A new National Tourism Communications plan has been developed and rolled out by the tourism industry in partnership with the government and tourism bodies to ensure clear and effective communication in the wake of tourism incidents that could impact perceptions of South Africa as a destination.
The National Tourism Safety Forum, resolved during its quarterly meeting in August, to develop a communications strategy and standard operating procedures to ensure a single response from the sector when tourists fall victim to crime.
Natalia Rosa, CEO of communications agency Big Ambitions, said the plan had been drawn up following the meeting and presented to Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille in October. She outlined the plan during a SATSA safety webinar.
She said while the industry must feel empathy for the person and their families/loved ones who are affected by any incident, the communications plan was to mitigate the impact of such incidents on the tourism industry.
As part of their work, the communications task team, which includes Rosa, and representatives from the Department of Tourism, SA Tourism and the Tourism Minister’s office, worked over the festive season to establish contact with key provincial and local communications focal points, and the national incident management team.
She said the communications strategy was not about promoting the destination or about reputation management, but rather dealing with the actual crisis at the moment.
In the event of an incident, there is a ‘triage’ response in which the national incident management team alert the communications task team, who then work to prepare messaging and statements, and liaise with media and stakeholders throughout the process.
Quick response
To ensure a quick response and effective communications they work closely with authorities, the Secura Traveller app and hotline response teams, to respond to an incident such as an attack, an injury or an accident.
When a visitor reports an incident, they are connected with response teams, provincial or local authorities, emergency responders, and travel ambassadors and translators.
SATSA COO Hannelie du Toit said the ambassadors were volunteers who helped with administrative tasks such as dealing with hospital admissions and medical insurance, accommodation bookings, filing police reports and cancelling bank cards wherever necessary – essentially, ensuring visitors were comfortable and cared for.
She said in some regions, local authorities already had excellent resources like these available, in which case the matter would be passed over to them.
“We don’t want to recreate wheels. We are there to support, we are there to fill the gaps and not to step on anyone’s toes.
“At the end of the day, the tourist comes first, whatever happens, whoever needs to provide the services, so long as the tourist is okay.”
She used an example of a Brazilian family who were involved in a serious car accident in Mpumalanga during the festive season. While they were admitted to hospital in Nelspruit, volunteers and translators were in contact with their family abroad to update them.
When the family decided to travel to South Africa, Du Toit herself and embassy officials met them at the airport and worked together to provide accommodation and transport options, first in Nelspruit and later in Gauteng.
She said volunteers and translators were needed around the country to help provide services in incidents like these.
