Residents welcome border reopening
Ratidzai Matumbura
VICTORIA FALLS-Victoria Falls residents have gladly welcomed Cabinet’s decision to reopen the Victoria Falls/Kazungula Border post to tourists on condition that the latter are fully vaccinated. The move by the government is predicated on the understanding that Victoria Falls has achieved herd immunity by having over 60% of the population vaccinated against Covid 19.
While speaking to this publication, the Chairperson of the Guides Association, Mr Francis Nyabadza projected that the long awaited development will bring in more clients, and recreate lost jobs while simultaneously generating good revenue for the country.
“An influx of tourists will see more guides getting back to work and will also rake in revenue for the country through. For tourists, it makes more economic sense to combine trips to countries like Zambia, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe into one trip, hence many tourists from the SADC region and overseas are likely to visit Victoria Falls given its status as the most outstanding tourist destination in the region. A number of businesses that had closed shop will be able to resume operations as well,” said Nyabadza.
The Executive Director of Wild Horses Mr Thulani Gumbo also expressed optimism on the reopening of the Victoria Falls/Kazungula Border post. He said the reopening would go a long way in changing the fortunes of most ailing businesses in the resort city.
“Covid 19 has encumbered enterprises, particularly tourism players but since the borders have been reopened, normalcy will soon be restored. This will enhance job opportunities, circulation of money in the city and also inject much needed foreign currency into the treasury,” he said.
Mr Bryson Tivatyi of Wilderness Safaris Guide, a renowned tour guide in Victoria falls also shared his excitement at the news.
“Tourism is the heart of our city’s economy and development, therefore, locals will definitely benefit directly from the reopening of the border. An accelerated inflow of tourists into the city will improve revenue and employment for local residents and stakeholders,” opined Mr Tivatyi.
Lubalenkosi Nyathi, a resident, said the decision by Cabinet will help retrenched employees return to work and generally improve the standard of living in the city that is currently at an all time low due to the pandemic.
Meanwhile the border post between Zimbabwe and Zambia remains closed for cross border traders who depend mostly on Zambian products for their stock. The traders have their fingers crossed as they hope for authorities to give the nod towards the reopening of the Victoria Falls/Livingstone border.
Natasha Chimau, a cross border trader complained that her business is on the verge of collapse as she indicated that she cannot wait to resume her normal trade and hit the ground running.
“Lockdown regulations over the past months have brought our businesses down to their knees as we cannot travel to other countries. We rely on neighboring countries for our stock. We implore authorities to reopen the Zambian border, ” said Chimau.
The closed border has resulted in the skyrocketing of prices in the city. Tavongaishe Nhope bemoaned the high cost of goods as a consequence to the closed border. He however, commended the Victoria falls community for its compliance in the vaccination programme.
“The movement of goods is limited and has triggered exorbitant pricing. Closed borders have been our undoing as we can no longer access cheaper goods for resale from Zambia. We hope the border will soon be functional for traders so that we can move freely. As residents we have done our part and showed a unity of purpose in accepting the vaccine since we all knew what was at stake economically,” asserted Nhope.
