WHITE RIVER – The open-safari vehicle (OSV) role players, owners, operators and drivers, came together and decided to join the Southern Africa Tourism Services Association (Satsa) as a specialised service in the tourism industry.
As the umbrella body Satsa operates in southern Africa, and the formation of the Mpumalanga OSV branch has been seen as a benchmark.
Ms Hannelie du Toit, director of Satsa, says a formal organisation is the only way that every participant and role player in the industry, will have a voice. “The newly formed association will make everything easier, from vehicle requirements to code of conduct, to partnerships and also discipline and monitoring.”
Satsa is working closely with the South African National Parks (SANParks) and has been a driving force in the transformation of the tourism industry in South and southern Africa.
The managing executive for tourism and marketing of SANParks, Mr Glenn Philips, attended the meeting.
He told Lowvelder that the formation of this branch of Satsa has taken a while, and the benefits for this are many. “It is easier for any role player in the tourism industry to work with different groups of people, contributing different things that need different regulations. The OSV’s have in recent times been on the receiving end of a lot of accusations from other visitors to the Kruger. Having a structured organisation to talk to and to take grievances to, makes it so much easier.”
Philips has been appointed as the managing executive of the Kruger National Park (KNP) as of June 1.
He told the newspaper that he considers different and extended hours for OSV’s to enter the park. He is also considering allowing them on some of the roads not accessible by other members of the public. “This might go a long way to alleviate tensions at the gates between the OSV drivers and other visitors if they can enter an hour before the gates open for the general public. OSV’s have also been accused of congesting areas at sightings and because their vehicles are higher, it sometimes blocks the view of other visitors. It will also make it easier if OSV’s use different roads for viewings, like the smaller roads where normal vehicles cannot enter. The operators and drivers cannot also be our eyes and ears in the fight against poaching.”
Vehicle requirements will now be issued with a South African Bureau of Standards’ builders certificate of compliance and every vehicle will be issued with a permit number from Satsa as of May 1.
At the beginning of July the old permits will not be valid anymore and such vehicles will not be allowed to operate in the park.
The new specs for vehicles will be phased in and the older vehicles eventually replaced. It is also the plan to have special vehicle inspections every five years.
Vehicles might also be fitted with a tracking system. KNP will start with a new guide-induction training course that will be compulsory for all OSV operators and drivers who operate in the park by the end of November.
