Andrew
Wallace Ruzvidzo
Sunday Mail Correspondent
ZIMBABWE has put in place specific investment incentives tailored to attract Foreign Direct Investment into the tourism sector, which prospective investors should take advantage of, a senior official has said.
Making a pitch to investors during the Visit Zimbabwe Tourism and Investment Conference being held on the sidelines of the Dubai Expo 2020 yesterday, Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry Deputy Minister, Barbra Rwodzi, said the incentives include duty rebates and tax holidays in designated Special Economic Zones.
She said there were vast opportunities for investment in hospitality accommodation, conference facilities, theme parks and upmarket restaurants.
“This bears testimony to our pronounced determination to grow the tourism sector to a multi-billion-dollar sector by the year 2025,” Deputy Minister Rwodzi said.
“Again my team from the Ministry is ready to engage through bilateral discussions and I am confident that the discussions will be business-like, true to our mantra, Zimbabwe is Open for Business.”
The National Tourism Recovery and Growth Strategy singles out the Middle East region as one of the key markets for Zimbabwean tourism products and investments, said Deputy Minister Rwodzi.
“I am therefore keen to see us forging strong ties with tour operators and travel agencies from this region, and beyond, to take advantage of the strong air links between Harare and Dubai as well as Doha to promote increased tourism traffic.
“Zimbabwe, through our tourism marketing agency, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, stands ready to facilitate familiarisation trips for tour operators and travel agencies in this region to enable them to sample the numerous tourism attractions in our country,” she added.
Deputy Minister Rwodzi invited international travel and tourism players to visit and familiarise themselves with Zimbabwe.
The Tourism Ministry also gave away 10 complimentary tours to tour operators and travel agents.
She said Government had put in place measures to ensure the safety of both visitors and locals from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Deputy Minister said Zimbabwe’s prime tourism destination – Victoria Falls – had achieved herd immunity from the coronavirus.
“I am pleased to share that, as a country, we are taking every precaution to keep both visitors and the local populace safe, notwithstanding the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This is reflected in the Government response measures under which key tourism destinations like the Victoria Falls, which is a leading global tourism destination, were deliberately prioritised for vaccination and reached herd immunity as early as July 2021, rendering the resort Covid-19 safe to visit.”
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