South African Tourism (SA Tourism) is has announced the appointment of Darryl Erasmus as the organisation’s new Chief Operations Officer with effect 07 January 2025.
As Chief Operations Officer, Darryl will be responsible for the oversight role of South African Tourism’s Corporate Services functions, while supporting and ensuring effective operations of its internal business units. In addition, he will fulfill the responsibility of driving in-country localisation and execution of global strategies.
Darryl, who previously worked for South African Tourism as Chief Quality Assurance Officer in the Tourism Grading Council business unit, brings a wealth of expertise and leadership experience having worked in the hospitality, tourism, and corporate communications sectors. His other roles have seen him hold senior marketing, sales, and leadership roles with brands such as Travelport, Protea Hotels, and Intercontinental Hotels. He was also Managing Director at BLAZE Integrated Hospitality Marketing Agency which specialises in integrated marketing communications. Most recently he provided advisory and consulting skills for commercial services in the tourism and hospitality sector, in the form of Director at DAX Advisory Services.
Darryl’s appointment was approved by the South Africa Tourism board in December 2024. He is completing a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Studies from Henley Business School; has completed a Postgraduate Global Executive Development Program from GIBS; and a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing and Business Management from Oxford Brooks University. He also has qualifications in Financial Management, Training Management, Manager Development, Marketing and Business Management.
