In the latest edition of the index, South Africa ranked 55th out of 119 countries, making it the best country in Africa. The report emphasises that South Africa ranks first on the continent in terms of travel and tourism economy. This is reported by GCIS on behalf of the Department of Tourism of South Africa.

Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille expressed satisfaction with the ranking, attributing it to government’s commitment to developing the tourism sector through partnerships with the private sector. The country improved its ranking by 7 positions, receiving high scores in price competitiveness, ICT readiness, natural resources and socio-economic impact.

South Africa welcomed around 8.5 million international visitors in 2023, an increase of 48.9 per cent over the previous year. The number of visitors from the rest of the world also increased by 15.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2024.

Minister de Lille emphasised the importance of working with the private sector to further increase the tourism sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP and efforts to create jobs.

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