Chronicle Editor
Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
COMMUNITIES around Victoria Falls have been adversely affected by the effects of Covid-19, which has seen many tourism businesses closing.
The country’s prime resort town has over the years been a source of income for thousands of people around Monde, Mvuthu, Jambezi, Matetsi and Woodlands among others as many people from these areas were employed by hotels and tour operators in the town.
Many communities around Hwange’s resorts also used to benefit through village tourism as operators led tourists for village tours to learn and enjoy African culture and in the process buy local food and artefacts.
Villagers had also established village curio markets and cultural centres, which were frequently visited by tourists.
The Covid-19 outbreak, which led to international travel ban left these communities counting losses. Their plight has been compounded by drought as many of them now urgently need food aid given the Covid-19 economic disruptions.
A local organisation, Mosi Advocates on Social, Environment and Conservation Trust (MASECT), which was founded in 2018, has responded by distributing food handouts to the elderly and vulnerable after carrying out a need assessment in the area. Speaking during a handover of food hampers to about 100 beneficiaries at KoMpisi homestead on Saturday, village tourism operator Mr Jaheliduna Ndlovu popularly known as “Mpisi”, said hope now lies on reopening of borders and skies. He added that due to Covid-19 adverse impact, there was massive urban-rural migration as life is continuously becoming unbearable for people who were once employed in tourism.
“Communities around Victoria Falls are also feeling the heat. What’s happening is that people in town are moving to Monde because they lost jobs and have no money to sustain lives in town,” said Mr Ndlovu.
“Tourism also depends on Monde community. Every household here also relies on tourism either as a result of direct employment or by selling products to the industry.
“The taskforce on Covid-19 doesn’t go deeper into rural areas and that is where we come in as I co-ordinate a lot of activities where we identify needs of the people. The long term solution is to establish sustainable projects but what is urgently needed now is food.”
Mr Ndlovu has established KoMpisi Cultural Village at his homestead outside Victoria Falls, which has become a big tourists attraction.
Meanwhile, MASECT’s director, Mr Evans Makoni said his organisation’s focus is on gender-based violence, HIV and Aids, community development, environmental and conservation issues.
Mr Makoni said they decided to intervene and help the needy in rural Monde after assessing the support gap. He said the needs assessment exercise was done in partnership with United States’ University of Nebraska Lincoln and University of New Hampshire of UK.
“Our organisation was founded in this village. We did a needs survey and we now know what each household needs,” he said.
Mr Makoni said some of the people affected by Covid-19 used to either work in the tourism industry or supply products to the industry.
“Life is now difficult for people here. Our long-term plan is to set up market gardening or poultry projects which are sustainable as opposed to depending on donors,” he said.
Close to 100 vulnerable villagers mostly elderly, received mealie-meal, sugar, flour, cooking oil, bars of soap, soya mince, beans and salt.
One of the beneficiaries, Mr Albert Tshabalala (93), who lives alone in Ntabayengwe Village said he was grateful as he used to survive on handouts from well-wishers who included tourists. — @ncubeleon.
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