( 4 minutes read)
· The travel and tourism industry in South Africa has urged the government for assistance of R9.3-million a month until next year May
· Before the onset of Covid-19, the tourism industry was looking forward to have a good yea
· The Private Charter Passenger Association (PCPA) says its members have “not worked a day” since the lockdown started. The association has more than 65 members, which are operating at least 1200 vehicles
The travel and tourism industry in South Africa has urged the government for assistance of R9.3-million a month until next year May. Before the onset of Covid-19, the tourism industry was looking forward to have a good year. The Private Charter Passenger Association (PCPA) says its members have “not worked a day” since the lockdown started. The association has more than 65 members, which are operating at least 1 200 vehicles.
According to chairperson of the association, Fiona Brooke-Leggatt, members were resorting to retrenchment. Private operators have been covering their fixed costs per month on their own without any assistance from the government. The operators have lost six months of fees they paid for licenses. Many vehicles have been repossessed by leasers since they were unable to pay March’s fuel bills.
Bazil Govender, executive manager of the Southern African Bus Operators Association (Saboa), said that the industry lost about R200-million during lockdown periods four and five. From lockdown three onwards, the industry would have lost another R100-million every month. The industry was the backbone of road-based travel for the tourism industry. Prior to Covid-19, the industry was under financial pressure as a result of increasing costs and currency fluctuations and the market had been negatively affected by the declining economy.
