eBusiness Weekly
Michael Tome
HARARE – The number of tourists to Zimbabwe have increased significantly over the past months, according to statistics released by Zimbabwe’s statistical agency (ZIMSTATS).
ZIMSTATS latest report show that foreign arrivals to Zimbabwe for vacation stood at 159,920 in December 2017 which is a record monthly high during dollarisation period.
Averagely 76,510 tourists per month visited Zimbabwe between 2009 and 2017. The December 2017 holiday makers out-turn was 110 percent above the 8-year average.
The increase in arrivals is reflective of international communities shift on how it views Zimbabwe.
Source markets growth for the year of 2017 was led by the USA as their arrivals had the most impressive growth of 22 percent to 101,206 arrivals. Mozambique recorded a 10 percent growth to 189,237 while South Africa arrivals dipped by three percent year on year.
2018 saw Zimbabwe record a six percent growth in full year arrivals to 2,579,974 ahead of the 2017 out-turn.
The country went on to record a net $1.05 billion in forex receipts from tourism business in 2018. In post dollarisation history, Zimbabwe had never got through the mark.
However, the trend in foreign arrivals slowed down in the final quarter of 2018 as most services grew more expensive.
In 2018, notably the period before election a number of business targeted arrivals scaled up as potential investors prospected on opportunities. Data however shows that despite quarter on quarter gain the first 3 months of 2018 attracted below average numbers when compared to the same period between 2010 and 2016.
2019 is expected to pick up as the year progresses keeping up the tourism momentum that has been on the upward trajectory lately.
Strength of the sector conversely stems from Zimbabwe’s natural breath taking scenery anchored on the Victoria Falls which is one of the world’s seven wonders.
