EXCLUSIVE
ZAMBIA EDITION OF AFRICA TRAVEL MAGAZINE
FOR FALL
2008,
Africa Travel Magazine's "Great Cities of
Africa" editions include Lusaka,
Zambia and Livingstone,
tourism capital and home of Victoria
Falls, one of the Top
10 Wonders of the
World
,
ADVERTISE
NOW!
ZAMBIA
TRAVEL AND TOURISM NEWS
Material was provided courtesy of Prof.
Wolfgang Thome. And again some interesting
tourism and conservation news from Gill
Staden in Livingstone / Zambia:
And
finally once more some interesting tourism
news from Gill Staden in Livingstone /
Zambia:
Limbo
Lodge
Limbo
Lodge is on the Lusaka Road, towards the
weigh bridge, on the right-hand side as
you leave Livingstone.
Kingsley
Lilamono is the owner of Limbo Lodge. He
built it with money that he earned in
Botswana while he was a teacher there
&endash; he taught Physics and Chemistry
for 12 years in Maun. Although from north
western Zambia, he decided to settle in
Livingstone because he could see the
tourism potential in the town.
Kingsley
started to build in 2003, completing two
chalets and the main building in a year
and a half. He opened at Easter
2005.
He has
continued to improve the property and now
has 12 rooms &endash; 4 singles, 4 doubles
and 4 twins. Some of the rooms are
interconnected by a door, so families can
easily be accommodated. Each room has
air-conditioning, TV, mosquito net and
tea, coffee-making facilities. The cost of
a room is K150,000 (US$43) for single,
K220,000 (US$63) for double. The price
includes continental breakfast.
Apart from
the chalets, there is also an interesting
underground restaurant and bar; and a
swimming pool. Kingsley is just
constructing a conference facility which
he expects will be able to take 50-60
people.
The
gardens are very pleasant; the trees
gradually growing to provide shade and
atmosphere. Kingsley said that most of the
trees had been chopped out when he bought
the land and it is taking time to get the
trees and gardens to grow.
On the
future of his business future, he hopes
that Government will recognise the tourist
industry as a major economic contributor
to Zambia. It will be only then when small
lodges like his can be a viable business.
On the
issue of visa fees, Kingsley thinks that
the Government did not think carefully
enough about the impact. Although tourists
will continue to come for the next six
months, because their holidays are already
booked, he feels that numbers will decline
after September.
He hopes
that, in future, Government will work with
the private sector to nurture the tourist
industry. He feels that when Zimbabwe
comes right, Livingstone will lose a lot
of tourists to Victoria Falls Town because
they have the know-how and the
infrastructure.
Contact
Limbo Lodge:
Tel: 0213
322096, 0977 811567
Email:
limbolodge@zamnet.zm
Livingstone
Lodge and Guest House Association
(Liloha)
Kingsley
is also the Chairman of Liloha. Liloha was
started in 2005 to help the guest house
owners to work together for marketing,
training and networking. There are 22
members of the association. Membership fee
is initially K270,000, then K150,000 for
each following year. Liloha is a member of
the Livingstone Tourism
Association.
Liloha has
just had a 3-day workshop for members of
the association to improve on their
business skills. He said that it is much
more cost-effective for members to work
together with this type of programme. He
also says that when one of their members
is contacted about hosting a large group
of visitors they work together to make
sure that they can provide all the
necessary rooms.
Lusaka
Travel Show
Last
weekend saw the first Lusaka Travel Show.
It ran for three days. As a new venture
for the tourist industry, Kingsley felt
that it was not too bad. He said however,
that because he missed the first day, he
did not get much business from the show.
He was told that the first day was very
busy and that companies made a lot of
contacts and had bookings.
Kingsley
also wanted to say a big thank you to Sun
International who provided the stand for
the show and said that any of the guest
houses who wanted to use the stand were
free to do so. The stand was a great asset
to their presentation.
Birds of
Zambia
This book
is now available. Bob the Birdman brought
a few down to Livingstone and I have got
my copy. It is an authoritative work on
the distribution of birds in Zambia. It
does not contain photos of all the birds
but it has the Zambian map divided up into
squares, showing where each bird has been
seen. It has taken years to collate all
this information by birders in Zambia.
Another
interesting section is a history of
birding in Zambia. It tells stories of
people who dedicated all or part of their
lives to discovering new species and
documenting birds in their
area.
