South Africa is all set to introduce e-visas for Indians who want to travel to the country for leisure, business, wildlife, sports, film or education.
“We are glad to announce that South Africa is on track to roll out e-visas for Indian applicants in the coming months,’‘ said Neliswa Nkani, Hub Head, MEISEA, South African Tourism, on March 9.
Addressing a media conference in Bengaluru, Nkani said boosting connectivity to ensure ease of travel was a core area of focus for South African Tourism this year.
“We are also conscious of the need for value-driven itineraries and are undertaking bullish measures to ensure that every rupee spent ensures maximum returns,’‘ she said.
South African Tourism engaged with airlines to work out subsidised fares for Indian travellers as part of this move. As of now, many stop-over flights, including Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways, Air Arabia, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and Air Mauritius, fly from India to South Africa.
“We are looking to bring the cost of travel remarkably down for Indian travellers,’‘ Nkani added.
According to Nkani, India is among the top three focus markets for South Africa, with Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Pune as key source players.
“We look at capitalising on strong consumer demand so as to accelerate travel recovery momentum in India. We are already seeing an uptick in forward travel bookings and hope to further build Indian aspiration and intent to travel,’‘ Nkani further said.
Before the Covid pandemic hit the tourism industry, South Africa hosted over 10.4 million tourists every year, and the nation was aiming to see an inflow of 21 million tourists yearly.
