Where There's Smoke... UNESCO and Conservationists divided over Victoria Falls World Heritage Site

UNESCO and Conservationists divided over tourism development impacts at Victoria Falls World Heritage Site

15th May 2026

Despite positive media headlines and tourism industry promotional gloss all is not well at the Mosi-oa-Tunya/Victoria Falls UNESCO World Heritage Site, jointly managed by Zambia and Zimbabwe and a global tourism drawcard.

Last week UNESCO General Conference President, Mr Khondker Talha, visited the Falls, with media reports quoting a glowing endorsement of the Site's management. Meanwhile a new report from conservationist campaign group Keep Victoria Falls Wild highlights increasing concerns, calling for the removal of recent illegitimate tourism developments within 'no development' zones and a moratorium on all new development until a new Joint Management Plan for the Site is finalised and agreed by all parties, including UNESCO.

On the 3rd May, World Press Freedom Day, Mr Talha was in Lusaka, launching a UNESCO joint statement on press freedom calling on Member States to protect journalists and ensure an enabling environment for a free and independent media.

The next day, Mr Talha visited the Victoria Falls, touring both the Zimbabwean and Zambian sides of the transboundary UNESCO World Heritage Site and commending both countries 'for their strong collaboration in preserving the Site's Outstanding Universal Value,' and apparently describing their joint management of the Site as a model of effective joint stewardship. Less significance was given, however, to his call for strengthened efforts between the two countries in safeguarding the heritage site, an admission perhaps that all is not well (Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs, 5th May 2026).

Although publicly unannounced, the visit was apparently in an official capacity, with a media release from the National Her­it­age Con­ser­va­tion Com­mis­sion stating the visit was under­taken 'to appre­ci­ate and assess the con­tin­ued efforts by the gov­ern­ments of Zam­bia and Zim­b­abwe in safe­guard­ing the Site’s Out­stand­ing Uni­ver­sal Value, in line with the oper­a­tional guidelines of the UNESCO World Her­it­age Con­ven­tion' (Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs, 4th May 2026).

There was no selfie at the Falls posted on the President's official 'X' account, no official statement from UNESCO and no coverage of his visit in the Zimbabwean media the next day (coincidentally African World Heritage Day). Supported by a media release from the National Her­it­age Con­ser­va­tion Com­mis­sion, the Zambian national press, however, promoted the visit as an endorsement of their management of the World Heritage Site.

"National Her­it­age Con­ser­va­tion Com­mis­sion con­ser­va­tion officer John Zulu noted that such vis­its reaf­firm the strength of bilat­eral cooper­a­tion and provide an import­ant plat­form to show­case the ongo­ing efforts towards sus­tain­able con­ser­va­tion and her­it­age man­age­ment. He emphas­ised the sig­ni­fic­ance of the visit, stat­ing that such high­-level engage­ments val­id­ate ongo­ing con­ser­va­tion ini­ti­at­ives while enhan­cing inter­na­tional recog­ni­tion and sup­port for her­it­age pre­ser­va­tion efforts in the region. 'The visit fur­ther high­lights the global import­ance of the Mosi-oa-Tunya/Vic­toria Falls as a shared nat­ural asset requir­ing con­tin­ued joint stew­ard­ship,' he said.” (Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs, 5th May 2026)

Mr Talha at the Zambian side of the Falls (Source: NHCC Facebook page)

Conservation Concerns

But behind the media statements and tourism gloss, all is not well at the Victoria Falls World Heritage Site, and not only are the joint State Parties of Zambia and Zimbabwe both in the spotlight, but also UNESCO's oversight - or lack of - of the Site is being increasingly questioned by conservationists.

In the week prior his visit, local conservation campaign group, Keep Victoria Falls Wild, released yet another report highlighting an increasing list of issues and concerns relating to the management of the Site and calling for a moratorium on all new developments within the Site and its surrounding Buffer Zone pending finalisation, and approval by UNESCO, of a new Joint Management Plan for the Site and repeating calls for the removal of recent controversial tourism developments within the Site's protected area (Keep Victoria Falls Wild, April 2026).

The report follows recent submission of a new Draft Joint Plan for the management of the Site, submitted by the State Parties of Zambia and Zimbabwe who share the management of the transboundary World Heritage Site. The Plan is heavily criticised for its delayed submission, contradictions, errors and missing details on key areas such as the management zonation for the Site and details of permitted/prohibited developments. The lack of detail on the zones comes after specific requests from the World Heritage Committee for the boundaries, zonation and buffer zone to be reviewed and clarified in the new document.

Conservationists also raise significant concerns over recent tourism developments on the southern, Zimbabwean, side of the Falls and within the World Heritage Site 'no new development zone' (HESZ) and in particular the lack of disclosure of these developments, as required under the Convention, to UNESCO. This continued lack of disclosure follows repeated requests from the World Heritage Committee for specific information relating to recent developments within the Site.

