Victoria Falls to get $10m mall

CONSTRUCTION of a $10 million up-market shopping mall in Victoria Falls is expected to start anytime soon.

The complex will be built by Zimre Property Investment (ZPI). ZPI chief executive officer Mr Edson Muvingi said work at the site was expected to start before the end of the year.

"We estimate a period of 13 to 18 months to complete the project. We expect to commence works on the ground this side of the year upon completion and obtaining all approvals. The approval processes are at an advanced stage including the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). We estimate a total cost in the region of $10 million to complete the project," said Mr Muvingi.

The Sawanga shopping mall would house offices, internet cafes, bookshops, banks, boutiques, hair salons, restaurants, motor spares shops, medical centre, theatres, cultural centre and gymnasium, among others. An elaborate sewage and water reticulation system would be put in place with access roads being constructed for easy vehicular movement.

"We have completed land acquisition and we are in the finalisation of the design, taking into account the needs of prospective tenants. We are also working on EIA report submission including stakeholder consultations which is ongoing and towards finalisation," said Mr Muvingi.

Zimre, which is both into residential and commercial property development, seeks to tap into the anticipated business boom on the back of an influx of tourists in the resort town.
"We felt the need to diversify our portfolio and create high class real estate assets. We were also motivated by the investment opportunity that exists in Victoria Falls for real estate development, particularly a good retail facility and the future growth potential of the tourist town. We were also prompted to consider investing in the property after a survey of the town we carried out in relation to retail facilities including Livingstone on the Zambian side as well as the excellent town management by the Victoria Falls Town Council and the business manner which they facilitate investment," said Mr Muvingi.

The property developer's environmental consultancy firm, Environmental Guardians Services' senior consultant Mr Michael Montana said compilation of the EIA report was almost complete and would soon be handed over to the Environmental Management Agency (Ema) for consideration.

"We are only left with submitting an EIA report to Ema. We had two consultative meetings and one feedback meeting that were very successful. In attendance at one of the meetings was Environment Africa-Zimbabwe-Zambia-Malawi-Mozambique chief executive officer Ms Charlene Hewat.

"We are however, still waiting for a comment from the Victoria Falls Municipality and for them to inform whether they have the capacity to manage the refuse and sewer generated from the complex. There is also the modification of Spencer Road belonging to the local authority which will be used for the dropping off of commuters as well as entrance into the complex," said Mr Montana.

He said the mall was also expected to offer affordable venues for local and international conferences.

"The project is expected to provide much needed formal and affordable businesses for the communities in Victoria Falls. There are several conferences that are hosted in Victoria Falls in conjunction with Zambia, attracting many delegates. The nature of the development will minimise negative environmental impacts and promote sustainability as the proposed plan blends in with the existing infrastructure and services. It will also promote urban restructuring, sustainable communities, and environmental and economic sustainability," said Mr Montana.

Environmental Guardians Services is one of the country's most reputable environmental firms which has carried out a number of projects across various sectors of the economy especially in Matabeleland region and the Midlands Province.

Source: Victoria Falls to get $10m mall (30/07/17)

Tourism ministry engages police over roadblocks

HARARE - The Tourism ministry is continuing with efforts to have police reduce the ubiquitous roadblocks which have seen international tourists turning their backs on the country.
Apart from scaring international tourists, the many roadblocks have led to a national outcry by the local motoring public which accuses police of harassment and at times, corruption during the discharge of their duties at these stops.

The Zimbabwe Council for Tourism (ZCT), which represents the country’s major tourism players, yesterday said the Tourism and Hospitality ministry was in conversation with police over the roadblocks.

“We have in the past drawn attention to obstacles to such growth and in this regard I would like to remind operators that Zimbabwe Council of Tourism continues to push for reduction of roadblocks, improvement of all roads, introduction of reliable and affordable air transport around the country and the creation of an acceptable, smooth and efficient system of arrival and departure procedures at Beitbridge Border Post,” ZCT president Tich Hwingwiri told a media briefing.

“Bottom line is, we are simply seeking a win-win situation where number one, the security of the nation cannot be negotiated, we are fully aware of that and we are also saying business viability is a model that needs to be attained and our business is dependent on arrivals, the more arrivals, the more business we make…hence the inconveniences that our guys continue to face.

“It’s a song that we will continue to sing up to a point where we all have a common understanding of the way forward and I am very much encouraged with the deliberations that we have been involved in,” Hwingwiri said.

Tourists have voiced distress over the ubiquitous presence of Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) details on the country's roads, with over half of respondents in a Zimbabwe National Statistical Agency (Zimstat) survey saying they felt harassed by the cops.

