adminLiberty Dube
THE Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry in conjunction with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JAICA) has set up four pilot projects across the country to develop community based tourism, aimed at eradicating poverty in communities in line with one of the objectives of economic blueprint Zim-Asset.
The four projects are Gairezi in Nyanga, Tengenenge Arts and Crafts centre in Guruve, Chesvingo Lakeside Village in Masvingo and Bulawayo Township tour.
Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry acting deputy director, Mr Elyson Chigerwe, said the criterion used to identify the four projects included feasibility, accessibility, potential current and future development as well as proximity to any major tourist attraction.
Gairezi is situated in Nyamaropa in the Eastern Highlands and the eco-tourism project started in the 1990s. The scenic area which is frequented by local and foreign tourists has chalets, campsite which can accommodate single tents as well as interesting activities such as fishing, hiking and bird watching. The crystal clear Gairezi River is a cross section between the Zimbabwean side and the Mozambican side.
Mr Chigerwe said the Japan International Cooperation Agency was assisting the ministry with technical support to resuscitate and develop community based tourism projects.
“JAICA would provide us with a manual which is called CBT handbook for communities that would guide us to run these and other projects. The agency has been very instrumental in assisting us with technical expertise in our bid to resuscitate and develop community based tourism projects.
“We chose the four areas because they have massive potential to sustain and transform livelihoods in communities. We also consider their proximity to major tourist attraction, for instance Kairezi is situated in Nyanga, a tourism hub. We will visit Kairezi next week before we travel to other areas to conduct some researches,” he said.
Mr Chigerwe said Government was upbeat that the community based tourism would go a long way in eradicating poverty in most areas, saying the initiative was a major thrust of the government’s economic turnaround strategy.
“We are happy with the progress so far. The CBTs if well nurtured will benefit local communities from which the projects exist through employment creation, and income generation,” he added.
The resuscitation of CBTs in communities is expected to bolster domestic tourism in the country.
President Mugabe, who received the 2014 Best Tourism Award and the World’s most preferred Cultural destination by the Council on Tourism and Trade, is on record urging people to promote domestic tourism saying most Zimbabweans had little knowledge on historical monuments in the country.
Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe president, Mr George Manyumwa, said developing CBTs would significantly encourage locals to visit tourism sites.
“We applaud such initiatives. Domestic tourism is important, what we want is to make sure that every other family will know one or two areas in Zimbabwe and we would like to applaud the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority for their efforts although there is still more to be done.
“Most hoteliers in the country have already devised strategies to lure locals to their hotels such as weekend specials or couples’ specials where these and other groups pay less for accommodation, food and other services. These specials significantly promote domestic tourism and we are glad people are embracing the idea evidenced by the number of guests coming in,” said Mr Manyumwa who is also Rainbow Tourism Group operations director.
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