High Rate of HIV / AIDS Infection - Assignment Example

High Rate of HIV / AIDS Infection 1. Abstract The global travel and tourism industry is amongst the world’s largest industries with annual revenues of over $500 billion which is expected to double by the year 2010 considering an impressive annual growth rate of 6% in the previous year (2007). According to the data made available by the World Travel and Tourism Council based on latest research, the contribution of world travel and tourism to the industry is expected to reach over $8 trillion in the current year, 2008. According to the World Tourism Organization the number of international tourist arrivals in the African subcontinent has seen a significant rise of about 7.9% in the year 2007 as compared to the previous year.1. This provides an excellent opportunity for the emerging nations like South Africa, to develop and project their countries as popular tourist destinations. 2. Introduction The Republic of South Africa, situated at the southern tip of the African continent is home to some of the most spectacular places and rich and varied spectrum of flora and fauna. The country, which is considered to be the third most bio – diverse country in the world, hosts a large variety of living wealth2. It offers most exotic travel destinations and caters to a wide range of tourists that enthralls them with its stunning coastal towns of Hermanus, Cape Town, Knysna, and Durban, and mountaineering in Hogsback as well as Drakensberg. The Cape Winelands offers world class wines while the Kruger National Park attracts tourists with its wild life safari packages. It was recognized as one of the developing world’s Ten Best Ethical Travel Destinations in 2008 Ethical Traveler Report3. The existence of a rich bio diverse environment, scenic locales and breath taking views coupled with its increasing popularity as the most favorite emerging travel destinations are indicative of a positive wave of tourism culture which can be exploited and nurtured through proper planning and implementation of measures to support such large influx of travelers in order to encourage and sustain its image as tourism destination of choice. This report is prepared by our organization, XYZ ltd (an independent private research organization), to be presented to the TBCSA – Tourism Business Council of South Africa. 3. Overview of Issues / Trends With more than 10% of the country’s resources protected by conservation regulations, it has a vast expanse of unblemished land which is rich in bio – diversity, abundant wild life, a large variety of flora and fauna as well as vibrant and culturally diverse cities. This however, has been met with a sheer lack of strategic leadership in terms of uncontrolled law and order situation leading to untoward incidents causing harm to the tourists, as well as the existence of several other economic and strategic barriers leading to negative publicity of the country in the media which has the potential of seriously jeopardizing its reputation as popular travel destination, if not addressed in a timely and adequate manner. Some of the major trends / issues faced by the country today are discussed below: 3.1 High Crime Rate The country’s travel and tourism has been significantly affected due to the high rate of crime in some of the most famous tourist destinations such as the Kruger National Park, which is among the most popular centers of attraction. Incidents of alcoholism, multiple drug abuse, sexual assault, armed robbery, carjacking, mugging and “smash and grab” attacks on tourist vehicles at public places including airports, ATM centers, banks, shopping malls etc has been increasing at an alarming rate, which is a deterrent to the booming tourism industry in the country prompting some of the major countries from the Western world, including the U.S, U.K, Australia and New Zealand to officially issue warnings to their citizens traveling to South Africa4. 3.2 Limited Airline Access Airline access to South Africa is a critical issue that is affecting the tourism industry in the country. The South African Airways is owned by the South African government and there have been several ongoing debates about the privatization of airports and introduction of long haul flights to the country so as to boost the international tourism industry. The absolute lack of long haul flights coupled with the shortage of private airlines is likely to affect the tourism industry significantly5. However adequate measures in this direction by the Government of South Africa regarding privatization as well as positive steps in the open skies policy would significantly relieve pressure over the long haul flights in terms of flight capacity as well as prices. 3.3 Low rate of publicity South Africa, in spite of its wide variety of scenic beauty in terms of mountains, hills, and an impressive coastline, as well as an equally impressive range of flora and fauna has been low on popularity. The relatively low amount of publicity campaigns to promote this African continent as a probable tourist destination and the simultaneous use and emergence of online media as an aggressive means of campaigning has posed a threat to the country owing to its low popularity ratio. 3.4 High rate of HIV / AIDS infection The country has an alarmingly high rate of HIV / AIDS infected people which was over 5 million in 2004, representing 11% of the total population6. With almost a quarter of the population infected by the deadly disease, it has prompted the governments of several nations to issue travel warnings citing the current problem and appealing its citizens traveling to the country to exercise adequate precautionary measures while engaging into any sexual activity with the locals especially in case of an accidental exposure to a blood source other than that provided by a medical institution such as hospitals for blood transfusion purposes7. 3.5 Issues affecting wine tourism The wineries of South Africa have been known globally for the exceptionally high quality of taste which is evident from the fact that the Vergelegen Wine Estate’s, successive win in two consecutive years 2006 & 2007, at the Great Wine Capitals Global Network Best of Wine Tourism Awards8, which saw participation from over 90 countries. The South African government has expressed keen interest in promoting wine tourism, owing to its considerable achievement in this field, ahead of the 2010 FIFA World cup event. However, the country’s plans to develop wine tourism could be significantly affected by the current issues faced by it such as sustainability, conservation of indigenous wine habitat, concerns over preservation of historical assets of the country, encompassing sustainable wine - growing and wine – making, as well as the serious need of attracting young adults towards this aspect of tourism9. 