ZANU PF factional fights scaring tourists: Mzembi

Upenyu Chaota

The minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Engineer Walter Mzembi has said the coverage of Zanu-PF factional wars by the media is scaring away tourists by magnifying the situation out of proportion.
Delivering a public lecture on China-Zimbabwe relations at Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) last week, Mzembi said China is a force to reckon with in global tourism but they are very cautious about their security.
“Negative publicity and issues to do with health discourage Chinese travellers from visiting African destinations. They are so security-conscious that even the little acrimonies reported from small places like Masvingo will discourage them from coming.
“Even factional politics discourage them because the way it’s captured in our media communicates conflict when in fact there is none. We need to package and create a Zimbabwe brand that communicates exactly what is happening on the ground; the peace and stability that obtain in our country,” said Mzembi.
He added that Zimbabwe still has a lot to do to create a tourist-friendly environment, chief of which is to improve the transport network.
He blamed the poor transport network for harming the tourism potential of Great Zimbabwe.
“Zimbabwe needs to improve its transport network system so as to lure tourists to visit areas like Great Zimbabwe monuments. If Chinese tourists arrive at Harare International Airport, they cannot contemplate a four-hour long road journey to Masvingo; that is why they do not come.
“We need to rehabilitate the Masvingo airport so that it can accommodate big planes so tourists can be visit Great Zimbabwe,” said Mzembi without explaining what he will do to achieve that.
Mzembi presented the public lecture together with his Rural Development, Preservation and Promotion of National Culture and Heritage counterpart, Abednico Ncube who failed to read his speech for unknown reasons and could not answer questions from the speech which was read on his behalf.news

—