Low Density Tourism in the Global South: Second Home Tourism in South Africa as a Form of Visiting Friends and Relatives

Introduction

Tourism has emerged as an economic diversification avenue for African economies, as the tourism product offering is produced and consumed at the destination area, which allows for the majority of the value adding to occur at the destination area. Tourism to Africa is disproportionally important for African economies, even though Africa is yet to reach its peak as a tourism destination. “Africa’s tourism industry remains relatively underdeveloped. Of the 1.2 billion people traveling internationally in 2016, only 58 million arrived in Africa-roughly 5% of the world’s inbound tourism” Signe (2018: 3). Africa receives less than 10% of global tourism receipts, is as much as tourism has become a major export sector for many African countries. As noted by Sharpley & Telfer (2004) international tourism is still largely dominated by the industrialised world, with the major tourism flows being primarily between the more developed nations. Africa has grown in leaps and bounds in attracting tourism arrivals and seeking to benefit from the perennial nature of tourism growth, making it the largest industry in the world.

Signe (2018) noted that during the global financial crisis in 2007-2008, Africa was the only region to show continued growth in the tourism industry, and international tourist arrivals on the whole continent have increased by nearly 36 million between 2000 and 2017. “Africa has the highest growth rates in visitors over the decade spanning 2005-2014” Daly & Gereffi (2017: 2). “Tourism to Africa is critical for growth and yet international arrivals are focused mainly on South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Mauritius, who collectively obtain nearly three quarters of Africa’s tourism receipts” Sifolo (2016:1). The outbreak of contagious diseases such as Ebola negatively impacted on tourism arrivals in Africa. Maphanga & Henama (2019) noted that the 2014 and 2015 Ebola outbreak in West Africa presented many challenges for the hospitality sector. “The potential for tourism growth in Sub-Saharan Africa is significant. The region has abundant assets, with expansive beaches, plentiful wildlife, extensive natural and cultural attractions, and adventure opportunities” Christie et al. (2013: 3). Tourism is a transport intensive industry, and the competiveness of African destinations depends on making it easy, cost-effective and pleasurable to travel to and from their home destinations to Africa for tourism consumption.

The pursuit of tourism has been the enemy of many tourism destinations that have succeeded in attracting tourists, exceeding their carrying capacity which in turn created conflict with the local community. Increased traffic congestion, increased property prices, too many tourists, gentrification, and the loss of local culture and uniqueness. Tourism can compete with locals and destination communities for scarce resources, by overloading infrastructure, damaging nature, which led to the emergence of a phenomenon of overtourism. Overtourism had caught the attention of tourism academia as the most pressing issue before the Covid19 pandemic. Tourism consumption in low density area is imperative as a means for diversifying the economic activities which may be dominated by declining fortunes in agriculture and mining. As other economic sectors are mechanising and shedding jobs, tourism is labour-intensive and can use labour shed from other economic sector, after reskilling. The gaze that the chapter seeks to highlight is on area of low tourism consumption, where tourism uses existing local infrastructure, immersed into the local culture and conceptualised by the local community, representing relevant cases of low density tourism from the Global South. “In South Africa, the promotion of tourism has been identified as a keys strategy that can led to economic growth, community development and poverty alleviation” Ramukumba et al., (2012: 39). Tourism more than any other economic sector has the potential to drive and address the stubborn structural challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality that continue to haunt South Africa.

The tourism economy in South Africa is dominated by the tourism triangle of Cape Town-Durban-Johannesburg, and major tourism corridors such as the Garden Route (Cape Town to Port Elizabeth), Kruger National Park and Mpumalanga for the bush experience. The geographic spread of the developmental benefits of tourism is major initiative of the state.