VZCZCXRO4601
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHSA #0990/01 1341626
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141626Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY PRETORIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8483
RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PRETORIA 000990 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON EINV ETRD SENV PGOV SF
SUBJECT: INDUSTRY APPLAUDES CREATION OF DEDICATED TOURISM MINISTRY 
 
REF: A. 08 PRETORIA 937 B. 07 PRETORIA 2211 
 
¶1. (U) Summary.  President Zuma announced a split in the existing 
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT) when he 
revealed his cabinet on May 9.  Former Minister of DEAT Marthinus 
van Schalkwyk will head the new Department of Tourism.  Industry 
analysts welcomed the creation of a cabinet-level Tourism Minister 
and hoped it would signal greater government attention and support 
for the sector as South Africa prepared to host the 2010 FIFA World 
Cup.  Van Schalkwyk earned industry-wide respect during his tenure 
at DEAT.  Tourism's contribution to the South African economy has 
been steadily growing, as a result of increased international air 
links being established.  Demand for additional direct flights is 
expected to rise during the World Cup, with nearly 70 percent of 
ticket applications coming from foreign fans in over 200 countries. 
Van Schalkwyk's good relations with the sector are expected to 
contribute to continued tourism development, which would provide the 
government with an opportunity to boost employment and skills 
development in the service sector and promote traditionally 
under-marketed regions of the country.  The effect of this split on 
environmental enforcement remains to be determined.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (U) The incoming Zuma administration announced on May 7 that the 
existing Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism would be 
split to create a dedicated Department of Tourism on May 7.  The 
announcement was confirmed on May 10, when President Zuma presented 
his revised government structure and cabinet appointments.  The 
newly-formed Department of Tourism will be headed-up by former 
Minister of DEAT Marthinus van Schalkwyk, so his experience in the 
tourism sector will not be lost.  He will be supported by Thozile 
Xasa, who has been named Deputy Minister of Tourism. 
 
------------------------ 
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION 
------------------------ 
 
¶3. (U) Van Schalkwyk was born in the Limpopo Province in 1959.  He 
has been a Member of Parliament since 1990 and served as Premier of 
the Western Cape Province from 2002 through 2004.  Van Schalkwyk led 
the New National Party (NNP) from its inception in 1997 until its 
dissolution in 2005, following a poor showing in the 2004 general 
elections.  He then joined the ruling African National Congress 
(ANC) and was rewarded with an appointment as Minister of DEAT. 
(Comment: At the time, parts of the white Afrikaner population 
viewed him as a politician who destroyed his party in order to 
rescue his own political career.  Many of the former members of NNP 
transferred their loyalties to the Democratic Alliance Party.  End 
Comment)  Van Schalkwyk participated in the U.S. 
Government-sponsored International Visitor's Program and American 
Council of Young Political Leaders exchanges in 1993.  He has also 
studied in the UK and Europe. 
 
---------------- 
INDUSTY PLEASED 
WITH APPOINTMENT 
---------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Tourism industry analysts welcomed the creation of a 
cabinet-level Tourism Minister and hoped it would signal greater 
government attention and support for the sector.  South African 
Tourism (SAT) chamber congratulated van Schalkwyk for his 
appointment.  SAT chairperson Jabu Mabuza described the announcement 
as "recognition of the industry's importance to the economy embodied 
in the Tourism Growth Strategy, whose mandate it is to create jobs 
and contribute to gross domestic product."  Industry representatives 
expressed hope that van Schalkwyk would be tasked with lobbying 
other relevant cabinet ministries (e.g., Transport and State 
Qother relevant cabinet ministries (e.g., Transport and State 
Security) to capitalize on the tourism boom from the World Cup. 
Mabuza said "additional resources should be invested in tourism 
because so much rides on this industry that has delivered, and will 
continue to deliver, significantly to our economy." 
 
¶5. (U) Industry analysts said initial fears that the importance of 
the environment to tourism would be lost with the split between 
Environmental Affairs and Tourism seem to have been allayed by Van 
Schalkwyk's appointment.  Environmental groups had initially greeted 
his appointment as Minister of DEAT in 2005 with criticism, but he 
won them over with his dedication to environmental issues during his 
tenure.  He is described as a Minister who studies issues carefully 
and is willing to make the hard decisions. 
 
