South Africa’s tourism boom is getting a powerful new engine. The Departments of Tourism and Public Works and Infrastructure have formalised a strategic partnership designed to unlock investment in tourism infrastructure, drive economic growth and create jobs across the country.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille and Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson sealed the partnership through a Memorandum of Agreement that will strengthen the preparation of priority tourism infrastructure projects and crowd in greater private-sector investment.
If we want tourism to make an even greater contribution to economic growth and job creation, we must build the infrastructure that makes investment and new tourism experiences possible.
That was the message from de Lille on Tuesday as the three-year agreement was announced.
Expert muscle behind bankable projects
Under the agreement, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure will support the Department of Tourism with specialist resources, including investment expertise and transaction advisory services, to strengthen the project pipeline and get projects investment-ready. Infrastructure South Africa, the programme within Public Works that provides infrastructure planning, management and delivery services, will supply the specialist technical and transaction support.
“This partnership will also facilitate the transfer of skills, knowledge and technical competencies to strengthen the Department of Tourism’s long-term capacity. We must turn tourism potential into bankable projects, investment and ultimately jobs,” de Lille said.
Macpherson was equally upbeat. “Through this partnership, we can help move priority tourism infrastructure projects from plans on paper to shovels in the ground, while crowding in private-sector investment and creating new economic opportunities across the country. This is another practical step towards our goal of turning South Africa into a construction site and using infrastructure as a catalyst for economic growth and job creation,” he said.
Momentum on top of momentum
The agreement lands just days after President Cyril Ramaphosa launched Phase Three of the Government-Business Partnership, which identified tourism as one of the key sectors capable of accelerating inclusive economic growth and employment.
And there is more good news on the horizon: the Department of Tourism will host the second Tourism Infrastructure Investment Summit in Gauteng from 30 September to 1 October 2026. Building on the successful inaugural event in 2025, the summit will connect a growing pipeline of credible, bankable tourism projects with potential investors and financiers, another sign that South Africa’s most beautiful industry is open for business.
Source: SAnews.gov.za
Photo: commons.wikimedia.org
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