By Nigel Pfunde
Masvingo- The government has taken heed of calls from hospitality industry players to standardise local hotels to regional and international grading benchmarks. This major policy alignment was highlighted at the inaugural CEO’s Roundtable symposium held on Tuesday at the Great Zimbabwe Hotel in Masvingo, serving as a key engagement ahead of the Sanganai/Hlanganani Dzimbahwe World Tourism Expo.
The Deputy Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Tongai Mafidi Mnangagwa, was the guest of honour at the symposium, standing in for Minister Barbara Rwodzi.
During the deliberations, Africa Sun chief operations officer Amanda Matema raised concerns regarding universal quality across borders.
“As hoteliers we need standardisation in the grading of our hotels, like now we know Holiday Inn is graded as a 3 star hotel and a visitor must have the same customer experience that he or she has in a hotel graded the same in Cape Town, Zambia or any part of the region,” said Matema.
In response, Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) chief executive officer Dr George Manyaya revealed the government’s swift action to address the industry’s demands.
“Well, if you remember, we held an all stakeholders meeting in Harare and we resolved to send our inspectors to all the 10 provinces to check the state of all hospitality facilities, including lodges and Air BnBs. We first zero graded them all and did a universal grading and standardisation. So, in that aspect ,as regulator, we implemented as we push for ‘One Africa’ tourism concept,” he said.
Beyond standardisation concerns, Deputy Minister Mnangagwa had earlier in his speech read on behalf of his principal, also outlined expanded strategic routes to maximize the country’s economic potential, focusing heavily on enhancing destination accessibility and promoting sports tourism.
On accessibility, Mnangagwa emphasized the critical role of air connectivity, highlighting the landing of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Bulawayo as a major turning point.
Stakeholders at the roundtable also strongly pushed for collaboration and competiveness and retaining regional routes beyond major events to sustain visitor flows and enhance economic integration.
Turning to sports tourism, the Deputy Minister reaffirmed that the government is intentionally leveraging athletic events to boost countrywide visibility. He lauded the opening of the Sports Tourism Carnival in Masvingo as a strategic avenue to generate domestic travel, fill hotel rooms midweek, and build local hosting capacity, aligning seamlessly with the national transformation goals of Vision 2030.
