Deputy Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Tongai Mafidi Mnangagwa (left) and Zimbabwe Tourism Authority Chief Executive Officer, Dr George Manyaya
BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA in MASVINGO
African countries have been urged to move away from marketing themselves as isolated destinations and instead package and promote Africa as one integrated and seamless tourism destination.
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister, Barbara Rwodzi said African destinations needed to strengthen collaboration and develop multi-country tourism experiences if the continent was to capture a greater share of global tourism flows.
Minister Rwodzi said this in a speech read on her behalf by her deputy, Tongai Mafidi Mnangagwa, at the inaugural Sanganai/Hlanganani CEO’s Round Table.
She said the global tourism landscape was changing rapidly, requiring African destinations to rethink how they work together, compete and position the continent for the next generation of tourism growth.
“Tourism is no longer simply about attracting visitors to individual countries. It is about building competitive destinations, connected economies and compelling regional experiences.
“It is therefore imperative, that the conversation today must go beyond individual country performance,” said Minister Rwodzi.
She added that as Chief Executive Officers, they are deliberately expected to discuss ways of how to collectively build an African tourism industry that is more integrated, more competitive, more resilient and capable of capturing a greater share of global tourism flows.
Minister Rwodzi said Africa needed to change the way it sells its tourism offering by moving from individual destinations to integrated African tourism experiences.
“Africa must move from selling destinations in isolation to selling African tourism experiences.
“A visitor coming to Africa should be able to experience several countries as part of one seamless journey, our wildlife, heritage, culture, gastronomy, adventure, business tourism, beaches, mountains, cities and communities.”
She added that tourism leaders had a responsibility to strengthen cross-border tourism products, regional circuits, joint marketing initiatives, shared events and coordinated destination promotion.
Minister Rwodzi said the continent’s borders should facilitate rather than hinder tourism.
“Our borders should not become barriers to tourism. Instead, they should become gateways to multi-country African experiences.
“There is need to make it easier for an international traveller to visit Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique and beyond as one compelling African journey. This is the type of collaboration that can transform the continent’s tourism competitiveness.”
The Minister said such integration would allow tourists to experience the diversity of the continent while creating opportunities for countries to collectively benefit from increased tourism flows.
Minister Rwodzi challenged tourism leaders to develop a shared African tourism vision in which countries compete where necessary, but collaborate where such collaboration creates greater continental value.
“The time has come to advance a shared African tourism vision—one in which we compete where necessary, but collaborate where it creates greater continental value,” she said.
She said Africa needed to strengthen regional tourism circuits, improve air and border connectivity, share tourism intelligence and best practices, promote cross-border private-sector investment and harness digital platforms to give the continent a stronger voice on the global tourism market.
Minister Rwodzi also said tourism should not be viewed in isolation as it had strong linkages with other sectors of the economy, including aviation, transport, ICT, energy, agriculture, infrastructure, culture, sport and the creative industries.
“Our policy focus must therefore be on integration, investment, innovation and inclusion, creating an enabling environment for the private sector, empowering our youth, generating decent employment and enterprise opportunities and ensuring that tourism delivers sustainable and inclusive economic growth across Africa,” she said.
She challenged CEOs and tourism leaders attending the round table to ensure that their discussions resulted in practical action rather than simply producing resolutions.
“Therefore, I challenge the CEOs and tourism leaders gathered here today to have frank and practical conversations.
“Let this meeting not end with another set of resolutions that gather dust. Let it produce actions, partnerships, measurable targets and timelines.”
Minister Rwodzi said Africa should strive to become a destination that tourists could not afford to miss.
“Let us build an Africa that the world does not merely visit, but an Africa that the world cannot afford to miss.”
Speaking at the same function, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) Chief Executive Officer, Dr George Manyaya said collaboration was critical to the success of tourism on the continent.
He said tourism players, regulators and destination marketing organisations, needed to work together and maintain strong relationships in order to grow the industry.
Manyaya said collaboration would help tourism stakeholders overcome challenges and create a stronger tourism industry.
He emphasised the need for regulators and industry players to work closely together, while also maintaining good relations with tourism promotion councils and other stakeholders.
The ZTA BOSS said continued support and cooperation among tourism stakeholders would be critical in turning Africa’s tourism potential into tangible success.
“If we work together also, we will succeed,” Manyaya said.
He said collaboration was therefore “very key” to the success of the tourism industry, stressing that the regulator and industry players needed to work together while maintaining constructive relationships.
The inaugural Sanganai/Hlanganani CEOs Round Table provided a platform for tourism industry leaders to discuss ways of strengthening collaboration, investment and competitiveness across the African tourism sector.
