Provincial Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger, announced that 9 329 jobs have been supported across the Western Cape during the peak summer tourism.
Preliminary data from December to February showed nearly half a million international passengers arrived at Cape Town International Airport alone, generating these employment opportunities.
“We know, based on calculations by the Western Cape Government’s (WCG) tourism, trade and investment promotion agency, Wesgro, that with the arrival of every 100 international terminal passengers, two jobs are supported. This means the total number of jobs supported by arrivals at the international terminal alone, is just over 9 300 jobs,” said Wenger.
The Minister highlighted the importance of tourism to the Western Cape's economy and emphasised the government's commitment to fostering growth and job creation, aiming to double visitor numbers by 2035 as part of the economic action plan, ‘Growth for Jobs’.
Wenger also acknowledged the challenges posed by the South African visa regime and pledged to address them to ensure the region's continued attractiveness as a tourist destination.
