, and we had seen encouraging signs of progress in strengthening SAT’s credibility and focus.

The TBCSA has worked well with the Board and believes it was equipped to serve the long-term interests of tourism in South Africa. We urge that decisions affecting SAT balance accountability and good governance, with the need for stability, industry expertise, and continuity of leadership. As an industry, we have set a goal of attracting over 15.6 million inbound tourists by 2030, while also increasing domestic travel. We can only achieve these goals with a stable and functional SAT.

“As the voice of the private sector, the TBCSA will continue to put the tourism industry first. Our commitment is to support growth programmes, sustainability, and the millions of livelihoods that depend on tourism. Importantly, even while this transition unfolds, we will find ways to ensure that critical programmes continue to progress. We will remain a constructive partner to government but will also continue to advocate strongly for decisions that build, rather than destabilise, the sector,” said Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of the TBCSA.

Statement Issued by: Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa | TBCSA CEO