SA Tourism’s Bungling of Meetings Africa

Statement by Haseena Ismail MP – DA Spokesperson on Tourism:

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has written to South African Tourism (SAT) and to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Tourism, calling for urgent intervention and parliamentary oversight following serious concerns about SAT’s handling of Meetings Africa.

Meetings Africa is South Africa’s flagship Pan-African business events trade show, hosted by SAT. It plays an important role in securing future business events for the continent, supporting job creation, and reinforcing South Africa’s position as a leading gateway for business tourism into Africa.

Meetings, incentives, conference and events (MICE) are important tools to facilitate economic growth and job creation in SA. The jobs-killing Minister must come and account before the portfolio committee and we will not allow her to avoid accountability and responsibility.

With less than a month to go before this flagship event, SAT has yet to appoint an events management partner, raising alarm about the growing risk of reputational damage to South Africa’s tourism and business events sector.

This failure has triggered serious concern within the industry, with reports already indicating that some buyers may be reconsidering their participation.

SAT appears to be avoiding difficult and legitimate questions about the status of procurement processes relating to Meetings Africa, as well as the effect this is having on the event’s participation. This lack of transparency raises doubts about whether the event is being competently managed and whether proper governance processes are being followed.

This situation is a clear example of the deepening governance vacuum at SAT. Minister Patricia de Lille’s reckless decision to dissolve the former SAT board has left the entity without stable leadership, while suspensions and drawn-out disciplinary processes have hollowed out executive capacity.

While the Minister continues to insist that the tourism industry has confidence in her leadership and in SAT, the reality points in the opposite direction. The private sector continues to withhold hundreds of millions of rands worth of TOMSA levy funds due to unresolved and serious governance concerns at SAT. This is a clear indication that confidence in the entity has been severely eroded.

If the uncertainty currently surrounding Meetings Africa is left unaddressed, this may result in buyer withdrawals, reputational harm, and long-term harm to the tourism sector and broader economy.

The DA will continue to pursue full accountability to protect the integrity of Meetings Africa and the future of the country’s tourism industry.