08 Apr 2025

Ministry of Environment and Tourism through the Department of Tourism conducted a mini survey on the impact of the implementation of local per diem from July 31 to August 07, 2024. Minister of Environment and Tourism, Mr Wynter Mmolotsi was answering a question in Parliament on Thursday. 

He said the department sampled 500 licensed establishments out of the 1402 licensed and only 215 responded to the study. 

He said the ministry due to insufficient resources, could not undertake a comprehensive study to substantively determine decline and or increase in occupancy rates of the small to medium hotels, lodges and guesthouses. Mr Mmolotsi said the results for the mini survey showed that majority of accommodation facilities recorded a decrease in revenue since the introduction and implementation of the local per diem. 

This, he said, also revealed that civil servants negotiate for reduced room rates and also shared rooms. Mr Mmolotsi stated that the ministry has recorded a total of five facilities; four bed and breakfast being Shatiha Cottage, Place of Beauty, Thahika and Yalama as well as one guest house being Lekunutu, which closed down during the financial year 2024/25. He said lack of business was highlighted as a reason for closure, which might not necessarily be attributed to the implementation of policy on local per diem. Furthermore, he said the ministry was informed by the industry players that some of the facilities laid off some of their employees. 

Mr Mmolotsi said the impact of local per diem would be determined through the comprehensive study to be undertaken. 

He indicated that plans were under way to have stakeholder engagements so as to amend the guidelines for the local per diem with the aim to ensure that the implementation would not adversely impact small to medium hotels, guest houses and lodge operators. 

Moreover the ministry through the Department of Tourism was also in the process to conduct a comprehensive study, which would target both the tourism industry being accommodation providers, public sector trade unions and civil servants. The minister noted that the comprehensive study would be able to advise the ministry and the government on the true impacts of local perdiem on the broader hospitality sector. He said one of the recommendations of the mini survey was that the government should consider paying accommodation costs and civil servants be given meal allowances. 

The ministry would continue to engage with the relevant stakeholders and ensure facilitation and growth of the tourism sector. 

Mogoditshane Eat MP, Mr Barongwang had asked the minister if any comprehensive study with detailed report had been conducted to provide feedback from the hotel and tourism business community following the introduction and implementation of the local travel perdiem. 

He asked the minister to provide the latest data from the ministry on decline and or increase in the occupancy rates at licensed small to medium hotels, lodges and guesthouses across the country. 

MP Barongwang also requested the minister to provide the number of small to medium accommodation providers that had closed their facilities since the policy’s implementation. 

He further implored the minister to outline measures put in place to ensure that the local travel per diem policy did not adversely affect the small to medium hotels, guest houses and lodge operators. 

Mr Barongwang also asked how the government ensured that the government travel expenditure directly supported small to medium, dully registered, and tax compliant local businesses. ENDS