LISTEN | De Lille squares off with Tourism Business Council CEO

Tensions between tourism minister Patricia de Lille and Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) CEO Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa have reached boiling point, with the minister accusing him of targeting her department after failing to secure the position of South African Tourism (SAT) CEO in 2022.

In an interview with the Sunday Times this week, De Lille criticised Tshivhengwa, who has voiced concerns about the state of SAT, describing it as being in crisis.

The friction has seen the department lose out on R500m in voluntary Tourism Marketing South Africa levies, which help promote the country as a premier tourist destination.

TBCSA is SAT’s primary stakeholder.

The council has raised concerns over SAT’s leadership gaps and governance. On Tuesday, De Lille said it was in the process of filling the vacant posts.

The Sunday Times has previously reported that De Lille shielded suspended SAT CEO Nombulelo Guliwe after the former board deemed her unsuitable for the job. In August last year, the newspaper reported how the chair and deputy of the board who compiled the September 2024 report were fired by De Lille shortly after submitting their findings.

Despite concerns raised by parliament and the TBCSA regarding SAT’s instability, De Lille dismissed them as “opinion”.

“People are entitled to their opinion ... but they are not entitled to their own facts,” De Lille said. “When someone says there is a crisis without producing evidence, there is always an agenda behind the agenda.

“The Tourism Business Council has got a board of trustees, representing all the tourism associations ... If you look at what the board chair says on behalf of the board, it’s completely different from what the CEO is saying. That is their problem, not mine … "

The Tourism Business Council has got a board of trustees, representing all the tourism associations ... If you look at what the board chair says on behalf of the board, it’s completely different from what the CEO is saying. That is their problem, not mine …

She said the council had sent her a letter stating they were working on a joint tourism work plan and had assigned four people to work with her on this.

“The CEO, on the other hand, is bitter and angry because he applied for the post of the CEO [of SAT] in 2022, and he didn’t get it. And he is angry to this day.”

De Lille said Tshivhengwa did not speak for TBCSA’s board.

“I don’t want to get involved in their internal squabbles. That is his opinion. For me it’s an issue of discipline. [A CEO] cannot speak on behalf of the board. There is tension between the board and the CEO,” she said.

Responding to the accusations, Tshivhengwa said that any assertion he is disgruntled is misplaced and has no bearing on the work to be accomplished.

“Our focus should be on delivering robust growth in tourism,” he said.

He said concerns were based on persistent instability within SAT, particularly from a governance and leadership viewpoint.

“Our concern centres less on individuals and more on the effect that extended periods of uncertainty have on planning cycles, trade engagement and South Africa’s capacity to respond swiftly to international market opportunities.”

He said the industry’s decision not to transfer funds followed a qualified audit outcome and that resources were redirected to industry-led marketing and support initiatives.

“I uphold a professional and constructive working relationship with the minister and the department of tourism,” Tshivhengwa said. “While we may occasionally have differing opinions, such divergences are a natural and beneficial aspect of stakeholder engagement. Our shared goal continues to be the enhancement and competitiveness of South Africa’s tourism sector.”

He said the concerns were about SAT’s operational capacity, not the minister personally, and there was no known tension between him, the board chair, or the board itself.

On Tuesday, De Lille announced that more than 10-million tourists visited South Africa last year, a 17.6% increase over pre-pandemic numbers.

However, Tshivhengwa credited this growth to the private sector and the TBCSA, which had remained focused on growing the industry.

“The men and women in the private sector who have been working tirelessly are the ones who drove the growth we are experiencing,” he said.