The report also identifies a growing list of wider issues and concerns in relation to the management of the Site before calling on the World Heritage Committee to reject the Draft Joint Management Plan submitted by the State Parties and request a final complete and consistent document as soon as possible, significantly calling for a moratorium on all tourism developments within the World Heritage Site and surrounding 500m Buffer Zone pending final submission, and approval by the Committee, of the revised Joint Plan and satisfactory resolution of a series of controversial tourism developments within and surrounding the Site.

In addition the report repeats calls for the cancellation of permits for recent illegitimate tourism developments issued by the Zimbabwe National Park Authority within the WHS HESZ and for all trace of these developments to be removed from the Site.

The report comes in the build up to the forthcoming 48th session of the World Heritage Committee, to be held in Busan, Republic of Korea over 19-29 July 2026, with conservationists urging the World Heritage Committee to consider the Site for immediate addition to the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger if the State Parties fail to adequately address these issues.

Within the context of these issues and concerns, Mr Tahla's supposed words of endorsement appear to be either a diplomatic smokescreen or a reflection of institutional, and intentional, blindness. Time will tell - although there have already been several Committee sessions in recent years and no action taken on illegitimate tourism developments within the Site.

UNESCO and the Curse of Overtourism

It appears that UNESCO has long had a blind spot for the impacts of tourism development, and overtourism, to World Heritage Sites, with a growing list of examples of overtourism following UNESCO listing, leading to questions over the benefits, or disadvantages, of the listing.

"A listing carries a great deal of prestige, and benefits include 'increased tourist visitation, increases in employment opportunities and income for local communities, and better management and protection of the place,' according to the government of Australia, which has 20 World Heritage Sites." (Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs, 28th July 2021)

In 2021 Victoria Falls was identified in National Geographic as a positive example of UNESCO World Heritage Listing with the 'cancellation' of a dam proposal above the Falls (despite the fact that the dam is proposed downstream of the Victoria Falls and is in fact back on the cards). 

"The World Heritage program has scored high-profile preservation successes. It exerted pressure to halt a highway near Egypt’s Giza Pyramids, block a salt mine at a gray whale nursery in Mexico, and cancel a dam proposal above Africa’s Victoria Falls. Its funds, provided by dues from the treaty's signers, have hired park rangers, bought parkland, built visitor centers, and restored temples. It relies on persuasive powers more than legal threats, but over a period of nearly five decades, the World Heritage initiative has quietly become a force for appreciating and safeguarding the world’s special places." (National Geographic, 5th August 2021)

The drawback of over-tourism has also been well documented. In addition to the well-known examples of Venice in Italy and Machu Picchu in Peru, can be added George Town on Penang island, Laos’ Luang Prabang, Casco Viejo neighbourhood in Panama City, Nærfjord, Norway, Lamu Old Town, Stone Town of Zanzibar and many more. The increasing examples of World Heritage Sites impacted by overtourism have led to the development of a new word to describe the effect - 'unescocide' - coined by Italian writer Marco d'Eramo in 2014.

"The effects of Unesco's designations are a debated topic. A site being added to the list can be a 'kiss of death' and 'all too often cures the disease by killing the patient,' Italian journalist Marco D'Eramo wrote in 2014, coining the term 'Unescocide'. Essentially, in designating a World Heritage site worthy of protection, the destination becomes a place of unsustainable levels of tourism. This was not accounted for in the original treaty, as Unesco 'didn't have the scope of international tourism then,' Mike Robinson, a professor of cultural heritage at Nottingham Trent University, told The New York Times.

"It's also difficult for people who 'work in cultural heritage and in tourism to find that right balance between protecting objects but not destroying the experience,' Leila Amineddoleh, a lawyer specializing in cultural heritage... There's also an incentive for developing nations to get destinations added to the World Heritage list to boost tourism. 'The power of the Unesco brand can skyrocket a lesser-known destination to a different level,' wrote CNN. Despite the threat of overtourism, a Unesco World Heritage designation can 'bring much-needed money, support and global recognition to a deserving destination.'" (Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs, 6th August 2023)

 A former World Heritage Director at UNESCO even described it as an 'inevitable destiny'.

"'It is an inevitable destiny: the very reasons why a property is chosen for inscription on the world heritage list are also the reasons why millions of tourists flock to those sites year after year,' wrote Francesco Bandarin, the former World Heritage Director at Unesco." (The Guardian, 30th August 2017)

References

Keep Victoria Falls Wild, April 2026. Serious Concerns Over Management of Victoria Falls World Heritage Site. 31st April 2026. (pdf download, 1.3 mb)

National Geographic (5th August 2021) Here’s how World Heritage status helps destinations around the world. National Geographic. 

The Guardian (30th August 2017) 'Unesco-cide': does world heritage status do cities more harm than good?.

Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs (6th August 2023) The significance and benefits of being on Unesco's World Heritage list.

Victoria Falls Bits and Blogs (28th July 2021) Are World Heritage Site listings a blessing or a curse?

Read more on the wave of tourism developments currently threatening the Victoria Falls World Heritage Site on the Keep Victoria Falls Wild website.