Tourism sector has potential—minister
Minister of Tourism Vera Kamtukule says Malawi has a huge opportunity to tap from the hidden treasures that lie in tourism, one of the country’s three strategic areas that could revitalise the economy.
In public lecture held on Friday in Blantyre titled ‘Unlocking Malawi’s hidden tourism potential’, the minister touched on how players in the sector can develop packages that could encourage tourists to spend more in the country.
Kamtukule decried the tendency of highlighting the negatives over the country’s positives on social media, adding that there is need to brand destination Malawi so that the country should be what tourists look for in Africa.
“No country is without problems, what we are writing on Facebook is damaging for Malawi tourism,” she said.
Kamtukule said government is working on improving tax incentives such as duty-free importation of construction materials for accommodation facilities.
However, other players in the tourism sector asked the minister to consider extending the incentives to tourism sub-sectors such as tour operators.
Kamtukule said the public lecture was part of addressing the challenges the sector is facing to make tourism an integral part of the economy.
She cited a review of the Tourism Act as one of the activities the ministry is engaged in to ensure that the sector is supporting the country’s aspirations.
“There is a lot of political will and investment. Even the budget is responding to this,” said Kamtukule.
Orbis Destination Management Company managing director Innocent Kaliati asked the minister to consider introducing tax waivers for importation of vehicles tour operators use to ferry tourists.
He said: “When we look at the incentives that are available presently, they are only talking about lodges, yet they are called tourism incentives. You neglect us in the tour operators sector.
“You will be shocked to see how much I spend every day to hire vehicles and yet tomorrow I will be told that my transport services are too expensive.”
Kaliati proposed a holistic review of the waivers aimed at incentivising players in the tourism sector.
Mulanje Mountain Conservation Trust environmental education officer Kondwani Chamwala said there is need for government agencies to talk to each other, citing the bauxite exploration on Mulanje Mountain at spots earmarked for tourism development.
He said: “We have an issue of mining on Mount Mulanje, yet the Ministry of Tourism is talking about installing a cable car on the same destination, Chambe Plateau which is earmarked for mining. Do we have policies that are contradicting each other?”
Chamwala also proposed the installation of telecommunication facilities to help tourists remain in touch when they embark on adventures on the mountain.
Speaking earlier, Press Corporation plc chief executive officer Ronald Mangani called for “concerted deliberate decisions to ensure that the sector develops in an organised manner”.
“In order for us to develop the tourism sector, hard decisions will have to be made, serious questions will have to be asked,” he said.
Malawi is attempting to rebuild the tourism sector which received a hard knock due to the Covid-19 pandemic that saw the country closing its ports of entry as one way of controlling the spread of the killer virus that claimed millions of lives worldwide.
Tourism is part of the ATM strategy focusing on agriculture, tourism and mining to revitalise the country’s economy.
The Malawi Government Annual Economic Report 2014 shows that the total contribution of travel and tourism to gross domestic product was at K467.5 billion or 5.5 percent. This is a rise from K420.1 billion or five percent of gross domestic product the previous year.
