Reports of understaffed immigration counters and lengthy queues at South African airports are raising concerns about the impact on the visitor experience and the country’s tourism competitiveness.
In a recent Tourism Update poll, 70% of respondents said their international clients are experiencing prolonged immigration queues at South African airports due to unstaffed counters.
Media reports have subsequently claimed that the Border Management Authority (BMA) is operating at just 25% capacity at OR Tambo International Airport with some passengers reportedly facing processing delays of more than an hour.
Tourism Update approached the BMA to verify the reported staffing figure and respond to industry concerns but had not received comment by the time of publication.
Wayne Duvenage, CEO of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA), said the problems point to shortcomings in the management of immigration operations.
“These immigration delays can only be seen as a leadership issue,” said Duvenage. He has raised concerns on LinkedIn about international visitors bearing the brunt of operational failures at immigration.
FEDHASA National Chairperson Brett Tungay said: “Efficient border and immigration processes are an important part of the overall visitor experience and have a direct impact on tourism operators, accommodation providers and other businesses reliant on international arrivals.”
Tungay explained that prolonged immigration queues and delays can create knock-on effects for scheduled transfers, onward travel, tour itineraries and hotel arrivals while also placing additional operational and financial pressure on tourism businesses.
First impressions
“This has a significant impact on the initial view and perception of visitors and returning visitors as well as investors in the country,” Duvenage said. “People can tell a country’s attitude to visitors by the way its government employees treat and value them from the time of arrival.”
He explained that OUTA has indirectly been made aware of the persistent immigration personnel shortages at South African airports and noted that the teams responsible for these operations need to understand that visitors to South Africa create jobs.
“They need to see arriving passengers as a significant factor that contributes to our economic growth.”
Inefficient shift rosters
Duvenage explained that the personnel shortages and long queues at airport immigration are likely a result of inefficient staff shift rosters.
“I fear that whoever heads the BMA team and immigration staff at OR Tambo is, firstly, not customer-centric and, secondly, is likely not planning shifts and staff resources properly,” he said.
“If the BMA at OR Tambo is running well below the required manpower capacity, only the management team, at OR Tambo and in the region, should be held accountable.”
OUTA said travel and tourism industry associations need to collaborate with the BMA and ACSA to ensure interventions and actionable solutions are put in place to reduce immigration delays.
