adminPatrick Chitumba Senior Victoria Falls Reporter
SAFARI operators have commended the government for restoring the suspension of duty on imported vehicles, saying this will boost their fleet used in game drives.
According to the Government Gazette published on Friday last week, the new measure took effect from January 1, 2014.The piece of legislation was initially gazetted in 2012 before being suspended over allegations of abuse by some operators.
Hwange-Gwayi-Dete Conservancy and Tourism Association chairperson, Langton Masunda, said considering that the tourism sector had been affected by travel bans and sanctions which saw tourists shunning the country for over a decade, timing by the government to scrap the suspension was good.
“Tourism has been struggling for many years as it had been hit by sanctions and travel bans. Those measures made it difficult for us players in the hunting sector to recapitalise because of loss of business. So, we commend the government for this positive gesture which would result in us being able to import vehicles for game drives duty free.”
Masunda said once they recapitalise, the local players would be able to compete with other players in countries like Zambia and Botswana who were offering the same product.
Steve Jonasi of Lion Encounter concurred with Masunda saying:
“This is a welcome relief to the industry. This will go a long way in aiding the industry upgrade the ageing fleet of vehicles thereby increasing the efficiency and service delivery levels.
“The Zimbabwe tourist product will invariable be improved thus giving us a competitive edge over other destinations.”
The country’s safari sector has 65 big operators with tourists targeting the big five animals — elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo and rhinoceros for trophies.
There are 220 registered medium-sized operators and over 1000 small operators. The big operators account for over seven percent of the revenues.
Sector revenue was up 20 percent to $65 million in 2013, driven by an upsurge in tourist arrivals
Online Reporter