Tourism guides mobilise resources for road rehab

TOURISM guides in Victoria Falls have heeded President Mnangagwa’s call for the private sector to partner Government on infrastructure development as they have mobilised resources to rehabilitate the Victoria Falls-Kazungula Road.

Zimbabwe Tourism Guides Association (ZTGA), working with Lunyalalo Trust and Vapositori for Economic Development have mobilised their members, Victoria Falls residents and had planned to rehabilitate the road from Cross Mabale in Hwange to Kazungula border with Botswana and Zambia covering 240km.

However, Government approved the plan but said ZTGA should refurbish the Victoria Falls-Kazungula Road which is 70km long as the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development is also planning to carry out rehabilitation work between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls.

Some sections of the road have become impassable due to potholes and tourism industry players have said this has a huge bearing on the sector and image of the country.

The Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road stretch from Cross Mabale to Victoria Falls is critical as it is used by operators to transport tourists from the resort city or from Botswana and Zambia to Hwange National Park and other attractions within the district.

A distance that used to take two hours between Victoria Falls and Hwange Main Camp about 200km now takes more than three hours because of the bad road.

The ZTGA had mobilised villagers along the highway to provide labour voluntarily and had to reschedule the start of the project to next week following the directive from the Transport Ministry for them to concentrate on Kazungula Road which has no communities around.

ZTGA chairman Mr Francis Nyabadza who is leading the project said they had mobilised bags of cement from well-wishers, gravel from the Victoria Falls City Council, tar from the Ministry of Transport and other items from individuals and corporates.

He said some were still promising to donate both labour and materials.

Volunteers are seeking to mobilise four seven tonne trucks for carrying gravel, four one-tonne trucks, Jojo tanks, wheelbarrows, shovels, axes, 200 bags of cement, and two 22-seater buses with trailers to transport volunteers and their equipment.

Mr Nyabadza said the dangerous state of the road and President Mnangagwa’s call through the philosophy Ilizwe lakhiwa ngabaninilo had inspired them not to wait for Government to rehabilitate the road.

“We are looking forward to mobilise about 50 guides to help with the project to maintain the highway from Kazungula border. The decision was arrived at after realisation that the state of the road was affecting tourism.

“As guides we are the people on the ground with tourists and we felt it is not safe and right to drive along such roads carrying international clients who should be our ambassadors for tourism. So we decided to seek approval from Government and approached companies to help in the cause,” said Mr Nyabadza.

He said Victoria Falls-Kazungula Road is badly damaged including around the border.

The guides will provide labour free of charge and were supposed to be joined by village along the road to Hwange who had also volunteered.

“The Ministry last week told us to concentrate on Kazungula Road and we had to re-strategise hence we deferred the start of the project to next week. Some companies are still promising to donate materials and equipment.

“We still need river sand and quarry. Our mission is to fix this road because it doesn’t present a good image of our country to tourists,” he said.

Early this year, ZTGA members filled some potholes with gravel along the road to Kazungula.