Harassment by the police constituted the highest percentage of the reasons not to recommend the country to potential tourists, at 43,2 percent, followed by harassment by Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) officers at 14,7 percent.

Home Affairs minister Ignatius Chombo has said police had been instructed to decongest roadblocks through a directive which allowed one roadblock within a 10km radius to promote ease of doing business.

Instead, police have actually increased the roadblocks.

In their report for the first half of 2017, police made nearly $14 million from roadblocks and made a million arrests for traffic violations.

Meanwhile, Hwingwiri said that the number of visitors has significantly improved in Victoria Falls after government recently commissioned a $150 million international airport that has spurred brisk tourism business in the resort town.

This comes after Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airways in April introduced direct flights to Victoria Falls from Nairobi and Addis Ababa, respectively.

Hwingiri also announced that Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa has also set aside efforts by the Zimra to retrospectively collect Value Added Tax on food and beverages sold as part of packaged accommodation between 2009 and 2015.

Source: Tourism ministry engages police over roadblocks (26/07/17)

Govt reverses backdated tourism VAT Zimra mustn’t ambush taxpayers

Africa Moyo Business Reporter

Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa has waived the backdated Value Added Tax (VAT) accruing on food and beverages offered by the tourism industry as part of packaged accommodation between 2009 and 2015.

Zimra had launched a blitz on tourism operators who were accused of not paying 15 percent on both the withholding tax on commissions and VAT on food sold to foreigners as part of the accommodation package.

The VAT, which was backdated to 2009, has since been removed following representations by Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Dr Walter Mzembi and the tourism sector, to Minister Chinamasa.

Hoteliers, especially those operating in Victoria Falls, had been slapped with a combined $5,3 million bill in unpaid taxes by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra).

The Victoria Safari Lodge was handed a $1,26 million bill while the Victoria Falls Hotel was in arrears to the tune of $4,1 million. Zimra argued that the taxes were supposed to have been paid between 2009 and 2015.

The Zimbabwe Council for Tourism (ZCT), together with its parent ministry, have been arguing that compelling hoteliers to pay the bills would cripple their operations, especially at a time when the destination is increasingly being shunned by tourists because of high costs.

Hoteliers claim they were not charging the VAT based in part on the “informal and non-binding advice from Zimra, which did not conform to the procedures stipulated in the Revenue Authority Act”.

But on July 18, 2017, Minister Chinamasa wrote to Dr Mzembi saying the “retrospective collection of the outstanding VAT obligations will undermine the viability and going concern of most tourism operators, since no VAT can reciprocally be collected from transient clients”.

“In view of the above and taking into account the important role that tourism plays in the growth and development of the economy, Treasury has approved the VAT zero-rating of food and beverages sold as part of packaged meals for the period February 2009 and December 2015,” said Minister Chinamasa.

Yesterday, ZCT president Mr Tich Hwingwiri told journalists that the tourism industry “welcomes the decision . . . to set aside efforts by Zimra to retrospectively collect VAT on food and beverages sold as part of packaged accommodation between 2009 and 2015.

“Since this decision was announced, ZCT has been working behind the scenes with relevant authorities to have this decision set aside, principally because it was prejudicial to the financial viability of operators across the country, who could not, of course, claim back VAT from the guests who had purchased these services.

“The amounts involved were substantial and were a significant threat to the viability of all operators,” said Mr Hwingwiri.

The waiver of the backdated VAT comes at a time when Government is continuing to give rebates to the tourism sector particularly to expenditure on capital items.

This has helped the sector to retool, modernise and refurbish their properties. Several hotel groups such as Cresta, Rainbow Tourism Group and African Sun have already splashed huge sums of refreshing their businesses so as to appeal to a wider section of tourists.

Source: Govt reverses backdated tourism VAT (26/07/17)

More: Zimra mustn’t ambush taxpayers (27/07/17)

Elephant shot dead after trampling handler to death as British tourists waited for rides at Victoria Falls

An elephant was shot dead after trampling his handler to death as British tourists queued for rides on the animal at popular holiday hot-spot, Victoria Falls.

Mbajane the bull elephant, which translates to 'cannabis', charged at Enock Kufandada, 50, before repeatedly stamping his body into the ground on the Zambia - Zimbabwe border.

Park rangers were called in to control the horrific scene as officials ushered tourists from the UK, America and Australia to safety.

Mbajane was still in a rage and deemed a danger to others after the incident so he was brought down and killed with several high velocity bullets.

Workers said Mr Kufandada had been attacked twice before by the same elephant but survived.

