Hospitality federation pleased de Lille remains in charge of tourism portfolio

CAPE TOWN - The Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (FEDHASA) says it's pleased that minister Patricia de Lille remains in charge of the tourism portfolio.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced his Cabinet on Sunday night, a mixed bag reflective of the new Government of National Unity (GNU).

ALSO READ: GNU Cabinet comprises 6 former opposition parties

The African National Congress (ANC)'s Maggie Sotyu has been appointed the deputy minister of tourism.

FEDHASA national chairperson Rosemary Anderson said, "Minister De Lille only came in quite late in the game, so she's only been in the portfolio a short time and in that very short time, she's made significant changes and she's started so many things. It was going to be a great pity that she wasn't going to be able to continue them. So, we are really thrilled that she will be able to do that."

Anderson said De Lille is already aware of FEDHASA's needs and wants.

"That is definitely a good relationship with the Department of Home Affairs. We are quite thrilled that we have got the new minister, Leon Schreiber, who we are quite sure is also very keen to create many more tourism jobs in South Africa.

“The way we can do that is by changing our visa system, [and] having a very friendly, very professional e-visa. There's very good examples right around the world that we can copy, and we just need to totally overhaul our visa system."