
Over 11,000 tourists drawn to SA shores
JOHANNESBURG - Home Affairs has taken its visa application process online.
The Trusted Tour Operator Scheme was launched three months ago.
It's already attracted over 11,000 tourists from China and India.
It's hoped the fast-tracked application process will boost tourism and job creation.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


eNCA
6 hours ago
- eNCA
'Always hiding': Haitian labourers fear Dominican deportation push
MAO - Agamise Cheranfant hides as soon as he finishes his work at a banana plantation in the Dominican Republic. Like many others, he is Haitian, undocumented, and lives in constant fear of deportation. Owners of farms, construction companies and tourism businesses are also nervous -- they rely on Haitian labourers to work long days under the scorching sun. On the banana plantations in Mao, in the country's northwest, most of the workers are from Haiti, which shares an island with the Dominican Republic. It is an arduous job that few Dominicans want to do. The daily wage of 800 pesos (less than $14) "is very low," said Cheranfant, 33. And with immigration authorities breathing down undocumented workers' necks, "we're always scared, we're always hiding," he said. Relations between the Dominican Republic and Haiti are marked by resentment and mistrust. AFP | Eddy Vittini Dominican President Luis Abinader has toughened his policy on migration from the neighbouring country, which is plagued by poverty and gang violence that has led thousands of Haitians to flee. Abinader ordered the construction of a wall on the border and increased raids and deportations of undocumented immigrants. In the first half of 2025 alone, more than 200,000 Haitians were sent home, even as gang violence there soars. Such "disorderly" repatriations have reduced the availability of labour in tasks that "aren't of interest to Dominicans," according to the construction workers' association, Acoprovi. In some areas, the labour supply has fallen by between 40 and 80 percent. In tourism, the labour squeeze has affected areas such as cooking, said Henri Hebrard, an economist and consultant. "This could affect the quality of service," he said. - Companies demand change - Business leaders are calling for a regularization plan for undocumented labourers. AFP | Eddy Vittini Acoprovi proposes issuing 87,000 temporary work permits. But the government, so far, has shown no signs of flexibility regarding the requests. Antony Florestal has a passport, alien identification card and work card that have all expired. If he is caught in a raid, he faces deportation. "I'm scared," said the 32-year-old, who has been working in agriculture since 2009. "I live here (on the farm) so I don't have to go out on the street." The Dominican Republic exports bananas to the United States, Europe and other countries in the Caribbean, with agriculture representing 5.6 percent of the country's economic output. - 'Can't live in peace' - At the plantation where Cheranfant works, bunches of bananas are harvested with machetes, before being placed on a steel hook and moved along a cable to another area where they are sorted and packed for sale. The best bananas are exported, in this case to Germany. The rest are sold on the local market. The country's banana industry was already in crisis due to factors including the weather, pests and rising costs. AFP | Eddy Vittini Production fell 44 percent between 2021 and 2024, according to the Dominican Association of Banana Producers. The labour shortage is yet another blow. "Here, the workforce has decreased by more than 50 percent" due to the deportations, said producer Osvaldo Pineo. Some Haitians now work "nomadically," he said. "Today, they offer you the service, but tomorrow, you don't know if you'll get it." For employers, too, there is a risk. "If you put them in a vehicle and it's checked (by the authorities), you're accused of being a trafficker of undocumented migrants," Pineo said. Cheranfant has already been deported several times but always returns -- life is a constant game of cat and mouse with immigration authorities. His wife and three children live in a town near the plantation. "Almost every day we flee, in the morning, at night, at three in the morning, at one in the morning," Cheranfant said. "You're scared while you sleep and while you eat. We can't live in peace." by Sauro Scalella


