The Sunday News
Judith Phiri, Business Reporter
THE Government has declared September as the tourism month to create greater awareness on the critical role the tourism sector has on the socio-economic development of the nation.
Zimbabwe as a member State of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) will join the rest of the world in celebrating World Tourism Day held annually on 27 September.
The day was set aside by the UNWTO to foster awareness among the international community on the socio-economic benefits derived from the travel and tourism sector, together with its entire value chains.
In a statement, the Ministry of Environment, Tourism and Hospitality Industry said: “The Ministry has declared the month of September as a tourism month to create greater awareness on the critical role the tourism sector has on the socio-economic development of the Nation. The World Tourism Day celebrations are hosted by provinces on a rotational basis.
“By targeting different provinces each year, the Ministry’s aim is to comply with the principle of leaving no place and no one behind in terms of tourism development and equitable distribution of tourism benefits to local communities as enshrined in the National Development Strategy (NDS1).”
Globally, the performance of the travel and tourism sector was seriously affected by the Covid-19 pandemic during the past two years and the net result was a sharp decline in tourist arrivals and receipts was witnessed resulting in high disinvestments and job losses.
Covid-19
The Ministry said on a more positive note, it was encouraging to note that most countries were on the recovery path with the latest UNWTO global statistics revealing that international tourism registered a strong rebound in the first five months of this year.
“Almost 250 million international arrivals were recorded and this was compared to the 77 million arrivals recorded from January to May 2021. A growth trajectory has also been witnessed in Zimbabwe following the relaxation of Covid-19 restrictions and the vaccination drive which crowned Zimbabwe a safe travel destination,” read part of the statement.
It said the rebound of international inbound tourism and the general increase in domestic tourism activities also increased the performance of the sector.
“During the first half of 2022, the tourism sector registered 115 percent rise in tourist arrivals to 352 719, compared with the same period in 2021 where the international arrivals received were 164 062. The tourist receipts also increased by 121 percent in 2022 to US$337.5 million compared to US$152.8 million in 2021.”
The Ministry said domestic entries into national parks rose by 90 percent from 90 909 in 2021 to 172 481 during the period between January and May 2022 and 79 percent increase in new investments was also registered this year with a total of US$96.5 million recorded.
The Ministry said that during the past 12 months cycle which was running under the theme, “Inclusive Tourism,” a number of milestones were achieved in the tourism sector.
The theme for this year’s World Tourism Day celebrations is: “Rethinking Tourism”, which presents the tourism sector an opportunity to rethink ways to run or revamp their businesses after the devastating effects of the Covid-19.
The Ministry said it has lined up programmes and activities in line with the theme during the tourism month, that includes a Tourism Symposium which will be held on 15 September at the Midlands State University in Gweru.
“This will be followed by a Junior Parliament Debate scheduled for September 22. The Ministry is also organising a soccer match for junior players under the age of 18 years, while prominent soccer legends and Football Clubs will be invited to the event on September, 24.”
