When Will Tourists Return to Africa?
2020-09-11
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1Raino Bolz usually makes a living from his tourism business in South Africa's wine country.
2But the coronavirus health crisis has forced him to find another way to earn money.
3So he sold one of his tourism vehicles and bought a group of pregnant cows.
4He will have to wait for the cows to give birth and for the calves to be old enough to sell before he can make money from them.
5That probably will not happen until early next year.
6Bolz hopes to see a return of some tourists in November, the start of South Africa's tourism season.
7He makes 80 percent of his money from foreign visitors.
8If those visitors do not come, he will need the profit from his cattle to keep his business in operation.
9The World Travel and Tourism Council estimates that the lack of tourism will cause Africa to lose between $53 billion and $120 billion in 2020.
10Kenya expects at least a 60 percent drop in money from tourism this year.
11South Africa expects a 75 percent drop.
12In South Africa, the Tourism Business Council estimates 1.2 million tourism-related jobs are already affected.
13That is about 10 percent of total jobs in Africa's most developed economy.
14South Africa's borders have been closed for nearly six months and there are no signs of them reopening.
15COVID-19 restrictions have put a stop to the biggest part of African tourism - the safari.
16Safaris are trips to see or hunt animals.
17James Wilson is the marketing director for Desert and Delta.
18For nearly 40 years, Desert and Delta has sold safaris in the Okavango Delta in northern Botswana.
19Wilson says that the company's clients have always been from North America or Western Europe.
20They are usually wealthy, retired and almost always over 60 years old.
21He worries that those retirees will be the last to come back because of their age and risk of infection from COVID-19.
22Jillian Blackbeard is the chief executive officer of a tourism association that represents safari operators in Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
23She said it will take southern Africa's safari tourism three years to recover.
24But Blackbeard says the COVID-19 health crisis may provide a chance for the African tourism industry to reach different kinds of people.
25She hopes to attract their own African tourists, as well as people from Asia and North American minority groups.
26Graham Wood is chief operating officer for hospitality for Sun International.
27The company owns many casinos, vacation areas and costly hotels in South Africa and several other African countries.
28So far, Sun International has kept its 8,500 employees, but on reduced wages.
29Wood said the company is now "having to consider quite severe restructures."
30Wood does expect an increase in domestic tourism at the end of the year from South Africans who are not traveling internationally.
31Domestic tourism did increase last month when South Africa eased restrictions to permit travel within the country for the first time since late March.
32But the international tourist season this year is "not going to materialize," Wood said.
33That will be ruinous for Raino Bolz.
34His attempts to appeal to locals have not had much success.
35His adventure tourism company combines hiking and cycling with wine-tasting tours in the mountains of Stellenbosch, near Cape Town.
36He hopes that his foreign clients are willing enough to come back sometime during the season.
37He will only really know early next year.
38And Bolz will only know then if he can re-employ all his tour guides.
39They are experts in wine and the natural environment of the Stellenbosch mountains.
40Bolz said, "We can only do proper business once international borders open again."
41I'm Jonathan Evans.
1Raino Bolz usually makes a living from his tourism business in South Africa's wine country. But the coronavirus health crisis has forced him to find another way to earn money. So he sold one of his tourism vehicles and bought a group of pregnant cows. 2He will have to wait for the cows to give birth and for the calves to be old enough to sell before he can make money from them. That probably will not happen until early next year. 3Bolz hopes to see a return of some tourists in November, the start of South Africa's tourism season. He makes 80 percent of his money from foreign visitors. If those visitors do not come, he will need the profit from his cattle to keep his business in operation. 4The World Travel and Tourism Council estimates that the lack of tourism will cause Africa to lose between $53 billion and $120 billion in 2020. 5Kenya expects at least a 60 percent drop in money from tourism this year. South Africa expects a 75 percent drop. 6In South Africa, the Tourism Business Council estimates 1.2 million tourism-related jobs are already affected. That is about 10 percent of total jobs in Africa's most developed economy. South Africa's borders have been closed for nearly six months and there are no signs of them reopening. 7COVID-19 restrictions have put a stop to the biggest part of African tourism - the safari. Safaris are trips to see or hunt animals. 8James Wilson is the marketing director for Desert and Delta. For nearly 40 years, Desert and Delta has sold safaris in the Okavango Delta in northern Botswana. Wilson says that the company's clients have always been from North America or Western Europe. They are usually wealthy, retired and almost always over 60 years old. He worries that those retirees will be the last to come back because of their age and risk of infection from COVID-19. 9Jillian Blackbeard is the chief executive officer of a tourism association that represents safari operators in Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. 10She said it will take southern Africa's safari tourism three years to recover. But Blackbeard says the COVID-19 health crisis may provide a chance for the African tourism industry to reach different kinds of people. She hopes to attract their own African tourists, as well as people from Asia and North American minority groups. 11Graham Wood is chief operating officer for hospitality for Sun International. The company owns many casinos, vacation areas and costly hotels in South Africa and several other African countries. So far, Sun International has kept its 8,500 employees, but on reduced wages. Wood said the company is now "having to consider quite severe restructures." 12Wood does expect an increase in domestic tourism at the end of the year from South Africans who are not traveling internationally. Domestic tourism did increase last month when South Africa eased restrictions to permit travel within the country for the first time since late March. But the international tourist season this year is "not going to materialize," Wood said. 13That will be ruinous for Raino Bolz. His attempts to appeal to locals have not had much success. 14His adventure tourism company combines hiking and cycling with wine-tasting tours in the mountains of Stellenbosch, near Cape Town. He hopes that his foreign clients are willing enough to come back sometime during the season. He will only really know early next year. 15And Bolz will only know then if he can re-employ all his tour guides. They are experts in wine and the natural environment of the Stellenbosch mountains. 16Bolz said, "We can only do proper business once international borders open again." 17I'm Jonathan Evans. 18Gerald Imray reported on this story for the Associated Press. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 19________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21casino - n. a building or room that has games such as roulette or blackjack for gambling 22client - n. a person who pays a professional person or organization for services 23domestic - adj. of, relating to, or made in your own country 24hospitality - n. the activity of providing food, drinks, etc. for people who are the guests or customers of an organization 25materialize - v. to begin to happen or exist; to occur or become real 26proper - adj. correct according to social or moral rules; exactly correct 27quite - adv. to a very noticeable degree or extent 28tourism - n. the business of providing hotels, restaurants, entertainment, etc., for people who are traveling