Government geared to promote tourism sector

Head of PDU Janet Banda during the pre-tourism lab meeting

* Despite making efforts in the tourism sector, there are a lot of setbacks which we need to work on

* There are a lot of problems which the tourism sector is facing such as poor infrastructure and poor coordination in the tourism team

By Sheminah Nkhoma, MANA

Head of Presidential Delivery Unit (PDU), Janet Banda, who is also Deputy Secretary to the President & Cabinet, has said government will continue to asses and implement the performance of tourism sector to make it productive.

Speaking during the opening of a two-day pre-tourism lab meeting at Bingu International Convention Centre in Lilongwe, Banda highlighted that there are some barriers in the tourism sector which are important for the government to address — thus the meeting was very important as it discussed issues which have been holding back the sector.

“Despite making efforts in the tourism sector, there are a lot of setbacks which we need to work on,” she said, adding that there are a lot of problems which the tourism sector is facing — such as poor infrastructure and poor coordination in the tourism team.

On his part, Secretary for Tourism, Chancy Simwaka articulated the need of having the pre-lab as it is expected to isolate the main bottlenecks that have been affecting the tourism sector in the country.

“As Ministry of Tourism, we are going to make effort to develop various skills in the tourism sector, including hotel management, food production and tour guides to make sure that we have good standards in the industry,” Simwaka said.

The pre-lab meeting comes after the tourism sector hosted the Takulandirani Malawi International Tourism Expo (MITE), which was graced by President Lazarus Chakwera last month.

The President emphasised on the need for Malawians, within and outside the country, to collectively help sell Malawi to others saying the country has a lot to offer to the world.

He added that it is a collective responsibility to sell Malawi to others as people’s daily living and activities speaks more about a country: “What do you do or say about your country as you live everyday? Through what you do or say you represent your country.

“The responsibility to sell Malawi is of each one of us. Whatever we do we are selling this country,” Chakwera said and on her part, Minister of Tourism, Vera Kamtukule, said MITE has been yielding results since its inception in 2017 — adding that the country is doing extremely well in tourism.

“The numbers in terms of traffic of those coming to Malawi is increasing,” she said. “The waiving of visas for 79 countries has also helped. Our role now is to increase in product development so that people visiting Malawi should have things to see or experience,” Kamtukule said.

Through MITE, unique tourism products and services are showcased to hosted international travel buyers, media and the general public, an initiative aiming at advocating for local support and foreign investment in the tourism industry.

The fifth edition of the expo, which ran from April 25-27 was dedicated to exploring the importance of tourism as one of the Malawi’s key drivers to economic growth, under the theme ‘#ipatsemoto, everything tourism’.

Chairperson for Malawi Tourism Council, Justine Zinkambani commended the Chakwera-led administration for adding tourism as a priority within the economic sector of the national development.

“Identifying tourism as a priority within the ATM strategy, and the MW2063, underscores the potential of tourism to drive the country’s social economic development,” he said.

Malawi is working on an ATM strategy focusing on investing in agriculture, tourism and mining which contributes significantly to the economic growth as the tourism sector is Malawi’s third largest source of foreign exchange after tobacco and tea — which alone contributes about 6.7% to the Malawi’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Thus Malawi Tourism Council urges the private sector to use the MITE as an opportunity for showcasing their products to the local and international buyers.

Executive Director, Memory Momba Kamthunzi said the event gives an opportunity to all private sectors including domestic tourism: “As a council we would like to encourage you to say this expo is for us the people in private sector.

“This is the only opportunity that we have in a year, almost every April we are able to showcase the products. Let us make use of this opportunity,” Kamthunzi said.

She added since 2023, they have always been promoting domestic tourism, saying the objectives of the event have been achieved this year as more operators across the country showcased their products, offering to the public and buyers.

“This year, all establishments that showcased their products have been able to interact with the buyers that came through,” she said. “There was also a special day open for the public where a lot of people came to appreciate the products that different tourism enterprises offer here in Malawi,” she said.

In a separate interview, Creative Director for Queen Tenge, Linda Zamaere said the event played a great role in increasing collaboration and brand awareness.

“For business people it is always good to be part of this special event because this enables us to network with other companies and other participants,” she said. “This has also increased collaboration and brand awareness and a big patronage at our shops.”

Zamaere further appreciated the growth of fashion industry in Malawi, saying for several years people did not see fashion as a career.

Products, Marketing and Communications Manager for Sunbird Tourism, Widdey Nsona said it was a great opportunity to network and  meet different potential clients.

“Those who missed the event, next year they should definitely come. It is a great opportunity to make new connections and network with buyers and different potential clients,” Nsona said.—Additional reporting by Tiyanjane Mambucha & Elia Chibwe, MANA