CFO Dumisani Dlamini says the move will minimise the risk of handling cash and improve customer convenience.
The South African National Parks (SANParks) will be going cash free from 1 September 2021. The system will be implemented in a two-phased approach with several parks implementing from the 2021/22 financial year and the remaining parks implementing the system in the 2022/23 fiscal year.
SANParks CFO Dumisani Dlamini says, “SANParks clients will be encouraged to make use of pre-booking payment systems or speed point payment systems in parks. All trade and tourism activities will be cash free and therefore cash will not be accepted.”
According to Dumisani, the emphasis is placed on minimising the risk associated with the handling of cash by staff, but above all, improving customer convenience is key as the cash-free payment system will reduce the contact time at entry points, particularly during peak times. “This will cut down on queueing time and increase the time for visitors to enjoy the parks," he adds.
He says out of a total of 20 national parks spread across the seven provinces of the country, with the exception of KwaZulu-Natal and North West, 12 national parks will go cash free from 1 September 2021.
These include the Garden Route (consisting of Knysna, Wilderness and Tsitsikamma), Agulhas, Richtersveld and Namaqua in the Northern Cape, Table Mountain, Tankwa Karoo, West Coast in the Western Cape, Mountain Zebra, Camdeboo, Addo Elephant in the Eastern Cape as well as Mapungubwe in Limpopo and Golden Gate Highlands National Park in the Free State.
