Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille touts major economic benefits from the summit, confirming the US President will skip the event and send his VP instead.
JOHANNESBURG – The upcoming G20 Leaders’ Summit is set to be a blockbuster event for South Africa’s economy and global image, with one notable exception: US President Donald Trump will not be attending.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille, speaking from the World Travel Market in London, confirmed that while the summit has been a tremendous boon for job creation and the hospitality sector, President Trump will be represented by Vice President JD Vance.
“For me, as long as we’ve got a representative from America, whether it’s the President or the Vice President, to hand over the chair of the G20, that will be sufficient,” de Lille stated, downplaying the diplomatic snub amid what analysts describe as strained ties between Washington and Pretoria.
The Minister was far more focused on the overwhelming positives, highlighting the G20 presidency as a powerful catalyst for the tourism industry. “The benefit has been tremendous for our hospitality sector. A lot more jobs have been created,” de Lille told eNCA. “For every twelve arrivals coming to our country, we created at least one direct and one indirect job. It’s been very, very good for the tourism sector.”
This momentum is part of a broader record-breaking year for South African tourism. De Lille revealed that between January and September, a record nine million international visitors arrived in the country.
However, the Minister acknowledged one key challenge: tapping into the full potential of the BRICS tourism market. “We’ve seen between January and September, a record 9 million people visiting our country,” she said, but noted more work is needed to attract visitors from fellow BRICS nations.
To address this, she pointed to ongoing progress in easing the visa application process for travellers from China and India, a move expected to significantly boost visitor numbers from these key markets.
Beyond the numbers, de Lille emphasised South Africa’s unique selling proposition. At the London event, she worked to showcase the country’s “diversified offering.”
“South Africa’s not just about safaris or Table Mountain,” she said, promising to reveal “many of the hidden gems in our less visited provinces.” She also highlighted the country’s value-for-money appeal during a global cost-of-living crisis and, most importantly, the warm welcome that awaits.
“Of course, the G20 has helped us to get many, many first-time visitors to South Africa. And all of them are saying ‘we’re coming back’,” de Lille concluded.
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