Tour operators have voiced their frustration at lack of access to South Africa’s Union Buildings in South Africa’s administrative capital, Pretoria – a site many tourists regard as a “must see” when visiting Gauteng.

The national Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI), custodian of the property, closed the park around the buildings for public visits over weekends and public holidays in February 2022, reportedly as a result of several security incidents. Restricted access to the park – home to popular attractions such as the Nelson Mandela statue – has detrimentally affected local tour operators.

“The sudden closure, without notice, of the park over weekends years ago was a disaster for the local tourism industry, and certainly for the many souvenir sellers and photographers using this venue mainly over weekends,” Holger Jensen, Owner of Pretoria-based tour operator Jensen Safaris, told Tourism Update.

Jensen said access during the week has also become “unpredictable and erratic”.

“The area at the Union Buildings is closed, for whatever reason, without notice and countless numbers of tourist buses, including my own vehicles, have to turn back and disappoint their guests,” said Jensen.

Jensen wrote to the DPWI requesting a resolution to the issue.

“The Mandela statue is a major landmark and something every visitor to South Africa wants to see. I would like to ask you to ensure that access to the park at the Union Buildings is restored so that some normality can return to our schedules,” Jensen wrote.

“One could also imagine a scheme where licensed tour guides could perhaps be given access to the area, even on restricted days, as our visitors would certainly not be a danger to anyone at the Union Buildings.”

Liz Oosthuysen, Secretary and Membership Coordinator of the Tshwane Tourism Association, said the association is in the process of presenting the tourism industry’s concerns to the DPWI and the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality.

“This issue has been in the spotlight for several years and we are aware of the impact it is having on our local tour operators and on visitation to one of the city’s top tourist sites. We hope to gain further clarity on the reasons for the closures and come to a resolution that benefits the tourism sector,” she said.

The DPWI had not responded to a request for comment by the time of publication.

At the highest point in Pretoria, the Union Buildings site is a national heritage property widely regarded as a powerful symbol of South Africa’s transition to democracy.