Travel And Tour World Exclusive: Interview of Siseko Yelani, Uncuthu Tours, South Africa

COVID-19 has shown us many challenging things. But going forward we have learnt relating to good hygiene practices. In our entity, we are giving more responsive way that makes MICE as a good use of hygiene. We have to learn to live with COVID-19 and manage it.

I am coming from South Africa, particularly the Eastern Cape which is the second-largest province in the country. It is the home province of Nelson Mandela. The region offers diversity in culture, nature and adventure.

We look forward to growing the MICE market and we have also noticed that the Indian market is a big place of MICE market. In our destination i.e. South Africa throughout the country, we have more and more capable places to host the MICE events and bring in a bit of leisure for the attendees of MIC. It is also for us to grow our destination.

South Africa’s Attendance in roadshows
South Africa became an important destination for tourists from India from last year. More and more Indian travelers are opting for South Africa as their preferred adventure destination. More than 50,000 Indian tourists went to South Africa till November 2022, stated a top representative of South African Tourism.

He said that last year, India went up two spots to emerge as the sixth largest global source market for propelling tourism in South Africa.

The tourism statistics have surpassed the objective of attracting around 33,900 visitors expected at the onset of the year of recovery.

In order to maintain the momentum and lure more tourists to the country, South Africa is organizing roadshows in Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai.

A 35-member business delegation is displaying state-of-the-art aids for Indian customers and trade associates.

Neliswa Nkani, the Hub Head of the Middle East, India & South East of South African Tourism, said that South Africa is aiming to witness a growth of 72 per cent in Indian travelers surpassing the previous year’s objective.

Nkani said that is the 19th edition of their yearly India roadshow. India is a focus market for South African tourism.
Last year, Hyderabad surfaced as the third main source market for South African Tourism, led by Mumbai and Delhi.

Almost 67 per cent of the travelers from Hyderabad visited South Africa during summer.