Cut the greed

SO THE BIG YEAR has finally dawned and South Africans are bracing themselves for a deluge of foreigners waving fistfuls of money around. I think many people may be disappointed. While optimists predict that the soccer fans visiting SA for the 2010 Fifa World Cup will bring a fortune into SA's coffers, I suspect they may have overestimated the value of the event. 

Tracy Burrows

Media reports are already quoting foreign tour operators as saying exorbitant pricing in SA is causing lower than expected interest in tours to SA for the World Cup. Rumour has it that some hotels and B&Bs have inflated their normal prices by up to 300% for the occasion. I've even heard that certain key tourist attractions are sending back locals' deposits and cancelling their June bookings in the hopes of attracting foreign visitors at three times the price.

Pounds and dollars may go pretty far in SA, but foreigners aren't stupid. There is a limit to what people will pay for holidays and accommodation, and I think some hospitality industry players may have priced themselves out of the market. What's more, they may have fired up a lot of ill will from locals, who will think long and hard before they visit those establishments again.

Likewise, any restaurants and tourist attractions aiming to cash in on 2010 with outrageously inflated pricing could also find themselves disappointed.

The cost and complexity of buying tickets for the actual matches may also be behind lower than expected ticket applications for some of the matches. I know I gave up trying to buy tickets after a frustrating hour online. I can only imagine how much harder it was for football fans with no internet access, no credit cards and limited funds.

If we're going to boost tourism, bring in foreign money and generate long-term goodwill for SA, we are going to have to cut the greed and red tape around the event.

As SA braces itself for a momentous year, we look at what is expected for the ICT market (page 14) and how SA e-tourism could grow on the back of the 2010 World Cup (page 16). We also report on the findings of the annual ITWeb/JCSE IT Skills Survey on page 21, while our Special Report on page 22 looks at office automation.

Enjoy this issue

Tracy Burrows