Zambia records rise in Indian visitors
By NATION REPORTER ZAMBIA recorded a sharp rise in the number of tourists travelling from India last month because of the summer vacations and favourable climate, Zambia’s High Commissioner to India Judith Kapijimpanga said.
“At least forty Indian nationals obtained tourist visas through the mission but the number could be more taking into consideration those that entered Zambia using the e- visa,” Ms Kapijimpanga said in a statement made available to the daily Nation by first secretary for press and tourism at the Zambian Mission in New Delhi, Bangwe Naviley.
She said in the preceding month of April, only eighteen tourists travelled to Zambia.
The High Commissioner said this brought to 115, the total number of Indian nationals who visited Zambia between January and May 2018, as recorded by the mission in India.
“The mission has planned to aggressively market the country’s tourism sites to ensure more tourists from India and countries of extra accreditation such as Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Nepal, Singapore, Maldives and Bangladesh visit Zambia,” Mrs. Kapijimpanga said.
She added that the months of June and July were among the hottest in India but also served as the best time to visit Zambia which experienced the cold season during the same period.
Mrs. Kapijimpanga said the period was also ideal to visit the Victoria Falls, one of the seven natural wonders of the world and other rich tourist sites the country had to offer.
“The Government of Zambia, under the leadership of His Excellency, Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu, has put tourism as one of the priority sectors and the mission in India will play its part to ensure that more tourists visit Zambia,” she said.
She has called on Zambia Tourism Agency (ZTA) to continue working closely with the mission in order to reach out to more parts of India and the countries of extra accreditation.