Tourism emerging as potential growth engine for SA’s Just Energy Transition

Johannesburg – NEPAD Business Foundation and Nedbank recently hosted a high-level discussion forum under the auspices of the SADC Tourism Alliance where key stakeholders from various business sectors engaged on how tourism can significantly mitigate the socio-economic impacts of South Africa’s Just Energy Transition (JET).

With South Africa’s energy landscape undergoing significant transformation, a new economic opportunity - tourism - presents a strategic, low-carbon economic alternative capable of mitigating the socio-economic impacts associated with South Africa’s Just Energy Transition (JET), particularly in coal-reliant regions like Mpumalanga. 

As the country shifts away from fossil fuels, tourism offers scalable opportunities for economic diversification, helping to absorb labour displacements by creating sustainable jobs, especially for youth and women.

"Tourism's value extends far beyond hospitality – it’s about rebuilding communities, revitalising local economies, and creating scalable economic opportunities in precisely the regions hardest hit by the transition away from coal," noted Natalia Rosa, Project Lead for the SADC Tourism Alliance initiative at the NEPAD Business Foundation. 

The sector’s inherently low emissions footprint, relative to heavy industries, makes it compatible with JET objectives, while its dependence on natural and cultural assets reinforces the importance of environmental stewardship and community participation. It directly influences around 12% of national vehicle purchases, largely through the car rental industry, and accounts for 12–15% of all retail purchases nationally.

Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA), and interim chair of the SADC Tourism Alliance, highlighted concrete evidence of tourism's capacity to stimulate economic renewal, citing Limpopo’s Nandoni Dam as a prime example. Originally an infrastructure project, the dam catalysed significant economic activity, evolving fishing communities into vibrant hubs of hospitality businesses and guesthouses.

Structured tourism-focused enterprise development programmes are already making an impressive impact across South Africa. Akash Singh, CEO of Sigma International, illustrated how his organisation currently supports between 300–500 businesses nationwide, including tour operators, catering services, and various local enterprises. Singh also highlighted the powerful role of digital technology, including AI, in enabling rural entrepreneurs, especially women, to develop competitive businesses without leaving their communities.

Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, Chief Operations Officer at City Lodge Hotels highlighted what the Group was doing in the space through its Transformation and Diversity Inclusion Committee whose mandate is to identify, vet and promote small enterprises and ensure that these entrepreneurs are resourced through an incubation programme that also offer them management skills that would enable them to scale. She said the Group started on this journey three years ago, and in that period, it has successfully incubated 47 enterprises which are now part of their national supply chain and have 16 new enterprises being incubated for the current period. 

The Nedbank Women in Tourism programme started just after the COVID-19 pandemic era as the banking Group realised that it was one of the worst hit sectors and wanted to be a part of the rejuvenation efforts. Together with the Department of Tourism and SA Tourism, the bank defined and co-created the programme.  Nirmala Reddy, NEDBANK Strategy Specialist: Enterprise Development at Nedbank Group says the programme has directly facilitated more than 1,600 jobs across nine provinces. These enterprises have significantly scaled their operations, secured additional finance and grants, and formed valuable joint ventures. Reddy says the programme initially took on 25 businesses from each province, making them 225 businesses that had to be given all-round support in terms of business development, and improving their business acumen and leadership skills.

Larisha Naidoo, Head of Zimele at Anglo American pointed to their partnership with Sigma International, as a clear example of that effectively demonstrates mining-tourism collaboration. It supports over 22,000 jobs and has issued over R500 million in small business loans, achieving an extraordinary 92% recovery rate.

One of the most critical insights from these discussions is tourism’s unique positioning at the intersection of Enterprise and Supplier Development (ESD) and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) mandates. This convergence makes the sector increasingly attractive to corporate investors aiming to achieve meaningful social and environmental impact alongside sustainable business growth.

The forum - held quarterly - is a collaborative effort between Nedbank Group and NEPAD Business Foundation (NBF) and serves as a strategic platform to foster dialogue, partnerships, and actionable solutions aimed at driving inclusive and sustainable economic and social development across the African continent. As a key proponent of Africa’s growth agenda, the NBF is dedicated to advancing initiatives that promote long-term prosperity and resilience for communities and businesses alike.