Warthogs on runways, congested ports haunt Zim as 2010 beckons

An ambitious business plan authored by Zimbabwe’s Sports, Tourism, Image and Communi-cations (STIC) taskforce titled “World Soccer Cup 2010 Strategy for Zimbabwe,” laid bare the huge expectations that Zimbabwe had at the time.
In its blueprint, STIC was targeting a 30 percent share of the tournament revenue.
STIC also estimated that Zimbabwe’s 94 percent unemployment would be reduced by five percent as a result of the opportunities arising before and during the tournament.
The blueprint also outlined how airlines, hotels, taxi operators and downstream industries would rebound almost instantly from the spinoffs spawning from South Africa’s hosting of the world’s biggest sporting event mid this year.
But six months before South Africa and Mexico lock horns in the first 2010 World Cup match there doesn’t appear to be any serious effort to make this dream a reality.
Political analyst, Bornwell Chakaodza, said despite spirited efforts by players in the tourism sector, the fact of the matter is that this sector, which used to be one of Zimbabwe’s cash cows, is all but dead in the water.
“There should be no pretence about this. Tourism is no longer the lifeblood of this country. It is not functioning at even quarter capacity for reasons, which are as clear as blue water,” he said.
“This thing about expecting 50 000 or so guests in our country for the 2010 World Cup — it’s just talk, talk, talk and no action.  Where are these people going to come from?
“I would like them to come for the good of our country, but are we being truthful with ourselves?” he asked.
Poor planning, lack of proper coordination, official hesitation in the implementation of various programmes lined up ahead of the event, bureaucracy and collapsing infrastructure have, among other things, combined to diminish Zimbabwe’s chances of benefiting from the World Cup.
Initial projections showed South Africa required 19 000 beds from Zimbabwe. Only 13 000 are available.
The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority has been contracting private homes to augment bed capacity in hotels under strict ratings but some of the converted houses fall far short of the standards expected for international tourism.
In Bulawayo’s Hillside suburb, for instance, converted homes have appalling beds, catering equipment and service while in Mutare the gardens are not well maintained.
The facilities are also manned by unprofessional staff.
Much more appalling is the standards and services in some hotels and lodges.
A 19-member Cabinet team spearheading Zimbabwe’s World Cup preparations all but admitted last week that the country is not ready for the event.
Only a few of the tasks that were assigned to Cabinet team have been achieved.
The refurbishment, expansion and installation of functioning equipment at airports is still to be completed.
The runway at the 44-year old Victoria Falls Airport was earmarked for expansion from 2,6 kilometres to four kilometres in 2006 in order to attract larger aircraft to the resort town but apart from the clearance of a few bushes, the project remains a pipe dream.
Expansion projects at Buffalo Range and other smaller airports have since been abandoned due to the shortage of funds.
Functioning airports are Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls international airports, but even at Harare, the country’s biggest, meteorological equipment is in a sorry state.
New equipment at Harare airport alone requires US$2 million but the government has only provided US$500 000 in its current budget.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe has also failed to erect a proper fence to deter warthogs from straying onto the runway at the Harare International Airport.
Only recently, a Bulawayo bound plane was extensively damaged after running over a group of warthogs.
“They (meteorology department) say there are no half measures. We started with image building (but) the five warthogs that were roasted by a plane there badly damaged our image — we lost a plane. The warthogs seem to be developing a knack for the tarmac,” said STIC chairman, Sylvester Maunganidze.
“There are no coaches at the National Railways of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, if 10 000 tourists come to the southern region we do not know how they will travel,” he added.
Maunganidze was mum about government’s failure to construct a cluster of modern stadiums, previously planned for Masvingo, Victoria Falls and the border town of Beitbridge.
He was also silent on government’s failure to refurbish the National Sports and Barbourfields stadiums. Only Rufaro Stadium has been revamped.
Analysts said it would be difficult for the country to attract the world’s biggest soccer teams to camp in Zimbabwe due to the limited options triggered by the failed projects.
The Cabinet team said barring miracles, World Cup tourists were unlikely to consider Zimbabwe in their plans.
“The challenges we have starts at our border posts,” said Maunga-nidze. “Beitbridge has no capacity to absorb large numbers of people. We had suggested putting in place a one-stop border post but I am sorry to say that this has not yet been achieved.
“The almost uninhabitable weather at Beitbridge is very hot and very humid that you need to visit the loo almost regularly, but there are few toilets, it (the port) is always almost in a state of disaster,” he added.
The country’s border posts are known to experience perennial clearance weaknesses that result in long queues. This, together with a strict Visa regime has scared away visitors.
The Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) has transformed Chirundu Border post, shared with Zambia, into a one stop port, reducing clearance time from 48 to two hours.
This model cannot however, be replicated at Beitbridge — the gateway into Zimbabwe from all World Cup venues — because South Africa is not a COMESA member.
With regional tourism increasingly being underpinned by road transport, the state of the country’s roads has turned out to be a far more worrying factor for the Cabinet taskforce.
Zimbabwe’s potholed roads are not in a condition that is acceptable to an influx of tourists of the magnitude that Zimbabweans are wishing for. Repairing all trunk roads in six months will be a mammoth task, transport analysts say.
Hospitality Minister, Walter Mzembi is, however, confident arrivals will shoot even as he has presided over a failing programme.
“Our graph will start peaking up during the tournament and after the World Cup itself,” he said last week.
“But that will depend on our ability to lure tourists. If one or two teams come to camp here it will boost tourism and associated earnings,” he said.