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Patrick Chitumba Senior Reporter—
HOTELS and lodges in Victoria Falls are fully booked ahead of the Sadc Heads of State and Government summit next month and local delegates might be forced to seek accommodation from individuals offering accommodation at their houses. The summit will be held between August 17 and 18 but will be preceded by the meeting of Council of Ministers between 14 and 15 August.
In an interview, Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe Victoria Falls chapter chairperson Jonathan Hudson said the tourism sector was excited with the coming of the summit to the resort town.
The Sadc summit will be held at the Elephant Hills Hotel and other hotels and lodges will provide accommodation for delegates.
“As we speak, we are full and that is good for the resort town and the country,” he said.
The regional summit follows the successful co-hosting of last year’s United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly that was held here and Livingstone in Zambia.
A number of lodges contacted confirmed that they were fully booked for the duration of the summit.
“I am sorry to inform you that we are fully booked for the duration of the summit,” was the general response from many lodges and hotels in the resort town.
A manager at one of the lodges said some local delegates might be forced to seek accommodation from individuals offering accommodation at their houses as was the case during the UNWTO assembly last year.
“Since we no longer have rooms, some delegates might be forced to turn to individuals offering accommodation at their houses,” said the manager.
Foreign Affairs Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi on Wednesday said about 700 high level delegates were expected to attend the summit adding that Sadc Executive Secretary Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax had already visited Zimbabwe twice to assess preparations and was satisfied.
Around 450 delegates are expected during the course of the Summit and 700 at the opening and closing sessions.
Clement Mukwasi, the spokesperson for Shearwater Adventures, said it was a good thing that the country was hosting the summit on the back of the successful co-hosting of UNWTO. “This shows that Victoria Falls is now a destination for conferences and that is a major puller for business tourism. The summit is coming after we successfully hosted UNWTO and we will continue to rally behind our government in the marketing of our country,” he said.
Victoria Falls Mayor Councillor Sifiso Mpofu said the summit was going to bring brisk business to the town. “We are obviously happy in that there are results, positive ones for our sector and for our residents. The delegates will buy things, will partake in activities and find a place to stay thereby benefiting us,” he said.
Clr Mpofu said the summit was going to confirm to the world that Zimbabwe is a peaceful country and a tourism destination of choice.
President Mugabe is assuming the chairmanship of the 15-nation grouping.
The theme for this year’s Sadc summit is “Sadc strategy for economic transformation: leveraging the region’s diverse resources for sustainable economic and social development through beneficiation and value addition.”
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