The Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) is the umbrella organisation representing the unified voice of business in the travel and tourism sector. They are a not-for-profit, member-centric organisation mandated with the task of:
TBCSA serves to unite and influence the diverse travel and tourism sector, to contribute to a competitive, responsible and inclusive South African (and tourism) economy.
With the existence of only a few industry sector associations, namely ASATA (Association of Southern African Travel Agents), FEDHASA (Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa), SATSA (Southern African Tourism Services Association), SAVRALA (Southern African Vehicle Rental & Leasing Association, and SAACI (Southern African Association for the Conference Industry), there was no cohesive sector voice to tackle key macro-economic issues that impacted on travel and tourism. A co-ordinated structure was required in which industry could better interact amongst themselves, businesses, and more importantly government as well as key policy makers.
It was with this rationale that discussions began in 1995 to set up the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA). The organisation’s primary aim was to provide a single-point of interface for government to engage with the travel and tourism private sector. The organisation’s mandate from the very beginning was to represent the ‘voice’ of the industry and its core functions included lobbying and guiding government in regards to policy making on behalf and for the benefit of its members.
The TBCSA was established in February 1996 by leading tourism businesses and associations to form a unified platform to engage with the South African government around the development of the sector. The following leading corporations were actively involved in the establishment of the TBCSA: Coca-Cola, SA Breweries, Johnnic Publishing Limited and Nedcor– referred to as Crown Members.
