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The principal aim of this article, among other crucial determinants, is to elucidate that folklore systemically can be utilised for the sustainable development of tourism in South Africa and in the global sphere. The sociological perspective, through argumentation, is deployed to debate and demonstrate how and why folklore should be gauged and appreciated as an instrument of promoting South Africa’s socioeconomic and development plan. Through the discussions and findings, it becomes evident, therein, that folklore has not been accorded the opportunity to partake in tourism in most African countries, and in particular, South Africa. Given that, it becomes part of the article’s sociological debates to conclusively demonstrate, by appointing three folklore types, how folklore can address the problematised phenomenon. The concluding remarks challenge folklore and tourism scholars to collaboratively open and continue the discourse to serve the country's just and legitimate course. The significance of the article rests on the veracity that folklore and tourism have not been scholarly positioned as complementing or corroborating components in South Africa and elsewhere in the global sphere.

Small, Medium, and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) are the key players in the township tourism sector, which contributes substantially to the growth of the economy in South Africa. Township tourism SMMEs are critical to uplifting the rural and township economies. However, they remain marginalized and continue to struggle to be sustainable. The following paper explains how much township tourism SMMEs use to stay sustainable. The paper aims to identify SMMEs involved in township tourism. The paper also aims to establish factors influencing the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs. In addition, the paper also aims to determine the competitive strategy for the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs. The study adopted a positivist research paradigm through a quantitative approach and a survey research design. As a result of having no reliable available sampling frame, a non-probability sampling strategy was adopted, and relevant data was generated through questionnaires. The data was gathered from 61 owners or managers of township tourism SMMEs, in uMlazi, Durban. This paper’s findings revealed that the most influential factors affecting the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs were a lack of funding, strong business competition, and poor business location. The study's findings revealed that only a few entrepreneurs applied a competitive strategy to their businesses. From the data analyzed, relevant recommendations and conclusions were also drawn

MSMEs are widely regarded as important building blocks for economic prosperity and broader social well-being for both developed and developing nations. However, MSMEs face several challenges that impede their ability to fully provide the much-needed boost to the socio-economic development of countries. Tourism MSMEs are often significantly impacted by crises that include economic downturns, natural disasters, and public health emergencies that destroy infrastructure and affect human movement, notably the outbreak of pandemics and epidemics. The Covid-19 pandemic altered every business operation across the globe. This was mainly because the pandemic was new and no reference case for the Covid-19 crisis existed in living memory. As such the survival of all businesses was at high risk, particularly, the tourism MSMEs in South Africa. The industry’s operations were severely affected by the restrictions imposed by the government of South Africa especially in the year 2020 and 2021. Despite operating their businesses in a crisis, the tourism MSMEs entrepreneurs exhibited resilience as they navigated the pandemic, through being agile, adaptive, and exploring new opportunities of operating and utilising government support. It is in this regard that gaining a deeper understanding of the resilience strategies that were employed by the tourism MSMEs during and strategies being employed during post Covid-19 pandemic crisis is of paramount significance. The study adopted qualitative interpretivist approach through document analysis.  Collected data was analysed using the ATLAS.ti.software. The study concludes that even though the Covid-19 had some devastating effects on the MSMEs tourism entrepreneurs, that are still being felt now, it forced the entrepreneurs to adapt and be innovative. It is in this regard that the study concludes that the identified strategies are very vital for the survival of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The study also concludes that the tourism MSMEs entrepreneurs became more resilient to the pandemic as it progressed hence, they implemented the identified strategies revealed by the study findings.

The tourism industry is a substantial contributor to the South African economy. The main aim of this study is to analyse the tourism industry’s performance during the Covid-19 pandemic, with specific reference to tourism accommodation income, and to shed light on the recovery prospects of the tourism industry and the overall South African economy. The study followed a descriptive research design and quantitative method using secondary data obtained from Statistics South Africa. The data covers a span of over 16 years, from January 2007 to May 2023. Results indicated that the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourism industry was marked by a drastic drop in total income at the height of the pandemic, which coincided with similar performance of the overall economy. The tourism industry as well as the overall economy showed a V-shape recovery with a negative trendline suggesting their recovery potential and the need for sustained efforts by industry players and policymakers for full recovery in the medium term. Among the strategies for full recovery are diverse offerings by tourist accommodation providers, intensified digital marketing campaigns and providing exceptional service experiences.