Clement Mukwasi of the Employers Association of Tourism and Safari Operators said “The profession of elephant handling is a high risk one and deaths happen.

“We can confirm this sad incident which is the third in the last 10 years” he said.

Handler Mr Kufandada appears to have his left arm torn off along with both legs and it is not clear if he has been impaled with the stick used to control the elephant.

His blood soaked body was covered with sack cloth until the local police force had been called to the scene and then it was removed from the tourist area at Victoria Falls.

Mr Mukwasi hinted that elephants can “keep grudges” for many years against a handler if it has ever been mistreated during the process of training it for tourist rides.

Witnesses told local media that they heard screams and found the dead body torn apart and the 30-year-old bull elephant nearby clearly still enraged and in a bad temper.

The World Animal Protection action group said in a statement that the incident was "another sad reminder that elephants are wild animals and should not be ridden."

Two years ago a curio-seller was trampled to death by an elephant which had strayed into a shopping centre in Victoria Falls which is on the border with Zambia.

Glynnis Vaughan, chief inspector of the Zimbabwe National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, claims African elephants can never be “domesticated”.

She said: “Captured elephants which are used by several tourist companies have killed quite a few people in recent years. We should not be surprised when there are tragedies.

“Elephants are captured in the wild when they are young and taken from their families and teaching a young elephant to kneel so a tourist an mount it is vicious and it is cruel”.

Several large companies in Victoria Falls still provide rides for tourists on their elephants, most of which were captured and taken from their families.

There are a number of companies at Victoria Falls - one of Africa's most spectacular places to visit - which cater for tourist rides on African elephants.

Just last week game rangers shot and killed two other elephants which had roamed into the provincial capital of Mutare, East Zimbabwe, and killed a policeman.

Bankrupt Zimbabwe has been exporting dozens of young elephants to China in recent years for wildlife safari parks that have since been condemned by inspectors.

Tour operators at the Falls desperate to protect their livelihoods said the killing of the professional elephant handler was "a freak accident - one in a million".

Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority rangers shot and killed the elephant which was used by the tour operator Adventure Zone.

Mr Kufandada was preparing to take the bull elephant which he had worked with for many years out of its pen for a tourist ride when it attacked and killed him.

Victoria Falls District Chief Superintendent of police Jairos Chiwona said: "I confirm we received a report of a man who was attacked and killed by a domesticated elephant".

The rogue elephant Mbanje was grazing with a female jumbo called Nkanyiso after a ride and was about to go out for another after a group of tourists arrived for a ride.

The victims’ son Shepherd said: “We were told my father was rounding up the elephant when he was attacked. I don’t know what we will do as he was the breadwinner.

“I went with my fathers workmates to help pick up the scattered body parts”.

The married father-of-two will be buried at his rural home village of Mutare.

Adventure Zone boss Mr Brent Wlliamson said: “I am in complete shock about the whole incident. This was one of our guides who had been working for us since 2005.

“It's with deep regret that we advise that at 2.30pm on Saturday our domesticated elephant bull charged one of our staff that resulted in him losing his life.

“Clement was an extremely competent member of staff who will be sorely missed” he said.

Source: Elephant shot dead after trampling handler to death as British tourists waited for rides at Victoria Falls (26/07/17)

More on this story (external links):
Trained elephant kills handler (The Chronicle, 23/07/17))

Trained elephant kills tour guide in Victoria Falls park (BBC News, 24/07/17)

Elephant 'domesticated' to give tourist rides at Victoria Falls kills handler (The Telegraph, 24/07/17)
Elephant used for tourist rides tramples handler to death before being shot dead  (The Independent, 25/07/17)
SA’s elephant industry under pressure to end elephant rides (10/06/17)
The truth behind elephant back riding in South Africa (25/11/16)
Can elephant tourism be ethical? (The Telegraph, 02/02/16)
Breaking Africa's elephants (pdf report, World Animal Protection Canada)

More captive elephant incidents (from this blog):  Captive elephant used in tourist elephant-back safaris kills handler (Livingstone, Zambia) (02/04/13)
Captive Elephant Used In Tourism Safaris Kills Handler In Victoria Falls (19/12/08)
Elephant-back Safaris “Simply Accidents Waiting to Happen” Warns Top Tourism Insurer (10/0/17)

Poacher arrested for causing over 100 elephant deaths in Hwange

Leonard Ncube & Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporters

POLICE have arrested a suspected poacher for allegedly poisoning over 100 elephants using cyanide at Hwange National Park.

Tony Maphosa, who has been on the run since 2013, allegedly poisoned water points and salt pans with cyanide resulting in the death of more than 100 elephants.

