HATAB in bold move to procure vaccines for industry
Small players will not be disadvantaged
Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana HATAB) has developed a proposal and is awaiting government’s response on how best the industry can assist in procurement, storage, enrolment and transportation of the COVID- 19 vaccine.
Currently the industry, driven by its secretariat is ready to offer assistance by putting together its resources through respective member contributions in order to procure vaccines to be used for the industry members.
The industry which accounts for about 4.8 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product ( GDP) is ready to make a meaningful contribution and wants all industry stakeholders to receive a jab so that they can align with the global market.
Speaking to Botswana Guardian about the proposal, HATAB Chairman Joe Motse said they asked themselves as an industry what they could do to help the prevailing situation of COVID- 19 in the country.
He acknowledged that some of their members are international operators and are able to secure some resources that others cannot get through their established networks.
Motse said such members have indicated that they can get into direct contact with some of the manufacturers as more companies are involved in producing the vaccine.
“We have agreed that member companies should contribute towards the cause. We are aware that not every investor in the industry will be able to contribute as they are limited in many respects.
“But that is where the HATAB secretariat comes in to help others in order to ensure that no one will be left out,” Motse said.
Motse said the industry had a discussion purely to map a way forward. During that meeting, some members volunteered and offered their resources and money for the purpose of sourcing the vaccines.
“I must say that the idea was borne out of a willingness to vaccinate the staff. As HATAB we have resources already in place that are underutilised. It is common knowledge that we have a light aircraft used in the Delta offering transport”. This is where Motse believes the industry can assist. Further, vaccines need to be kept under certain temperatures and HATAB members have facilities all over the country and can offer their fridges for storage instead of government having to buy new fridges. “The reasons why we are going all out to help is that so far critical markets to our industry have long started enrolling the vaccine and people in such countries as United States have started to visit other Districts.” This, in Motse’s view indicates that Coronavirus is manageable.
HATAB earlier released a media statement indicating their intentions to mobilise resources and procure and distribute vaccines for inoculation of its members to ameliorate the effects of COVID- 19 on the industry, which remains a major contributor to job creation and skills transfer, given its strategic position in the country’s diversification and development trajectory.
The statement Public Affairs and Communications Manager, Tebogo Ramakgathi says the proposed measure to procure vaccines for the Industry is premised on the understanding that government will expedite the resumption of the tourism season, which has been affected by COVID- 19 restrictions, with huge losses in room occupancy and turnover exceeding 90 per cent and related supply chain under extreme financial distress.
Equally, most employees have been on reduced work and pay, with others on significant reduced or zero salaries for a year and this has affected their livelihoods. According to HATAB, the hospitality and tourism industry is faced with reduced contribution to GDP, at all levels of the supply chain, resulting from cessation of normal operations, almost complete cessation of foreign currency generation by the industry, which in normal times is the country’s second biggest generator of foreign currency, reduced tax revenues reduced or zero Resource Royalties and need to defer payment of those that are due, need to defer lease rentals, and costs to government of supporting the industry through wages subsidies and finance. The social cost has also been massive: the reduction, and in some cases cessation, of salary and wage payments to staff has resulted in real hardships, particularly in rural areas from which many tourism staff emanate. The Statement adds that in view of the convincing imperative to achieve an early restart of tourism, HATAB proposes that frontline tourism staff be designated as essential workers and that they be assigned high priority in the allocation of vaccines. The timing of this is critical: Botswana has already lost a whole busy season for tourism, and the next one commences in May or June. If the industry can go to the market and credibly advise that, by then, all tourism staff will have been vaccinated, it will be possible to achieve a restart of the industry. Failure to achieve this in this timeframe will result in tourists visiting other countries and defer recovery of Botswana’s tourism industry until the busy season of 2022.
The industry commits to fund the costs of vaccinating its own staff and also to mobilising all of its resources to the procurement, storage, distribution and administration of the vaccines. Subject to costs, it is believed that many businesses will also be willing to fund the costs of vaccines for some family members of staff, to reduce risks of cross- infection and improve the welfare of the families concerned. The relatively small numbers of people involved mean that this objective is completely achievable and should be a high priority.