Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife (EKZNW) has answered questions posed to it by private-sector operators regarding its new business policies that are affecting tour operators’ bottom lines.
CEO of EKZNW, Dr IB Mkhize, has sent a letter to the trade in which he addresses questions posed about commission structures, the deregistration of the entity as a VAT vendor and the additional costs posed to domestic tourists staying within the conservation area.
Mkhize notes that the new business policies introduced by EKZNW are to ensure a more sustainable future for the entity as it is becoming increasingly necessary for it to self-fund its operations. “Ezemvelo also has to construct a business model that fuels its own growth without the need of dependency on other resources.”
Addressing the new commission structures, Mkhize likened them to that of a hotel or airline, saying that “payment is requested upfront and not until a certain turnover is attained, then only is a commission paid”.
EKZNW was also obliged, with a SARS directive in 2005, to deregister as a VAT vendor after an annual audit, says Mkhize.
The additional levy that is charged for international tourists and is automatically added to any invoice, is the responsibility of the tour operator to remove by providing proof of country of residence.
