LOCAL GOVERNMENT ROLES IN TOURISM DEVELOPMENT: PERSPECTIVES FROM SOUTH AFRICA

Since the 1994 democratic transition tourism has been viewed as a major driver for local economic development in South Africa. In terms of South African policy frameworks local governments are considered to provide a supportive role for local tourism development. This paper analyses the fluid policy landscape in South Africa across the period 1994-2026 which shaped and continues to reshape the allocated roles of local governments towards local tourism development. The analysis draws primarily upon documentary sources in respect of three decades of policy papers which have been produced by national government and seek to delineate the responsibilities of local government towards tourism. Other material is sourced from the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), an organisation founded to represent, promote and protect the interests of local government authorities in the country and supplemented by detailed interviews conducted with the municipal manager and a tourism official at one of South Africa’s most tourism-dependent local municipalities.