The Africa Travel Indaba currently under way in Durban’s International Convention Centre conceded that the cost of air travel coupled with stringent visa policies continues to haunt the tourism sector with tourists opting to travel abroad than on the African continent.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille said key to unlocking the full tourism potential for African countries is for African ministers to collaborate and map up a strategy to make intra-Africa travel a seamless process.
“We must have a harmonised visa regime across the continent to make it easier for visitors to move from one county to another,” De Lille said.
“We must also simplify the e-visa application process and reduce visa costs to make Africa a more attractive destination for both Africans and international travelers.”
De Lille said South Africa has made substantial progress including introducing visa waivers for several countries.
“We have also rolled out the e-visa system to several countries including Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Uganda, Cameroon, Egypt and the Democratic Republic of Congo. We are also expanding the e-visa system to an additional 20 countries.”
As it stands, only five African countries grant visa-free access when visiting them. These are Comoros, Mozambique, Rwanda, Madagascar and Seychelles.
Other concerns raised by more than 6 000 delegates attending the three-day indaba, which concludes on Thursday, were the high costs and bureaucracy associated with air travel to African destinations.
This keeps countries closed off to each other, making traveling within the countries difficult. Most African countries often restrict their air services markets as a way of protecting stakes held by state-owned air carriers.
The 2010 World Bank study Open Skies for Africa notes that although Africa is home to 12% of the world’s population, the continent accounts for a meagre 1% of the global air service market.
Delegates called for the full implementation of the what became known as the Yamoussoukro decision. The treaty was adopted in Abidjan, Ivory Coast by 44 African states in 1999 and ratified in year 2000.
At the core of the declaration is an establishment of a framework for the liberalisation of air transport services between African countries. It also calls for a fair competition between airlines.
The African Union has also launched the Single African Air Transport Market which, among its key objectives, is to liberalise air transport on the African continent and promote greater competition and connectivity.
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