3.6 Shortage of key management personnel There is an acute shortage of staff in the Environmental Quality and Protection Branch at the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, in the Republic of South Africa. According to the annual reports published by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism for the year 2006 - 07, the overall vacancy rate at the said department was 25%. Severe shortages have also been reported at the Marine and Coastal Management Branch of the country. This is a cause of serious concern especially considering the rising popularity of the country as a tourism destination of choice amongst the international travelers10. 3.7 Slowing global economy The South African tourism has been booming since the past couple of years and has been one of the most favorite tourist destinations especially for international travelers. However, certain external environmental factors such as the recent slowing down of the global economy, the continuous rise in fuel prices, changes in environmental policies as well as the resultant fall in the country’s GDP (from 6.4% to below 4% in the current year – 2008) has been a cause of serious concern for the travel and tourism industry in the country. According to Dr. Abedian, Chief Executive Officer of the Pan African Capital Holdings "The dramatic rise in fuel costs has meant long-haul tourism is on the decline, particularly for middle income tourists, and domestically the same is true. In South Africa, long distance travelling will fall, but short distance travelling is likely to be less effected"11. Impact of trends: There has been a serious negative impact on the international tourism industry in the country on account of these factors, such as high crime rate, low publicity and advertising efforts, high rates of HIV infection etc. However, the South African government has taken stringent steps to prevent such steady decline in its popularity. The security has been beefed up in several key tourist places and additional police stations have been set up in and outside the Kruger National Park and patrol duties have been assigned in the area, which has a relatively high crime rate. In order to increase and improve its popularity as a desirable tourist destination in the international travel and tourism industry, the SA government has started and launched advertising campaigns which are regularly featured on CNN and other similar popular international channels. To help check the growth of HIV affected people, the government has launched several initiatives and country wide programs supported by the government for spreading awareness about the disease and providing medical care to those affected by it. This is likely to increase the popularity of the country as a tourism destination. Moreover the open skies policies has been now adopted by the SA government, providing and offering an increased number of flights, thereby attracting more and more international tourists to its shores every year. Also, the strategic location of the country gives it an added advantage of being away from the increased global terrorism, and hence has a better position as compared to other countries in the western world such as US and the UK, which are high on terrorist’s targets. 4. Recommendations / Suggestions There are several critical issues that needs immediate attention and should be resolved on a high priority basis, particularly in the wake of the recent boom in international tourism in the country and its recognition and acceptability as an emerging tourist destination. In order promote international tourism the crime rates should be curbed by installing strict vigilance and restoring the law and order situation in the country. It should rebuild its tarnished image and project itself as a safe destination for tourists. The country should also spread awareness about the HIV /AIDS and take concrete steps towards preventing the further spread of the deadly disease. The country should also resort to widespread publicity campaigns spreading awareness and knowledge about the immense availability of natural resources, impressive coastline, amazing collection of flora and fauna and exotic locales and use the same in attracting foreign tourists. International tourism has immense potential in terms of generating employment opportunities further leading to eradication of poverty and unemployment and uplifting the country towards growth and development. The TBCSA can take necessary steps, on the basis of this report to prevent the deteriorating image of the country as a safe tourism destination, especially in the wake of the alarming rise in crime rates. It can adopt stringent measures through implementation of appropriate policies that may help prevent such crimes and project the country as a safe haven for international tourism. It can acquire grants from international agencies for coping with the problem of HIV / AIDS and spreading awareness about the same. The amount from these grants can also be utilized for advertising and promotion purposes, to project SA as an international tourist destination, showcasing all its grandeur and highlighting its special features. This would boost the country’s image and help in attracting considerable amount of international tourists, necessary for the travel and tourism industry in to prosper and flourish. 5. Conclusion The South African tourism industry has matured over the years with considerable rise in domestic tourism. However, the recent rise in the number of international travelers has added to the overall economic prosperity of the country and is expected to continue its upward trend in the coming years. The strategic location of the country is ideal for tourists especially so in the wake of rising terrorism which is dominating the Western world. According to the reports published by the World Travel and Tourism Council, the South African tourism is expected to generate a modest 4.8% of real growth per annum between the years 2002 – 2012. However the report also highlights certain critical issues that need to be addressed by the South African government in order to sustain the increasing trend of international tourism, such as “strengthening its tourism management, enhancing the national tourism organization, and clarifying aviation policy”12. The Republic of South Africa, has immense natural resources that could be used constructively in attracting international tourists if the critical issues faced by the nation are addressed adequately and appropriately. 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