Mzembi crowned African Tourism Minister of the Year

crowned the African Tourism Minister of the Year at the Africa Investor Tourism Investment Awards in South Africa last month.
The Africa Investor Tourism Investment Awards coincided with the Ai Tourism and Infrastructure Investment Summit which ran from February 21 to 22 at the Mdluli Conference Centre, Skukuza Camp, Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga, South Africa.
The summit is regarded as the international calendar tourism investment event for Africa and brings together tourism ministers, mayors, tourism and infrastructure project promoters, private and institutional investors with interests in Africa.
The previous edition of the summit was held in Harare last year and Zambia’s Minister of Tourism, Catherine Namugala, won the prestigious award.
At the prestigious event, Minister Mzembi was shortlisted in a highly competitive category, which included ministers from Zambia, Kenya, Namibia, Morocco, Uganda, South Africa, Angola and Mozambique as nominees.
The Africa Investor awards were created to showcase Africa’s opportunities and achievements in the tourism sector to the global investment community.
They are designed to collectively raise awareness about Africa as a tourism investment destination and reward groups and individuals developing the African tourism industry as a vehicle to drive sustainable economic growth.
The African Minister of the Year award in particular is bestowed on a minister who has excelled in driving development of the tourism industry in his country in a distinctive manner.
In his acceptance speech, the Minister Mzembi said: “The award that we have received today, that of African Minister of Tourism of the Year, is a fitting tribute to my President Robert Mugabe for his wisdom in creating a separate ministry of tourism and hospitality industry and positioning it as one of the four pillars anchoring economic recovery in Zimbabwe in successive economic blueprints since 2009.
“His Solomonic wisdom in doing so has been vindicated by this prestigious award that we have received today.
“This award is also a befitting endorsement of the Zimbabwe brand, aptly captured in our brand pay-off line ‘Zimbabwe – a World of Wonders’.”
The minister added that the award is a welcome addition to the various accolades and recognitions that the country continues to receive.
Zimbabwe is currently a cockpit of both regional and international tourism.
“We currently chair the Regional Tourism Organisation of Southern Africa (RETOSA) through my Permanent Secretary, Dr Sylvester Maunganidze, and also sit together with South Africa on the United Nations World Tourism Organisation Executive Council on behalf of Southern Africa,” said Eng Mzembi.
“The World Travel and Tourism Council has also endorsed our efforts in growing tourism in Zimbabwe by indicating that we are the fastest-growing tourism economy by Gross Domestic Product after China and growing at an annualised rate of 8,2 percent per annum for the next decade 2010 to 2020.
“Hopefully this award should send a statement to our national planners to begin to prioritise tourism, a sector that in 2010 earned just below US$1 billion in tourism receipts and attracted 2,2 million tourist arrivals against a background of low investment per dollar by central government.
“It’s unfortunate we are in the group of death in terms of funding by the fiscal authority and as Africa recognises our resilience to build the sector against all odds, the signals should read as a wake-up call for more resources to be put in place to support this sector.
“As Zimbabwe, we are also grateful that after the last Ai Tourism and Infrastructure Investment conference held in Harare last year, I can safely say that our major tourism players such as African Sun, Rainbow Tourism Group and Meikles Africa Group have benefited from the new funding that has been made available to them through opportunities opened up after the conference.
“Equally, I am driving a new Government-led and private sector driven thrust to mobilise infrastructural investment through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in a bid to grow the tourism industry.”
The minister in particular was recognised for his vision, and tireless investor engagement programmes and ongoing efforts at home to boost and grow domestic tourism as a cradle on which international tourism will grow.
He is also credited with visionary leadership and direction for the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, a parastatal under his supervision which is also making significant gains in luring the traditional European and American markets back to Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe recently launched a new tourism brand: “Zimbabwe – a World of Wonders”.
Minister Mzembi has gone on a drive to launch and popularise the brand at home and in major source markets of the world where it has been well received.
With such recognition, the engines of tourism are already in motion and Zimbabwe is to regain its place as a leading tourism destination.