Vic Falls unlocks land for residential purposes

 VICTORIA Falls municipality says it has unlocked land under the Lands ministry and the Zimbabwe National Parks for housing development and town expansion.

Mayor Thuso Moyo told Southern Eye that the municipality was facing housing backlog challenges due to lack of land.

“The local authority has managed to get land from the Lands ministry and other stakeholders in the city. More land has been cleared for residential use,” Moyo said.

“Currently the council has 460 stands available for sale and these ones were granted to us by the Zimbabwe National Parks. The stands are located just two kilometers from the parks.”

Moyo said the municipality was given 13 000 hectares in Masuwe by the Lands ministry for housing development.

“The local authority is working on it. The land is run by two councils, both Hwange Rural District Council and Victoria Falls City Council. So saying there is no space for residential stands is now an understatement,” he said.

In April last year, former Victoria Falls mayor, Somveli Dlamini revealed that the local authority was working on a new master plan to unlock more land for residential purposes.

At the time, Dlamini said most of the land in the area was reserved for recreational purposes.

Source: Vic Falls unlocks land for residential purposes (21/02/24)

City of Victoria Falls finalising master plan ahead of June deadline

Story by Tichaona Kurewa, ZBC News

THE City of Victoria Falls has made significant progress in crafting a master plan ahead of the 30 June deadline to restore sanity in local authorities.

A master plan being developed through support from the International Finance Corporation will act as the blueprint for achieving this vision by addressing key issues like infrastructure development, responsible tourism practices, environmental protection, and community engagement.

City of Victoria Falls, Town Clerk Mr Ronnie Dube said, “We have started all the preliminary works, field studies and so forth, we are done with that. Currently, the consultant is working on our report of a study which should be presented to the council in a week or so.

“We are going to meet the end of June deadline. The master plan is important as it is the long-term planning document, which deals with zoning issues, land uses and many other issues related to how we use our land so that we come up with development that is well structured.”

Experts outlined the importance of the master plan.

A lawyer, Mr Tonderai Mutasa said, “The story does not end with the development of master plans by the local authority, it ends with the adherence to the master plan. Only compelling reasons must alter land use if there is to be order in local authorities. Once the master plan is followed, we will not have problems like illegal settlements within local authorities.”

“It is important for local authorities to have master plans to have proper and orderly development. All towns should have master plans to avoid haphazard development or unplanned settlements within the town. Without master plans, there will be sprouting of ugly settlements that will also be good grounds for diseases like cholera, etc,” said the former Mayor of Victoria Falls City, Alderman Nkosilathi Jiyane.

The Victoria Falls Master Plan presents a unique opportunity to unlock the full potential of the resort city in terms of tourism and other economic activities.

 Source:  City of Victoria Falls finalising master plan ahead of June deadline (20/02/24)

Investments to bear fruit for Zimbabwe’s tourism in 2024

 Zimbabwe's tourism industry is expected to reap rewards this year as the country continues to invest in its tourism establishments following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The expectations come on the back of a 24% increase in tourism receipts for the third quarter of 2023 (July-September), up to US$272 million from $219m in Q3 2022.

According to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s (RBZ) quarterly economic review for the quarter, tourist arrivals increased by 41.9% to 494 878, compared with 348 559 for the same period in 2022.

"The increase in tourist arrivals was attributed to the ongoing recovery in global tourism, improved transportation infrastructure, and marketing and promotion initiatives by players in the tourism industry," said the RBZ.

Investments in the local tourism industry in 2023 came from both local and foreign investors, with $300 million channelled into restaurants, hotels, lodges, safaris and game parks, reported Zimbabwean state-owned daily newspaper The Herald.

"We have seen a number of investments in the sector, be it new resorts or upgrading of the existing ones in order to stay abreast with the current trends. We have seen new lodges around the country and many game parks have also been upgraded," said Paul Matamisa, CEO of the Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe.

We Are Victoria Falls, the destination management partnership for Victoria Falls, provided Tourism Update with the following examples of recent investment and developments in the country’s tourism sector during 2023:

• Africa Albida Tourism conducted a refurbishment of the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge property.
• The Courtney Lodge opened in Victoria Falls.
• The Bayete Collection expanded its portfolio to include The Victorian Manor, Zimbara and Hwange Siding.
• Inzila Safaris launched mobile safaris in Hwange.
• Malachite Lodge, part of the Zambezi Crescent operations, opened in Zambezi National Park, Victoria Falls.
• The Victoria Falls Distillery Company opened in December.
• Simunye Theatre was launched in Victoria Falls.
• Baines Restaurant was launched in Victoria Falls.
• Woodlands Community Reserve was launched on the outskirts of Victoria Falls.

Zimbabwe also achieved improved regional air access last year, with FlySafair launching flights between Johannesburg and Victoria Falls, and Airlink launching flights between Mbombela (Nelspruit) and Victoria Falls.

Additionally, FlyNamibia will begin flying from Windhoek to Victoria Falls in April this year.

“We have fully recovered and grown our seat capacity to Victoria Falls. This is all thanks to the efficiency of our new Air Services Development Programme spearheaded by Airports Company of Zimbabwe,” said Shelley Cox, current Co-ordinator for We Are Victoria Falls.

Airports Company of Zimbabwe provided the following aircraft carrying capacity numbers into Victoria Falls International Airport:

Victoria Falls leads the charge

Natasha Dixon, PR & Internal Communications Specialist at African Bush Camps, told Tourism Update that recovery in Zimbabwe had been limited to Victoria Falls.