¶6. (U) Van Schalkwyk's tenure at DEAT was marked by a number of 
decisions and initiatives that have been increasingly welcomed by 
environmental and tourism groups.  Major initiatives he is credited 
with include the decision to uphold appeals against the development 
of the N2 National Toll Road through the unspoiled Wild Coast region 
of the Eastern Cape Province, the promulgation and initial 
implementation of a new Air Quality Act, and a significant focus by 
the South African Government on addressing global climate change. 
Numerous stakeholder groups have also credited him with achieving 
consensus on a controversial elephant culling decision. (See Reftel 
B for additional background on Van Schalkwyk's environmental 
policies.) 
 
PRETORIA 00000990  002 OF 003 
 
 
 
----------------- 
TOURISM'S GROWING 
IMPACT ON ECONOMY 
----------------- 
 
¶7. (U) Economist Iraj Abedian said tourism's impact on the South 
African economy was not far behind the mining sector's impact and 
noted that "while the mining sector's importance is waning under the 
current global economic downturn, tourism is growing."  Abedian is 
participating in an initiative to improve tourism data collection in 
South Africa to bring it in line with UN data collection standards. 
Tourism, which cuts across many sectors of the South African 
economy, is estimated to have an overall contribution of about 8.4 
percent of gross domestic product.  Key contributors to tourism in 
2008 were accommodation (22 percent), and land transport (20 
percent), air transport (11 percent), and food and beverage 
consumption (1.8 percent). 
 
--------------- 
AVIATION GROWTH 
BOOSTS TOURISM 
--------------- 
 
¶8. (U) Air travel in South Africa has grown above 10 percent per 
year over the past three years, due largely to the proliferation of 
low-cost airlines following the deregulation of the industry in the 
early 1990s and the increased volume of international traffic. 
Fewer than 12 international airlines flew into South Africa in 1993. 
 This number increased to 20 by 1995, and more than 70 international 
airlines now fly into the country on a regular basis.  Spurred by 
the need to meet UN Millennium Development Goals and to increase air 
connectivity for the World Cup, South Africa has pursued liberalized 
bilateral airlift strategies with Argentina, Brazil, Canada, the 
Republic of Korea, and the UK, among others.  South Africa began 
negotiating these bilateral airlift strategies as an interim 
measure, since multilateral liberalization/open skies negotiations 
have been tied-up with delays in the African Union's implementation 
of the Yamoussoukro Decision, an Africa-wide aviation liberalization 
agreement (Reftel A). 
 
¶9. (U) The recent entry of foreign carriers such as Delta Airlines, 
Thai Airways, and Virgin Nigeria has contributed to an increase in 
international passenger arrivals in South Africa and has shifted 
patterns for arrivals from key source markets.  Recently released 
Statistics South Africa data reveals that the U.S. displaced Germany 
as the number two source of overseas tourist arrivals in 2008.  The 
growth of U.S. tourist arrivals is attributed to the increase in air 
service between South Africa and the U.S.  Air connectivity between 
the U.S. and Africa is expected to increase further as both Delta 
and South African Airways have announced additional route expansions 
and direct non-stop service to the U.S. 
 
¶10. (U) Top Five Source Markets for Overseas Tourist Arrivals in 
2008: 
 
Rank   Source Market  Arrivals 
----  -------------  -------- 
1  UK    485,581 
2  USA    302,090 
3  Germany   240,420 
4  France   132,679 
5  Netherlands  116,251 
 
*Source: Statistics South Africa Monthly Tourism Data 
 
¶11. (U) Demand for additional direct flights to South Africa is 
expected to rise during the World Cup.  More than 1.5 million 
applications for tickets to the 2010 FIFA World Cup had been 
received by March 31, for the first phase of ticket sales.  About 30 
percent of the applications were from South African residents, with 
the remaining applications received from 205 countries.  U.S. fans 
led foreign ticket applications, followed by the British, Germans, 
Italians, and Australians. 
 
------- 
COMMENT 
------- 
 
 
¶12. (U) Industry representatives and analysts were pleased with the 
split in the DEAT and welcomed the retention of Van Schalkwyk as the 
Qsplit in the DEAT and welcomed the retention of Van Schalkwyk as the 
new Minister of Tourism.  The sector is playing an increasingly 
important role in South Africa's economic development strategy and 
Van Schalkwyk's good working relations with the sector are expected 
to contribute to continued tourism growth.  South Africa is slated 
to host several major international sporting events in 2009 and 
2010, which will increase global awareness of South Africa as a 
tourism destination.  Continued growth in this sector would provide 
the government with an opportunity to boost employment and skills 
development in the service sector and promote traditionally 
under-marketed regions of the country.  The effect of this split on 
environmental enforcement remains to be determined. 
 
PRETORIA 00000990  003 OF 003 
 
 
 
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