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Isdore Guvamombe
ABOUT 1 500 local and international exhibitors converge in Harare tomorrow for the three-day international travel and tourism exposition, the Sanganai/Hlanganani – World Travel and Tourism Africa Fair. Sanganai/Hlanganani – World Travel and Tourism Africa Fair is an annual Tourism trade fair organised by the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority to showcase Zimbabwe’s tourism offerings to world acclaimed tourist wholesalers, governments, tourism boards and investors.
Being the biggest tourism exposition in southern Africa, outside the Indaba of South Africa, Sanganai/Hlanganani showcases the widest variety of Africa’s best tourism products, and attracts international visitors and media from across the world.
This is precisely the reason why it is known as the place “Where the World Meets Africa.”
In an interview ZTA head of corporate affairs Mr Sugar Chagonda said 1 441 exhibitors and 208 international buyers had confirmed their participation, with some of them having already arrived.
The rest of the exhibitors and buys are expected in the country during the course of the indaba said Mr Chagonda
“All is set for this mega event and already 1 441 exhibitors, 25 of them from China have confirmed participation and most of them have already started arriving.
“This is going to be a three-day event in which we are trying to promote Zimbabwe for MICE, which is Meetings, Incentives Conferences and Exhibitions.
“We have always wanted to promote Zimbabwe as a MICE destination where people come and converge.
They can also take this opportunity to do business and we want to use this event to further promote that idea, especially with the fact that this exposition is registered under the United Nations World Tourism Organisation calendar,’’ said Mr Chagonda.
The main event will be the business conference in which key speakers will be Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Engineer Walter Mzembi, Rainbow Tourism Group chief executive Mr Tendai Madzivanyika.
Zimbabwe International Trade Fair president Mr Daniel Chigaru and ZTA chief executive Mr Karikoga Kaseke, among others are also expected to deliver their addresses during the course of the meeting.
The fair is the successor of Shanyai/Vakatshani, the Zimbabwe International Travel Expo that was held annually at the Harare International Conference Centre.
Zite started as a small expo in 1982 and grew over the years to become one of Africa’s leading tourism showcases by 2007.
The past four editions of Sanganai/ Hlanganani were a resounding success and attracted the leading African destinations.
Also major world tourism markets such as South Africa, Botswana, Malaysia, China, Zambia, Malawi, Kenya, Indonesia, Italy and many others have also exhibited at the ever growing fair.
The editions have seen the whole world converge in Zimbabwe in the form of high calibre international buyers as well as exhibitors, hence achieving its main purpose of bringing the world to Africa, “Where the world meets Africa”.
The 2013 edition will be held in Harare under the theme, |Celebrating Africa’s Tourism Diversity”.
It is expected to ride on the successes gained by the previous editions and the UNWTO general assembly held in Victoria Falls in August and is, therefore, an opportunity not to be missed.
Online Reporter