eNCA
12 hours ago
- eNCA
'Frogging' takes off in Borneo's jungle
KUCHING - Dodging fire-ants, snakes and millions of nighttime creepy-crawlies, a group of trekkers advances through the humid Bornean rainforest, scanning with torches for some of the jungle's most unlikely stars: frogs. "There's another one! And it's massive," British tourist Lauren Heywood exclaimed as she spotted the telltale reflective glint off a pair of blinking eyes, seemingly waiting to be photographed by admirers. "Frogging", or the hunt for the exotic amphibians that call the rainforest home, is taking off in Malaysia's Sarawak state in Borneo. AFP | Mohd RASFAN And herpetologists say few places rival Kubah National Park, around half an hour's drive from state capital Kuching. It is home to some of the world's smallest and most unusual frog species. While many visitors flock to Borneo's jungle to see charismatic large species like orangutans or elephants, some of its tiniest residents are increasingly getting their turn in the spotlight, according to Kubah park ranger Muhammed Tajuddin. "More and more people are coming to see our frogs," he told AFP. - Frog central - AFP | Nicholas SHEARMAN The tour begins at dusk, with Indigenous Dayak guide Dominic Jikie leading a 45-minute hike up Mount Serapi, the highest peak in the area, to frog central. Here, surrounded by ancient jungle trees is a shallow pond around the size of two swimming pools. Scientists say it serves as the primary breeding ground for many of the 180 frog and toad species found on Borneo -- the world's third-largest island, divided between Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. Dozens of species dot almost every surface, submerged in the torchlit water, or perched on leaves, branches or tree trunks, placid and unbothered by their human fans. AFP | Mohd RASFAN "There is something special here," said Jikie, 64, a retired park ranger who now specialises as a frogging guide. "People come to the park because they don't have the species that we have here back at home." Among the stars of the show on this visit are pinkish harlequin flying frogs with mottled underbellies, file-eared tree frogs with distinctive sharp noses and white-lipped frogs whose lurid green backs give way to a stripe of white along their bottom jaw. One of Borneo's most famous species, the giant river toad nicknamed "frogzilla" for its dinner-plate size, is not seen in Kubah. But there are other more delicate types, according to Jikie. "We have one of the world's smallest frog species, that breed inside pitcher plants," he said, training his sharp spotlight on a pair of amphibian eyes just up the steep mountain road. The Matang narrow-mouthed frog was officially described by Malaysian and German herpetologists in 2010 after its discovery in Kubah. AFP | Mohd RASFAN It grows to a maximum of just 11 millimetres as an adult. British tourist Thom Harris and his fellow visitors spotted 11 species on their nighttime trek. "This was an amazing experience," he told AFP. "They are just stunning creatures." "There are a few fire ants and a few other things to be careful of -- and a lot of bugs," he laughed. "But it's definitely worth it. And it's a lot of fun!" - 'I love nature' - AFP | Mohd RASFAN The rising popularity of the forest frogs is a chance for environmentalists to highlight the serious threats they face. Deforestation, climate change and overhunting are all putting pressure on the tropical island's frog population, scientists say. "Even slight changes in the temperature and climate may affect the survival of the frog species in a particular habitat," University of Malaysia, Sarawak researchers Nur Hidayah Zulkefli and Ramlah Zainudin wrote in 2022. AFP | Mohd RASFAN Deforestation in Sarawak remains significant and ongoing, statistics by environmental group Global Forest Watch showed, including for timber and to make way for palm oil plantations. Sarawak's government said it backed community conservation movements to preserve the amphibians and it ran well-protected game and nature reserves like Kubah National Park. AFP | Mohd RASFAN Awareness events include the annual International Bornean Frog Race, which sees scientists and the public compete to spot and photograph as many frog species as possible within a set timeframe and area. For park ranger Tajuddin, the more people are able to engage with the unique creatures, the more they will understand the need to protect them and their habitats. "I love nature," he said. "Frogging is a unique way for me to share that love with all our visitors." by Jan Hennop


Eyewitness News
17 hours ago
- Eyewitness News
Rio to host BRICS summit wary of Trump
RIO DE JANEIRO - A summit of BRICS nations will convene in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday and Monday, with members hoping to weigh in on global crises while tiptoeing around US President Donald Trump's policies. The city, with beefed-up security, will play host to leaders and diplomats from 11 emerging economies, including China, India, Russia and South Africa, which represent nearly half of the world's population and 40% of its GDP. Brazil's left-wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will have to navigate the absence of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who will miss the summit for the first time. Beijing will instead be represented by its Prime Minister Li Qiang. Russian leader Vladimir Putin, who is facing a pending International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant, will not travel to Brazil, but is set to participate via video link, according to the Kremlin. Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, fresh from a 12-day conflict with Israel and a skirmish with the United States, will also be absent, as will his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, a Brazilian government source told AFP. Tensions in the Middle East, including Israel's ongoing war in Gaza, will weigh on the summit, as well as the grim anticipation of tariffs threatened by Trump due next week. 'CAUTIOUS' "We're anticipating a summit with a cautious tone: it will be difficult to mention the United States by name in the final declaration," Marta Fernandez, director of the BRICS Policy Center at Rio's Pontifical Catholic University, told AFP. China, for example, "is trying to adopt a restrained position on the Middle East", Fernandez said, pointing out that Beijing was also in tricky tariff negotiations with Washington. "This doesn't seem to be the right time to provoke further friction" between the world's two leading economies, the researcher said. BRICS members did not issue a strong statement on the Iran-Israel conflict and subsequent US military strikes due to their "diverging" interests, according to Oliver Stuenkel, an international relations professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation. Brazil, nevertheless, hopes that countries can take a common stand at the summit, including on the most sensitive issues. "BRICS (countries), throughout their history, have managed to speak with one voice on major international issues, and there's no reason why that shouldn't be the case this time on the subject of the Middle East," Brazil's Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira told AFP. 'MULTILATERALISM' However, talks on finding an alternative to the dollar for trade between BRICS members are likely dead in the water. For Fernandez, it is almost "forbidden" to mention the idea within the group since Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on countries that challenge the dollar's international dominance. Brazil, which in 2030 will host the COP30 UN climate conference, also hopes to find unity on the fight against climate change. Artificial intelligence and global governance reform will also be on the menu. "The escalation of the Middle East conflict reinforces the urgency of the debate on the need to reform global governance and strengthen multilateralism," said Foreign Minister Vieira. Since 2023, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Iran and Indonesia have joined the BRICS, formed in 2009 as a counter-balance to leading Western economies. But, as Fernandez points out, this expansion "makes it all the more difficult to build a strong consensus."