“We haven’t seen the same demand for Hwange or Mana Pools yet. Arrivals are still behind those of 2019.”

However, she did mention that some of its Zimbabwe camps continued to shine as some of its best-selling options.

Lodges at the Victoria Falls are optimistic that 2024 will herald record-breaking tourist numbers on the back of healthy occupancies during the second half of 2023.

“Accommodation occupancies are showing positive projections for the year. This year will see us strengthening our destination brand and roll out some exciting new campaigns to attract more families and young people, as well as our traditional and local visitors,” said Cox, highlighting that Zimbabwe was well-positioned to capitalise on the evolving interests of travellers.

“People feel a growing connection with nature and wilderness, and are looking for stillness, transformation and meaning. This has been accelerated by the pandemic and we are seeing greater interest in wellness, creativity, intergenerational trips, food, health and fitness.

“Our traditional markets have always been delighted by our wilderness, wildlife and charm, but our newer markets are increasingly thrilled by our spirit and the hearts of our people – manifesting through experiences like immersive e-biking, riverside yoga and locally crafted gin distilling and tours that utilise local ingredients and allow for interactions with members of our community.”

Source: Investments to bear fruit for Zimbabwe’s tourism in 2024 (05/02/2024)

Battle to protect Vic Falls rages

 

RENOWNED wildlife and environment painter Larry Benjamin Norton last week exerted renewed pressure on Zimbabwean and Zambian authorities to stop more commercial enterprises being set up within the precincts of Victoria Falls, amid growing concern that such developments could cost the iconic site its world heritage status.

Norton, a Zimbabwean national and Victoria Falls resident, filed a High Court application in 2022 seeking to stop Adage Success and Scanner Investments from developing commercial enterprises at the heart of the Victoria Falls,  arguing that the business ventures would disrupt the ecological and aesthetic beauty of the global spectacle.

Judgement on the legal dispute case number, HC3576/22, in which the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority (Zimparks) and the Environmental Management Authority (Ema) are cited as key respondents among others, is yet to be handed down.

Last week, Norton presented his fresh concerns to Zambian and Zimbabwean representatives attending a Joint Technical Committee (JTC) meeting held at a local hotel in the resort town to deliberate on strategies to preserve its world heritage status.

Broadly, the JTC meeting was meant to deliberate on the Victoria Falls’ world heritage status.

The Victoria Falls, which is shared by Zimbabwe and Zambia, was accorded world heritage status by Unesco in 1989.

In 2022, Unesco warned that Victoria Falls risked losing its heritage status due to “individual and cumulative infrastructure developments” in restricted zones within the margins of the world’s  largest waterfall.

In a document seen by the Independent, Norton drew the attention of Zambian and Zimbabwean delegates to a myriad of commercial developments which he claimed threatened to discredit Victoria Falls.

 “At the outset we are all aware that the fragile Mosia Tunya/Victoria Falls world heritage site is under threat from developments and commercialisation on both sides of the river,” he said in a presentation to the meeting.

“Over two years ago myself and nine other applicants brought an urgent application to stop the commercialisation of the Cataract Islands by Adage Success and Zimparks and the construction of the Baines restaurant by Victoria Falls Investments.”

In his High Court application Norton, a globally renowned painter, maintained that the public was not consulted when rights to develop business sites in the sensitive areas of the Victoria Falls were granted to a number of firms.

“We maintain that no proper public consultations occurred with these operations and that Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) were defective.

“For the Cataract Island operation, a number of previous operators’ applications were turned down by Zimparks for environmental reasons,” wrote Norton.

Norton’s written submission was also furnished to Zimparks Victoria Falls area manager Marvellous Mbikiyana.

Citing a musical concert held in 2023 at the Cataract Island, Norton argued that the show organisers abused the site while triggering outrage from stakeholders.

“In early December 2023 the operators of Cataract Island clearly abused the island by facilitating a music event for a well-known European pop group. Videos of this outrageous abuse of the island went viral with broad condemnation from stakeholders and agents,” stated Norton.

“How can the authorities allow such an event? We stress the need to verify coordinates and place beacons around the world heritage site and we emphasise on the need to develop a blueprint of infrastructure development for the Victoria Falls. We further direct the Joint Technical Committee to finalise development of site maps.”

Some of the sites in the resort town which Norton indicated were under threat from commercial developments include the “Big Tree”, Rock Pool, Rainforest and Islands.

Norton questioned: “What is the agreement between Zambia and Zimbabwe on the so far untouched islands upstream of the falls itself? Why is there no transparent discussion on this? Are they up for grabs? Have they been allocated?”

“It is very difficult to understand why there is no discussion…on the limits of development of the Mosia Tunya world heritage site.”

He warned that if corrective remedy is not taken, future generations will blame authorities for ruining the Victoria Falls.

“I would ask that these points be noted and added to the minutes and documentation of the State of Conservation report in the interest of truth and transparency,” Norton underscored.

“If we fail to draw clear lines that offer absolute and permanent protection to this(site)…then we fail our own children and all future generations who will visit here.”

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The Victoria Falls, known in vernacular as Mosi a Tunya which translates to “the Smoke that thunders,” attracts over a million visitors annually.

 Source: Battle to protect Vic Falls rages (02/02/24)