African safaris are a big hit with Chinese tourists

Over the past 15 years, China's commercial engagement with Africa has seen rapid growth in the trade, aid and investment sectors. Overshadowed by the constant focus on these sectors, tourism trade between the Asian nation and Africa has been quietly expanding.  

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is becoming an increasingly popular destination for Chinese tourists. In 2008, 2.6 percent of Chinese outbound tourists chose to travel to Africa, compared to the 8.8 percent that traveled to the Americas and the 67.8 percent that visited other Asian countries.

South Africa is the most popular tourist destination for Chinese visitors to SSA. According to South Africa's tourism department, the country attracted 132,334 Chinese visitors in 2012, a 55.9-percent year-on-year increase and three times the number of Chinese tourists that visited the country in 2009. China has become the fourth largest country of origin for tourists visiting South Africa.

A growing number of Chinese tourists are also visiting Kenya. As a preferred safari destination, Kenya has seen the number of Chinese tourists more than triple between 2005 and 2011, reaching 41,000.

Growing numbers

Increasing interest in Africa as a tourist destination may be attributed to several factors. China is now home to the world's second largest economy and Chinese citizens are becoming more interested in overseas tourist destinations. The country is currently the fastest-growing source of outbound tourists and travelers in the world. According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the number of Chinese outbound tourists grew from 10 million in 2000 to 83 million in 2012. An estimated 100 million Chinese will travel abroad by 2015. In 2012, Chinese tourists spent $102 billion on outbound travel, making them the largest contributors of tourism income in the world, according to the UNWTO.

Mounting Sino-African commercial ties, particularly since the launch of the tri-annual Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), have also promoted closer tourism cooperation between the two sides. By 2012 the Chinese Government had offered 26 African countries Approved Destination Status, permitting outbound Chinese leisure travel and facilitating the organization by travel agents of tour groups to these countries. The increase of Chinese business activities in Africa has also led to the establishment of new flight routes, including the non-stop flight between Beijing and Johannesburg launched in January 2012 by South African Airways, which also allow easier access between China and the continent. Every morning, Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport welcomes hundreds of Chinese business and leisure travelers to South Africa.

New destinations

As more middle-class Chinese travelers have already visited Europe, Southeast Asia and North America, many are looking for more unconventional and exotic tourist destinations. The African continent differentiates itself from more traditional destinations in Asia and Europe with its combination of natural scenery, wildlife, local culture and souvenirs. Chinese travel agencies, which previously focused on advertising European or North American tours, are placing greater emphasis on African countries such as Egypt, Kenya and South Africa. Another contributing factor to the surge of Chinese tourists bound for Africa is the gradual but sustained appreciation of China's currency in recent years and the depreciation of a number of African currencies during the same period, which makes traveling to Africa more affordable for Chinese tourists.

The increased interest in tourism in Africa bodes well for the continent's economies. Internationally, tourism has been recognized as a key growth sector with the potential for job creation, business opportunities, generation of export revenues and spillover to other industries, including infrastructure, property and retail development. Tourism is one of the largest and fastest growing sectors globally. It is also Africa's largest service export and among the most prominent sources of foreign capital in many of the continent's countries. As such, inbound tourism is recognized as a critical driver of economic growth in Africa.