Chronicle Editor
GOVERNMENT said it is concerned about the high prices charged by operators in the tourism industry which have made Zimbabwe’s tourism industry less competitive. The high prices, Government noted, are affecting the affordability of tourism products and weigh on the growth of domestic tourism in a country where disposable incomes are low.
The Government said through the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry it will take appropriate interventions to address the issues of prices with special focus on driving domestic tourism. High prices in the tourism sector have however been blamed on the heavy taxing of the industry players and high cost of utilities.
Analysts have said too many taxes levied on the tourism players weigh heavily on the tourism industry as they translate to high prices compared to the regional average. The taxes include the tourism business licence fee, national parks fee, wildlife fee, ministry of transport fee, travel agent permit fee, external tour operators’ permit fee, car hire permit fee and houseboat permit fee among others.
Tourism and Hospitality Minister Barbara Rwodzi recently decried the high domestic prices in tourism saying this was driving away potential visitors to Zimbabwe. Minister Rwodzi said these high prices of tourism products were detrimental to the growth of the local tourism sector.
“Our operators are charging high prices for tourism products especially in Victoria Falls and now tourists prefer to stay longer in Livingstone, Zambia. We have more expensive hotels in Victoria Falls and even our food is expensive compared to Livingstone,” said Minister Rwodzi.
She said because of the high prices, tourists just come during the day to Victoria Falls and go back to spend more time in Livingstone. Minister Rwodzi said there is a need to consolidate the taxing system to enhance the competitiveness of the local tourism sector.
Prices charged by low class hotels in Zimbabwe equate to those charged by some top hotels in the world which makes destination Zimbabwe uncompetitive.
This is probably why 43,2 percent of tourists interviewed during a Visitor Exit Survey covering a 12-month period between December 2015 and November 2016 declared that they will not visit Zimbabwe again. The bold statement from the tourists was that there was something wrong in the tourism sector and what has come out clear is that our pricing is wrong. Our tourism products are very expensive and there is an urgent need to address this problem which is threatening destination Zimbabwe.
Government on its part should urgently address the issue of too many taxes which the operators are passing on to the tourists thereby making the sector uncompetitive.
Government has identified tourism as one of the key sectors that should significantly contribute to the economic turnaround given its huge potential but as already alluded to, this sector’s exorbitant prices are chasing away tourists.
Online Reporter