Assessing the contributions of hunting tourism to the South African economy: a post-covid analysis

Peet van der Merwe; Andrea Saayman

doi:10.1071/WR24192

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

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Assessing the contributions of hunting tourism to the South African economy: a post-covid analysis

Peet van der Merwe

^A ^* and Andrea Saayman ^B

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A North-West University, School of Tourism Management Research Unit TREES (Tourism Research in Economics, Environs and Society), Hoffman Street, Potchefstroom, South Africa.

^B North-West University, School of Economics, Research Unit TREES (Tourism Research in Economics, Environs and Society), Hoffman Street, Potchefstroom, South Africa. Email: Andrea.Saayman@nwu.ac.za

^* Correspondence to: Peet.vandermerwe@nwu.ac.za

Handling Editor: Stephanie Shwiff

Wildlife Research 52, WR24192 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR24192

Submitted: 2 December 2024 Accepted: 22 May 2025 Published: 17 June 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Previous research has acknowledged that hunting tourism significantly contributes to South Africa’s economy. The literature review revealed that most of the research in South Africa was conducted before the advent of COVID-19.

Aim

This research endeavour, pioneering in its scope, sought to ascertain the collective economic significance of both international and local hunters in South Africa and, consequently, to delineate the economic impact of the hunting industry in South Africa by examining the post-COVID expenditure patterns of both international and domestic hunting tourists within the country.

Method

A quantitative research approach involving surveys amongst both national and international hunting tourists was adopted. The South African Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) was used in the multiplier analysis.

Key results

The result revealed that hunting tourism’s total impact on the South African economy is USD2.5 billion. Hunting represents a production multiplier of 2.97, indicating that for every USD1 spent by hunting tourists, production increases by an additional USD1.97. Agriculture, trade, accommodation, and personal services are the industry sectors most dependent on hunting tourism.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this research determined the collective economic significance of hunting tourism in South Africa.

Implications

The implication is that hunting tourism directly and indirectly supports and expands job creation in rural areas; indirectly, it contributes to conservation initiatives and facilitates job creation in South Africa.

Keywords: consumptive tourism, economic impact, economy, hunting tourism, post-covid, rural areas, South Africa, wildlife tourism.

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