Balance tourism hype with action on the ground

Ministry of Tourism this week hosted the Fourth Edition of the Malawi International Tourism Expo at the Bingu International Convention Centre in Lilongwe.

The theme for the expo, which started on April 26 and ends today, is ‘Takulandirani’ or loosely translated to mean ‘Welcome to Malawi’. This is a good initiative, especially considering that tourism has always made the list of key drivers with the potential to significantly contribute to the country’s economic growth.

For a long time, tourism has been ranked as “the next big thing” or “the game-changer” every time people talk about economic growth. The expo comes about seven months after Malawi joined the global community in commemorating the World

Tourism Day on September 27th under the theme ‘Rethinking tourism’.

This year, Minister of Tourism Vera Kamtukule passionately promoted the expo and it is little wonder the response appears to be overwhelming. Well done and I am hoping for the best.

As we promote tourism to boost the economy, I went down the memory lane to my 2018 World Tourism Day commemoration entry for Business Unpacked under the headline ‘How others see Malawi’s tourism potential’.

The article was influenced by a Facebook post by Zimbabwean business mogul and philanthropist Strive Masiyiwa who shared a reflection on the untapped potential that is in Lake Malawi.

He wrote: “Reflection: Many years ago, I was at a business conference in Germany, when I found myself speaking casually to one of the most brilliant industrialists of his generation, Jürgen Schrempp, who ran Mercedes Benz.

“On realising that he had travelled in Africa, I asked him what was the most interesting [business] opportunity he had seen. ‘Lake Malawi,’ he replied without hesitation, before adding: ‘What an amazing asset. They [Malawi] should be earning hundred billion [dollars I assume] a year from it already. It has nothing to do with any minerals’.

“He said it with such passion and then left. I was deeply troubled in my spirit as I wondered what he had seen. What he said has always come to me when I see a natural wonder in Africa. ‘I once flew in an aeroplane at low altitude following the course of the Congo River. I had my hand held over my mouth all the way, totally stunned by what I was seeing, it’s majestic beauty! ‘What an opportunity! Oh my goodness!’ I kept shouting in wonder: ‘Imagine what a generation of entrepreneurial leaders will one day do with this…’ #Perhaps you are the one?”

This post keeps ringing in my head every time people talk about tourism. My personal take is that we can do better to reap from tourism and we can do better to promote tourism.

While developers have in recent years put up magnificent infrastructure both along the shores of Lake Malawi and in or close to some wildlife reserves and other areas, to me government is still yet to give them or tourism  a push. There is more talk than action.

There may be some tax incentives to boost tourism, but how about access to the places? For instance, Nyika National Park in Rumphi is a treasure, but it remains a nightmare to access it. The Lakeshore Road is in a dilapidated state.

Back in 2008 or thereabouts, the government upgraded to bitumen standard access roads to some lakeshore resorts, especially in Mangochi, but the roads are fast deteriorating due to lack of maintenance.

Right now, direct flights to closest destinations are rare. For instance, people are “forced” to fly to Harare in Zimbabwe, hitherto a less than an hour flight, through Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. This is costly and takes Malawi out of business in terms of attractiveness as a tourist destination. There is also need to address foreign exchange generation to boost reserves and enable our travel agents to resume ticket sales.

During the election campaign, there were promises of lakeshore cities. However, almost four years and counting progress is slow. Imagine having Cape Maclear City with an international airport and incorporating Monkey Bay, Chipoka, Salima as well as Mangochi. The Golden Sands ‘hotel’ at Lake Malawi National Park in Cape Maclear still lies in ruins, but recently I heard a developer is working on developing the site. I hope this time around it will be for real.

Likoma Island access also needs to be improved. Tanzania has virtually closed the gap between Zanzibar and the mainland through a robust transport network both by air and water. Malawi can do it too.

The expo is bringing together leading tourism enterprises, international exhibitors, leadership, investors, international buyers and experts to showcase and discuss trends and opportunities.

It is my expectation this will not be just another hyped talking shop whose deliverables will count to naught at the end of the day.