MSMEs are widely regarded as important building blocks for economic prosperity and broader social well-being for both developed and developing nations. However, MSMEs face several challenges that impede their ability to fully provide the much-needed boost to the socio-economic development of countries. Tourism MSMEs are often significantly impacted by crises that include economic downturns, natural disasters, and public health emergencies that destroy infrastructure and affect human movement, notably the outbreak of pandemics and epidemics. The Covid-19 pandemic altered every business operation across the globe. This was mainly because the pandemic was new and no reference case for the Covid-19 crisis existed in living memory. As such the survival of all businesses was at high risk, particularly, the tourism MSMEs in South Africa. The industry’s operations were severely affected by the restrictions imposed by the government of South Africa especially in the year 2020 and 2021. Despite operating their businesses in a crisis, the tourism MSMEs entrepreneurs exhibited resilience as they navigated the pandemic, through being agile, adaptive, and exploring new opportunities of operating and utilising government support. It is in this regard that gaining a deeper understanding of the resilience strategies that were employed by the tourism MSMEs during and strategies being employed during post Covid-19 pandemic crisis is of paramount significance. The study adopted qualitative interpretivist approach through document analysis.  Collected data was analysed using the ATLAS.ti.software. The study concludes that even though the Covid-19 had some devastating effects on the MSMEs tourism entrepreneurs, that are still being felt now, it forced the entrepreneurs to adapt and be innovative. It is in this regard that the study concludes that the identified strategies are very vital for the survival of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The study also concludes that the tourism MSMEs entrepreneurs became more resilient to the pandemic as it progressed hence, they implemented the identified strategies revealed by the study findings.

The tourism industry is a substantial contributor to the South African economy. The main aim of this study is to analyse the tourism industry’s performance during the Covid-19 pandemic, with specific reference to tourism accommodation income, and to shed light on the recovery prospects of the tourism industry and the overall South African economy. The study followed a descriptive research design and quantitative method using secondary data obtained from Statistics South Africa. The data covers a span of over 16 years, from January 2007 to May 2023. Results indicated that the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the tourism industry was marked by a drastic drop in total income at the height of the pandemic, which coincided with similar performance of the overall economy. The tourism industry as well as the overall economy showed a V-shape recovery with a negative trendline suggesting their recovery potential and the need for sustained efforts by industry players and policymakers for full recovery in the medium term. Among the strategies for full recovery are diverse offerings by tourist accommodation providers, intensified digital marketing campaigns and providing exceptional service experiences.

The principal aim of this article, among other crucial determinants, is to elucidate that folklore systemically can be utilised for the sustainable development of tourism in South Africa and in the global sphere. The sociological perspective, through argumentation, is deployed to debate and demonstrate how and why folklore should be gauged and appreciated as an instrument of promoting South Africa’s socioeconomic and development plan. Through the discussions and findings, it becomes evident, therein, that folklore has not been accorded the opportunity to partake in tourism in most African countries, and in particular, South Africa. Given that, it becomes part of the article’s sociological debates to conclusively demonstrate, by appointing three folklore types, how folklore can address the problematised phenomenon. The concluding remarks challenge folklore and tourism scholars to collaboratively open and continue the discourse to serve the country's just and legitimate course. The significance of the article rests on the veracity that folklore and tourism have not been scholarly positioned as complementing or corroborating components in South Africa and elsewhere in the global sphere.

Small, Medium, and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) are the key players in the township tourism sector, which contributes substantially to the growth of the economy in South Africa. Township tourism SMMEs are critical to uplifting the rural and township economies. However, they remain marginalized and continue to struggle to be sustainable. The following paper explains how much township tourism SMMEs use to stay sustainable. The paper aims to identify SMMEs involved in township tourism. The paper also aims to establish factors influencing the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs. In addition, the paper also aims to determine the competitive strategy for the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs. The study adopted a positivist research paradigm through a quantitative approach and a survey research design. As a result of having no reliable available sampling frame, a non-probability sampling strategy was adopted, and relevant data was generated through questionnaires. The data was gathered from 61 owners or managers of township tourism SMMEs, in uMlazi, Durban. This paper’s findings revealed that the most influential factors affecting the sustainability of township tourism SMMEs were a lack of funding, strong business competition, and poor business location. The study's findings revealed that only a few entrepreneurs applied a competitive strategy to their businesses. From the data analyzed, relevant recommendations and conclusions were also drawn