Business Reporter
THE Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe (TBCZ) is upbeat that domestic tourists will, as per tradition, drive volumes during this year’s festive season.
This is on the back of several marketing initiatives being implemented by players in the sector, including the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA).
Last year, the Government, in collaboration with ZTA, launched the festive season domestic tourism campaign dubbed ZimBho-Uripi, whose overall goal is to drive economic growth through encouraging Zimbabweans, including those in the diaspora, to travel around Zimbabwe during the festive season.
In an interview, TBCZ president Mr Clive Chinwada said, as has been the trend over the years, the number of visits to tourist destinations increases during the festive season, especially on Christmas Day.
“The festive season demand is largely driven by domestic travel, constituting well over 90 percent, so in that regard, we view it in terms of whether the number of visits to tourist destinations will increase, remain constant or decrease.
“What we have observed over the years is that generally, our tourist destinations will always fill up especially during Christmas itself.
“We are, however, aware that there has been pressure on households from an economic point of view as a result of the drought and other factors. We are of the view this may result in reduced lengths of stay, as history would demonstrate,” he said.
Mr Chinwada said during the festive season, players in the tourism industry always strive to provide friendly packages and activities.
Some of the resort areas domestic tourists frequent during the festive season are the Victoria Falls, the Great Zimbabwe, Gonarezhou National Park, Hwange National Park, Lake Kariba, Lake Chivero, Nyanga Mountains and Vumba Mountains.
“The focus during the festive season is always to provide family friendly packages and activities because the festive season is largely a family holiday,” he said.
Tourism is among Zimbabwe’s fastest-growing and strategic sectors that are expected to drive the country’s economic turnaround.
In this context, the Government has made significant strides in the implementation of the National Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy, which has seen the country surpassing the US$5 billion tourism economy that had been projected to be attained by next year.
The National Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy is anchored in Zimbabwe’s vision of becoming a prime international tourist destination based on the judicious and sustainable exploitation of the unique assets of nature, culture, heritage and the built environment.
The strategy is informed by the Government’s Vision 2030 of attaining upper middle-income status, characterised by increased investment, decent jobs and a populace free from poverty and corruption.
Mr Chinwada said TBCZ was also working on promoting Zimbabwe as a destination of choice for regional and international tourists to help improve the sector’s contribution to the country’s economy.
In its latest World Travel Market investment prospectus, the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA) said the tourism sector is estimated to have contributed 1,7 percent to economic growth in 2023 and is projected to contribute the same this year.
Average hotel room occupancy improved by 4 percentage points from 43 percent in 2022 to 47 percent last year.
ZIDA said estimated revenue from domestic tourism rose by 4,7 percent from US$12,6 million recorded in 2022 to US$13,2 million last year.
The performance was achieved after the tourism sector took a dip during the Covid-19 pandemic period (2020-2022).
“We are just coming out of a strategic planning process, as the Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe, where the emphasis was on the need for the council to be strong in championing the interests of the travel and tourism industry because largely what is needed is for the policy environment to be favourable for the sector to thrive.
“In this regard, the focus is to engage and work with the Government to ensure a favourable policy and business environment,” said Mr Chinwada.
“Policies that the authorities need to look at range from the ease of doing business in so far as licensing and taxation are concerned, where studies have shown that operators have to contend with various taxes and statutory bodies, to immigration, making it easy for our source markets to visit Zimbabwe, and the general issues around currency stability and the economy.”
In the first six months of the year, Zimbabwe’s international tourist arrivals stood at 1,43 million.
“The numbers are exciting and looking up. Europe and the Americas have, for instance, grown by 50 percent whilst on the overall, arrivals have grown by 27 percent.
“To date, our main tourist hub, the Victoria Falls, has recorded some great results, with occupancy standing at close to 60 percent from around 50 percent in the first six months of the financial year 2023,” he said.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic, the tourism sector was the hardest hit as the World Health Organisation, in 2019, imposed travel restrictions and national lockdowns to contain the viral respiratory infection, which killed millions of people across the globe.
Nations across the world gradually lifted the travel restrictions and national lockdowns in 2022 as infections eased, but still adhering to WHO protocols and guidelines.
According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, international tourism is expected to fully recover to pre-pandemic levels this year.
This post was originally published on here
