In the 24 years since roll-out, South African National Parks’ (SANParks) Commercialisation Strategy has been integral in the development of the country’s national parks and a key driver of both revenue growth and socio-economic contributions.
The organisation hosted a panel discussion themed ‘Celebrating 30 Years of Sustainable Eco-Tourism and Business Growth Through Partnerships’ on the sidelines of Africa’s Travel Indaba (ATI) in Durban today (May 15). The discussion centred on the value that public-private partnerships have brought to the conservation authority’s eco-tourism strategies.
In April 1997, Cabinet approved the establishment of an interdepartmental task team tasked to explore how Public Private Partnerships (PPP) could improve infrastructure and service delivery efficiency, and reduce dependence on state funding.
“It was against this background that the SANParks Commercialisation Strategy came into being in 2000,” said Pam Yako, Chairperson of the SANParks Board, as she outlined the organisation’s response to Cabinet’s directives.
“This strategy focuses us on selected commercial ventures in which we partner with the private sector based on an appropriate regulatory framework that is designed to mitigate impacts on biodiversity whilst ensuring that a risk-free return on conservation assets can be leveraged.”
Yako highlighted the growth in the number of impactful PPP projects implemented by SANParks since the inception of the commercialisation strategy. The agency is currently involved in 63 of these projects.
“SANParks had progressively increased the number of PPP transactions, covering a wide range of projects, including accommodation, restaurants, retail, activities, an airport, and the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway,” explained Yako.
Creating meaningful impact
According to Yako, the implementation of the Commercialisation Strategy has allowed for increased market segmentation and product and price differentiation in the parks.
“PPPs have contributed 647 additional guest beds in the five-star segment, resulting in increased economic activity and foreign exchange generation. This has also resulted in improved efficiencies of the restaurant and retail facilities, contributing to an enhanced visitor experience for the guests of SANParks,” Yako pointed out.
Since its inception, the Commercialisation Strategy has yielded R1.9 billion (€96.8m) in revenue for SANParks. And Yako said the programme was set to break income generation records in the 2023/24 financial year.
“Compared to the highest annual income figure since the inception of the commercialisation programme, the 2023/2024 financial year has shown an increase of 46.26% so far.”
In terms of socio-economic impact, PPPs have created 2 158 new permanent jobs for SANParks – with 79% of these employees recruited from communities living adjacent to national parks. The agency spends approximately R75 million (€3.7m) annually to support community SMMEs and facilitate skills transfer and training.
In addition, SANParks’ PPP contracts contain Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment scorecard targets to promote ownership of a minimum 10% shareholding by black people, black women, and black enterprises.
The SANParks sideline event at ATI also included recognition of a new PPP joint venture for the management of the 125-room Skukuza Safari Lodge and Nombolo Mdluli Conference Centre in the Kruger National Park.
The venture is a partnership between SANParks, Karibu Lodge (owned by a black female, Nyeleti Mushwana) and Tourvest.
