In Gauteng, the country’s economic hub, the number of respondents who felt safe, business and leisure tourists combined, dropped from 78% in March last year to 77% this year.
Western Cape saw a drop from 89% last year to 74%, and KwaZulu-Natal from 85% to 78%.
The study, from research company Synovate, comes as Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula begins a series of visits to European countries to calm investor fears about crime in SA and to inform them of the country’s plans to tackle crime.
Attacks on high-profile businessmen and the recent death of historian David Rattray have been damaging for SA’s image and have created growing concern internationally that the government has lost control of crime.
The minister, who visited Britain first, addressed several investment firms in London and is expected to visit Italy and Austria next. According to his office, the trip was part of a campaign, drawn up about six months ago, to make investors aware of the government’s efforts to address crime, including the overhaul of underperforming police stations, the recruitment of more policemen and the installation of new technology.
The Synovate study, which looks at domestic tourism trends and which is used by the industry to identify areas where they can improve performance, found that local business concerns mirrored those of the international community.
Of the domestic business travellers surveyed last month, 73% felt safe during their most recent trip this year, compared to the 77% of leisure travellers.
This is important because business travellers spend R1202,20 a day on average compared to a daily spend of R991 by holiday travellers, making local business people a lucrative sector for provinces and cities hoping to grow their domestic tourist market. Overall perceptions of safety were lower than in March last year in all provinces expect Limpopo and Mpumalanga.
Reduced crime and improved safety are also important for the growth of the international tourism market, which generated more foreign exchange than gold did last year, according to John Salters, Synovate’s MD of sub-Saharan Africa.
The study found the strongest areas in domestic tourism were accommodation, friendliness and helpfulness of staff, as well as general atmosphere.
