Pls attribute to Rosemary Anderson, FEDHASA National Chairperson:
FEDHASA welcomes last night’s announcement regarding the further reduction in the current COVID-19 restrictions and urges Government to remove the compulsory PCR test required for inbound international and returning South African travellers who are fully vaccinated. The PCR test requirement is a deterrent to international travel and consequently the recovery of our tourism and hospitality sector. Many other countries have already removed the requirement to furnish it if the traveller can prove that they have been fully vaccinated. While we have been grateful to our domestic travellers for their support throughout the pandemic, there are many tourism and hospitality companies in South Africa which depend heavily on inbound international travel. The removal of this requirement will go some way to making South Africa attractive to visit once again and in turn helping these companies rebuild, preserve jobs and contribute to the economy. A further deterrent is the requirement for visas and enhancing our eVisa system. For many inbound traveller, obtaining a visa to visit South Africa is onerous and an impediment to travelling to South Africa. One must balance ease of access with the security needs of the country and it is our fervent hope that a proper eVisa system, and visa waivers for important segments such as remote workers, are introduced as a matter of urgency. One of the biggest problems facing South Africa is our mass unemployment, particularly in the youth segment of our population. Tourism holds the key to catalytic growth and job creation, but for it to contribute as it can and should an enabling environment is required and a good start would be to tackle this PCR test requirement and our visa regime.
