Start with tourism and aim for world class

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan recently called on South Africans to wake up and use the opportunity offered by the ratings reprieve to fix our economy.

How many South Africans understand what a ratings downgrade would have meant?  It is not just “high finance” or complicated economic theory.  A ratings downgrade simply means it costs more to borrow money.  Just as a big increase in the mortgage rate means a problem for those with bonds on their homes, so an increase in the interest rate we pay to borrow the money needed to balance our national budget has serious consequences for the country.  It affects poorer people the most.

If the government has to spend far more money just to pay interest on  debt, then there is less money available for spending on education, health, housing and pensions.

The government has the major responsibility: it needs sensible policies and it must apply these, not just talk about them.  But business and labour also have huge responsibilities and they must not duck the challenge and merely point fingers at the government.

Ordinary citizens must also help.  They can do so by recognising that our country can shake off the pattern of mediocrity and second best that has taken hold. They must demand that this attitude changes; there is no reason why South Africa should not become a world-beater, starting with tourism. 

Why don’t we resolve that we will do everything necessary to make this a must-see country, attracting millions of extra visitors each year?  Quite apart from the hard currency flowing in, we could create perhaps a million or more jobs to the inestimable benefit of the youth of South Africa.

Travelling to the Kruger National Park recently with two other couples, we noticed that the road from Dullstroom to Lydenburg is still in a poor condition after years of being a problem.  The few signs warning of potholes are now so old they need replacing.  Why does this continue year after year?  It was interesting to note that the section of the road falling in Mpumalanga was far poorer than the section in Limpopo.  If money is the problem then perhaps it’s time to declare this a toll road and bring it up to scratch.  We noticed that all the rest of the roads were excellent and wherever SANRAL had toll roads, for example the N4 via Schoemanskloof, these were world class.

We stayed overnight at an enchanting place called Pezulu Tree Lodge.  The rooms are literally tree houses and the trees are still growing and bearing leaves inside.  I could just see American, Asian and European tourists falling in love with the place.  It is not the only one, there are dozens of resorts offering accommodation on the way to Orpen Gate. They should be professionally promoted through our tourism authorities in a real partnership of private and public effort.

The Kruger National Park itself was again a revelation.  This is a major national asset and it should be on the bucket list of every world tourist, relentlessly promoted by everyone in government, in private enterprise or just pro our country.

 The roads and the bridges were in immaculate condition and everywhere we went, the staff were pleasant and polite. They are experiencing the worst drought since 1992 and that was the worst in history.  The problem is not so much drinking water for the animals; they might have to walk further for a drink but there is some available.  The real problem is the grass that in some areas is almost non-existent.  I have never seen such large areas verging on a dust-bowl and I hear that the grazing animals are in for a very hard time in the next few months.  This too shall pass.

We saw two rest camps: Skukuza, looking marvellous and Satara, not bad but needing renovation and some updating.  We stayed in the Wells Guest House at Satara, paying R5280 per night for three nights, in addition to the entrance fee of R480 per couple.  This was a disappointment and well below an acceptable standard. 

Self-catering accommodation for six adults in a place like the Kruger Park need not be cheap but it ought not to be a rip-off.  At that price one is entitled to expect better than old, shabby, chipped tiles; outdated bathrooms, one with a cracked and chipped basin;  cupboards and a kitchen stove probably installed by Mrs Wells thirty years ago; no bedside lamps in two of the rooms; sagging paving around the house; and major problems with sewerage.  A house that probably earns half a million Rand per year for the Kruger should be at least three or four star – certainly not rather shabby one star.

South Africa is already an inexpensive destination for overseas tourists but we must develop a reputation as a value for money place with rising and not  deteriorating standards.  Maintenance must be done promptly and professionally by trained staff, themselves supervised by people who know what they are doing in the hospitality trade, not just by civil servants.

Where private firms like Mugg &Bean are brought in to replace the diabolical in-house restaurants of old, they must also maintain standards.  Waiting for three quarters of an hour for five plates of soup is unacceptable, even if the manager apologises profusely.

South Africans, in government and out of it, must grasp the respite given by the ratings agencies to make the mental jump enabling us to improve as a country and economy.  It will benefit all of our people and re-ignite the growth without which societal stability is in grave danger.

Douglas Gibson is a former Opposition Chief Whip and a former ambassador to Thailand.

This article first appeared in The Star newspaper.