THE government’s Tourism
Safety plan – launched in
December last year – has
made progress, says the
Deputy Minister of Tourism,
Fish Mahlalela.
Speaking exclusively to TNW,
Fish said he had been part
of the Tourism Safety Task
Team in Mpumalanga and as a
result of the additional safety
measures there had been no
incidents reported against
tourists in the province.
“This is significant as
Mpumalanga was identified as
one of the hotspots.”
Fish also said that certain
syndicates had been identified
and the Tourism Safety Task
Team had made strides in
cracking down on these
groups.
Actions taken by some
syndicates included hijacking
tourist vehicles, obtaining the
tourists’ bank cards and using
the cash speed points the
criminals carry with them to
transfer large amounts of cash
to a specific bank account.
“We also suspect the
syndicates are receiving
inside information from car
tracking companies or carhire companies as they know
exactly where the GPS dead
zones are and tend to strike
there,” said Fish.
An amount of R40m has
been set aside from TOMSA
levy collections for the
implementation of South
Africa’s new “workable”
Tourism Safety Plan.
Minister of Tourism
Mmamaloka KubayiNgubane announced
that a Memorandum of
Understanding had been
signed between the South
African Police Service and the
Department of Tourism.
The safety strategy has been
developed in consultation with
tourism stakeholders, including
airlines and accommodation
establishments.
