Tourism relief fund finalises payouts
The Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency (MTPA) announced on Tuesday that the process of paying out its Tourism Relief Fund to qualified businesses has been completed.
An advert was placed in various media platforms in January by the MTPA, inviting tourism businesses to apply for Covid-19 relief funding. The initiative was in support of the National Tourism Relief Fund initiated last year and aimed to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the tourism sector.
Johannes Nobunga, CEO of the MTPA, said, “When the process started the evaluation and adjudication committee recorded 430 applications in all the categories.”
In March the MTPA and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism hosted a celebratory function in which six of the qualifying businesses were awarded their funding.
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According to a statement released by the MTPA, the committee has now concluded its work and, to date, 353 businesses have been paid in the following categories: accommodation (42), hospitality (20), travel and related services (23), tourist guides (104), professional hunting (1), tourism grading assessor (1) and informal traders (162).
Nobunga said there are 43 remaining applications that have not been finalised for payment yet due to their tax status.
“They have been offered time to sort their tax affairs and will therefore be paid once the system clears them. Thirty-four businesses were disqualified because they previously benefited from the National Tourism Relief Fund.
“We remain committed to ensure that the economy of the province is revived through the tourism sector. We are confident that this funding will go a long way to assist businesses to recover from the devastating effects of Covid-19 pandemic,” concluded Nobunga.
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Below is an indication of the funds that have been paid per qualifying business in the applicable categories:
- Accommodation establishments: R50 000;
- Hospitality and related services: R35 000;
- Travel and related services: R35 000;
- Individual tourism tourist guides, professional hunters, and tourism grading assessors: R10 000;
- Informal/subsistence tourism related businesses: R7 000.