Maphosa was arrested in the national park on Wednesday following a tip off.

An anti-poaching team comprising rangers from Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and police recovered two pieces of ivory from him.

Zimparks spokesperson Mr Tinashe Farawo confirmed the arrest.

“A man from Tsholotsho was arrested on Wednesday with two elephant tusks,” he said.

Mr Farawo said an anti-poaching team was still on the ground in the national park following the killing of two elephants which were discovered on Monday in a suspected case of cyanide poisoning.
Police national spokesperson Chief Superintendent Paul Nyathi said he was yet to receive a report on the arrest.

However, police sources said Maphosa was detained at Dete Police Station and is expected to appear in court in Hwange in due course.

“He has been on the wanted list in connection with poisoning of elephants in 2013 and is also linked tothe death of eight elephants this year,” said a police source.

Meanwhile, two people have been jailed for nine years each for illegally possessing three pieces of ivory valued at $900 and 270 grammes of cyanide.

David Ndlovu (42) and Nkathazo Penga (33) confessed to killing five jumbos by lacing oranges with the deadly cyanide when they were arrested on July 4 at Cross Dete where they were selling the ivory. —@ncubeleon

Source: ‘Poacher kills’ over 100 elephants (22/07/17)

Zimbabwe to release 1 million hectares of protected land for mining

BULAWAYO, July 19 (The Source) — Zimbabwe is planning to release one million hectares of protected land to small-scale gold miners across the country to boost production, Mines and Development deputy minister, Fred Moyo has said, a development that threatens wildlife areas.

Moyo told journalists at the on-going Mining, Engineering and Transport (Mine Entra) expo that the land would be released very “soon”.

“The geology is largely gold so those provinces that have got more gold than others obviously will have more hectarage but we are releasing in all the provinces. It’s basically happening now and paperwork is in the process of being signed,” Moyo said.

“Remember these will be protected areas and we are removing the protection and once these are lifted people can go and peg in the normal way that they do. Last week I signed one in Mashonaland West, one in the Midlands, and there was one in Masvingo.”

Zimbabwe has six categories of protected land; national parks, gazetted forests, botanical reserves, botanical gardens, safari areas and 15 recreational parks and sanctuaries.

Zimbabwe Miners Federation president, Aplonia Munzverengwi told The Source that some miners were already mining in state-reserved areas.

“Right now, those activities they are informal and people are taking the gold to the black market. The (mines) ministry has now managed to identify those State reserved areas where they are going to release land,” she said.

“As soon as the land is officially released they should register their activities and they will be able to access loans from (government owned gold buyer) Fidelity, mechanisation and the working capital.”

Source: Zimbabwe to release 1mln ha of protected land for mining (19/07/17)

ZTA partners models to promote domestic tourism

From Leonard Ncube in Victoria Falls

THE Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has partnered with models whom they believe are the best tourism ambassadors to market the country’s destinations locally and internationally.

Last week, the tourism authority offered recently crowned Miss Mt Pleasant Constituency (Harare) Sikhulile Shumba and her two princesses Floreet Chikomwe and Vimbayi Mungofa a four-day holiday in Victoria Falls as one of their prizes for winning. By doing this, the ZTA wanted the models to have a feel of the country’s prime resort and help market it.

During their visit, the models – who arrived in Victoria Falls on Friday and flew back to Harare on Sunday – partook in activities such as gorge swing, bungee jumping, rafting and a game drive.
The Chronicle caught up with the three models who pledged to partner ZTA in marketing the country’s tourist attractions.

The queen, a 3rd year Sociology student at the University of Zimbabwe thanked ZTA for exposing them to the other side of Zimbabwe.

“This was my first time in Victoria Falls and it’s amazing. I want to thank ZTA for this opportunity and I promise to work hard to make sure this destination and all activities on offer are known locally and internationally,” Shumba said.

First princess, Chikomwe said the world’s 7th natural wonder is a must visit for everyone while Mungofa, an A Level student at Pace College in Harare was on cloud nine, promising to spread the gospel of domestic tourism so locals do not learn about the country’s resorts from foreigners.

“I’ll make sure all youths I interact with know about Victoria Falls than to be told by foreign tourists,” Mungofa said.

ZTA spokesperson Sugar Chagonda said they had given the models the package as a way to promote domestic tourism.

“As ZTA, our mandate is to market our destinations and when we get an opportunity we seize it. We pledged to send the winners to Victoria Falls because we want these models to appreciate and market our unique destinations when they interact with their colleagues locally and internationally,” said Chagonda.

Source: ZTA partners models to promote domestic tourism (18/07/17)