JOHANNESBURG, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The South African government has selected 65 tour operators to process in bulk the visas of Chinese and Indian tourists, the Department of Home Affairs said Monday.
"The Department of Home Affairs is proud to announce the successful conclusion of the selection process for the first set of participating companies in the ground-breaking Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS), which is aimed at boosting tourism arrivals from China and India," said the department in a statement.
"Through a joint process that involved the Department of Home Affairs, the Department of Tourism, and the State Security Agency, a total of 65 tour operators from South Africa, China and India were selected out of 141 applicants for enrollment in the program, after a thorough interdepartmental vetting and screening process," it said.
TTOS was announced last year to boost tourism spending from China and India when Chinese tourists account for just 1.8 percent and Indian tourists 3.9 percent of all international visitors to South Africa.
According to the statement, the 65 tour companies selected for TTOS are major industry operators with at least 12 months of operational experience and a track record of legal compliance and cross-country collaboration.
South African Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber said that he looks forward to "welcoming the first arrivals under TTOS within a matter of weeks, as a tangible demonstration of how the seventh administration is working together to deliver real reform and economic growth to create jobs."
