Renewed interest in Zimbabwe set to boost tourism sector

President Mnangagwa and his Belarus counterpart President Lukashenko yesterday tour of the falls in the resort town of Victoria Falls.
Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter

THE tourism industry is buoyed by renewed interest by global travellers in destination Zimbabwe amid an increase in arrivals as the sector recovers from the disruption induced by Covid-19 in the last two years.

Tourism businesses were the hardest hit by the global pandemic since 2020 as operations were halted by travel restrictions.
As part of efforts to revive the sector, Zimbabwe crafted the National Tourism Growth and Recovery Strategy, which was launched by President Mnangagwa in 2020.

President Mnangagwa

The country’s engagement and re-engagement policy has also come in handy in boosting market confidence through renewed interest from key source markets.
In an interview following last week’s visit to Victoria Falls by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) chief executive Ms Winnie Muchanyuka said having a head of state sparing time to visit Victoria Falls was an endorsement for the destination.

Authority (ZTA) chief executive Ms Winnie Muchanyuka

President Lukashenko was accompanied by President Mnangagwa when he toured Victoria Falls last week.
The visit is a big win for the tourism sector and a strong exhibition of the positive fruit of the engagement and re-engagement drive, said Ms Muchanyuka.
“The efforts we may have ourselves may not be that far-reaching but the fact that he (President Lukashenko) was followed by international media that will bring far-reaching results,” she said.

“Our arrivals are picking up very well and we have been seeing some clusters of visitors especially those from the US, who are already 90 percent of what they were in 2019 pre-Covid-19, and when we see figures like that it’s very encouraging.”
Ms Muchanyuka said ZTA and its stakeholders have just come back from an outward mission in Spain where engagement was made with the Spanish-speaking community and other parts of the world where the interest on Zimbabwe has gone past Victoria Falls destination.

“We were getting inquiries for Mana Pools, Kariba, and Eastern Highlands. So, people already know about Zimbabwe and have an interest in coming,” she said.

President Alexander Lukashenko

“Operators are packaging these places around the country and we have no doubt that this year we’ll at least be at the levels that we had before Covid-19, if not better.”

Tourism executive, Mrs Barbara Murasiranwa-Hughes, who is also Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe Matabeleland North representative, said work is underway to build up destination Zimbabwe.
“We’re busy building up confidence for other European countries to know that Zimbabwe has a lot to showcase to the world out there,” she said.

Zimbabwe Tourism Authority

“We are already in the European market but the recent visit by Belarus President gave us more hope. We have got a hub here where people can fly to other destinations and this should spur our industry to greater heights.”
President Lukashenko flew off to Europe from the giant Victoria Falls International Airport as he ended his three-day State visit in the resort city, rubber stamping Victora Falls as a world destination. -chronicle