By Levy Masiteng
The Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Tourism has raised concerns over the Department of Tourism’s R201 million underspending in the 2025/26 financial year, while only 711 of 1,500 trained Tourism Monitors were placed.
In a statement on Tuesday, the committee said the department spent R2.23 billion, or 91.7%, of its R2.43 billion allocation, leaving about R201 million unspent.
The concerns emerged as the committee considered and adopted the department’s Budgetary Review and Recommendations Report (BRRR), which assesses its financial expenditure and performance during the financial year.
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“High expenditure alone does not prove effective delivery,” committee chairperson Ronalda Nalumango said, adding that reported performance must be supported by evidence of lasting impact.
The largest underspending was recorded under Programme 3: Destination Development, which spent R210.6 million of its R331.1 million allocation, leaving R120.5 million unspent.
The Working for Tourism programme accounted for R97.5 million of the underspending.
The committee attributed the shortfall to delayed procurement for skills development and Expanded Public Works Programme projects, slow infrastructure delivery, disputes over project scope, delays in due diligence processes and vacant funded posts.
Nalumango said these challenges raised concerns about the department’s ability to translate allocated funds into effective project implementation and employment opportunities.
Other programmes also recorded underspending.
Programme 1: Administration spent R330.7 million of its R364 million allocation, leaving R33.3 million unspent, while Programme 4: Tourism Sector Support Services spent R295.6 million of its R331.6 million budget, leaving R36 million unspent.
The committee warned that underspending on enterprise development, tourism safety and funded posts could limit support for small businesses, communities and job seekers.
The placement of Tourism Monitors was another concern. Of the 1,500 monitors trained, only 711 had been placed, leaving 789 without placements.
The committee also noted that the planned migration of the Tourism Equity Fund had not been completed.
It said these gaps raised questions about whether the department’s programmes were translating into meaningful economic opportunities, particularly for people and businesses dependent on tourism-related initiatives.
Despite the shortcomings, the committee acknowledged the department’s positive performance in several areas.
It achieved 98.3% of its annual performance targets, retained a clean audit and had no material findings on selected performance indicators or legislative compliance, the committee said.
Programme 2: Tourism Research, Policy and International Relations achieved all 14 of its annual targets and spent 99.2% of its R1.41 billion allocation.
However, the committee stressed that strong performance figures must be accompanied by evidence that programmes are delivering lasting improvements.
It said future oversight would focus on whether government spending improved tourism infrastructure, destination development, enterprise growth, transformation, visitor safety and employment.
The committee called for stronger procurement and project planning, the earlier appointment of service providers and the faster filling of critical vacancies.
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It also called for clear accountability for project milestones and quarterly reports linking expenditure to outputs and beneficiaries.
The committee said it would continue holding the Department of Tourism and South African Tourism accountable to ensure public funds translated into visible improvements in the tourism economy and expanded opportunities for communities, workers and businesses.
