Zim spices up ZimBho campaign with Africa push

ZIMBABWE is scaling up efforts to reboot domestic tourism in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic with a push to attract regional visitors. The domestic tourism growth plan was unveiled early November under the banner ZimBho, which means Zimbabwe’s attractions are world class.

Under the plan, Zimbabweans are being encouraged to visit domestic destinations in order to revive businesses that spent most of the year closed due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

Governments grounded airlines and restricted international travel, pushing foreign tourist arrivals into Zimbabwe down by 90% this year, the biggest plunge in 40 years.

The sector had projected to scale up arrivals by 30%, riding on improved access after major airport revamps and aggressive forays into the world’s richest source markets.

The good news is, the industry regulator, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, says tourism has begun the first steps towards its much awaited bounce back.

For now, however, a stronger recovery may not be guaranteed as the pandemic has been making fresh inroads into the country, with health officials reporting upsurges in new cases over the past month.

But Finance minister Mthuli Ncube says this push may not be enough, and a campaign that will take Zimbabwe into neighbouring countries, propped by a $1,8 billion budgetary support for the tourism ministry, will bring the results the country aspires to achieve.

The $1,8 billion will take tourism support about $2,3 billion this year alone, another $500 million was availed in May to support to businesses affected by the pandemic.

“As the country is gearing for post-COVID-19 recovery, the tourism industry has been proactive in formulating the Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy to guide the process,” Ncube said when he unveiled the 2021 budget.

“The strategy . . . seeks to revive and grow the industry while overcoming challenges relating to destination image, connectivity and quality of products and services. Revival of the tourism industry is set to achieve a US$5 billion sector by 2025, anchored on the country’s abundant natural resources, rich cultural heritage and diverse scenery,” he said.

He said government had exempted VAT on all tourism services for domestic tourists in a bid to reduce the prices of tourism products and services.

“The recently launched Zimbho/Vakatsha promotion (domestic tourism campaign) will also help encourage locals to visit tourist attractions in the country. Cognisant of the expected slow recovery of the global tourism market as countries cautiously reopen their economies since the onset of the pandemic, the industry’s focus is initially on the domestic market. Efforts are being channelled towards extensively promoting domestic tourism development in close collaboration with the tourism sector. Products are expected to be affordable and exciting to the local market taking advantage of the easing of restrictions on travel and gatherings. The 2019 Annual Tourism Report shows that intra-regional arrivals to Zimbabwe are significant with Africa constituting 82% of total tourist arrivals. However, 44% of total arrivals are transit tourists. Apart from transit tourists, visiting friends and relatives and leisure are the main purposes of visits. It is anticipated that as countries further ease travel restrictions and open up their economies, intra-Africa tourism will recover ahead of international tourism. Accordingly, Zimbabwe is set to extend marketing efforts to the regional tourism source market. Government also welcomes sporting and cultural tourism under this initiative and stands ready to collaborate with operators in the industry,” he said.

For now the sector only contributes US$2 billion annually to the economy.

If this plan gets rolled out, it will be complemented by a cluster of ongoing initiatives to rebuild tourism.

Under a strategy that came into force in 2019, Zimbabwe has been combing through large swathes of previously unexplored wildlife-rich jungles to unlock fresh investment opportunities and attractions.

The country’s remote outback locations still have undiscovered treasures that could boost the geographical spread of attractions and drive revenues for the industry.

Zimbabwe wants to review the present spread of tourism investment and infrastructure, then add new ground in high potential destinations away from the traditional resort centres.