The book
is a must for all lodges and hotels that
have a library. (and for visitors and
tourists coming to Zambia adds this
correspondent)
The Lady
Livingstone, Livingstone's newest River
Cruiser, is running a special for all
Livingstone residents and friends. This
special deal is running for the month of
May 2008.
Come and
enjoy the Zambezi River for a special
evening cruise.
Email
address: zaminfo@safpar.com
Website:
www.safpar.com
The
Lady Livingstone
Saf Par
has a new boat. It should be up and
running in a couple of weeks. The boat was
built in Harare by Demblons. It was
brought to Livingstone on a trailer which
took a week to travel from Harare to
Victoria Falls.
David
Livingstone Safari Lodge. Finally
the David Livingstone Safari Lodge
will be opening at the end of this week.
We hope
Protea
Hotel
The Protea
Hotel should be opening at the beginning
of May
they hope
Chizarira
Lodge
Last week
I wrote the story of my trip to Chizarira
Lodge in Zimbabwe. But I did not put in
the photos of the lodge, itself. So here
are some pics, so that you can see
The
chalets are perched on the edge of the
escarpment
The main
building is home to a bar, dining area and
lounge
great place just to be lazy
and enjoy the views
especially the
sunsets.
If you
want to visit Chizarira Lodge, contact
Craig on
xclusive@africaonline.co.zw
ENVIRONMENTAL
COUNCIL OF ZAMBIA
CALL FOR
COMMENTS AND INVITATION TO A PUBLIC
HEARING
REVIEW OF
THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)
REPORT
SUBMITTED
BY AFRICAN LION & ENVIRONMENTAL
RESEARCH TRUST (ALERT) FOR THE PROPOSED
DAMBWA FOREST No.22 JOINT MANAGEMENT AREA
LION REHABILITATION PROJECT.
African
Lion & Environmental Research Trust
(ALERT) is proposing to resuscitate Dambwa
Forest No.22 and re-stock the Forestry
area with Lions. The forest is adjacent to
the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in
Livingstone.
The
overall objective of the project is to
reverse the declining trends in African
Lion populations through a breeding and
release into the wild program. The program
will aim at producing 8 lion cubs per year
that will be subjected to a controlled
breeding programme to produce cubs raised
in the natural ecosystem.
This
notice therefore, serves to inform members
of the general public, interested and
affected parties that an Environmental
Impact Assessment Report for the Dambwa
Forest Joint Management Area Lion
Rehabilitation Project has been received
by the Environmental Council of Zambia
(ECZ) for review, in line with the
provisions of the Environmental Protection
and Pollution Control Act Number 12 of
1990 as read with the Environmental Impact
Assessment Regulations; SI. No. 28, of
1997 and is available for scrutiny at the
following places:
1.
Livingstone City Council, Civic Centre;
2.
Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) Offices,
in Livingstone;
3.
Environmental Council Of Zambia &endash;
Southern Regional Office in Livingstone;
4.
Environmental Council Of Zambia
Information Documentation Centre (IDC) in
Lusaka.
The report
will be available for scrutiny during
office hours from 08:00 hours to 13:00
hours and 14:00hours to 17:00 hours.
Interested and affected parties may send
their written submissions to the
undersigned. The deadline for submission
of comments is 23rd April,
2008.
This
notice also serves to invite members of
the general public to a public hearing for
the African Lion & Environmental
Research Trust (ALERT) to be held on 12th
April 2008 at David Livingstone Training
College at 14:00hours.
Chama
Mwansa Nyendwa
Communications
Officer
Environmental
Council of Zambia
P. O. Box
35131
LUSAKA
Phone (w):
+260 211 254023
Mobile:
+260 955 995426
Email:
cmwansa@necz.org.zm
www.necz.org.zm
"We do not
inherit the earth, we borrow it from our
children" Chief Seatle
From
Zambian Ornithological Society
The Birds
of Zambia has finally been published! ZOS
has copies for sale at K250 000 for
members and K300 000 for
non-members. These are available
from Trish Bingham at Kachelo, on
Leopard's Hill Road, Lusaka, or from Fil
Hide at Moondogs Café in
Mfuwe.
We also
have new ZOS caps and hats for
sale.
I have
contacted ZOS and asked them to get some
copies down to Livingstone for us to buy
&endash; essential library material for
all lodges and homes. Please let Bob know
if you would like a copy brought down to
Livingstone &endash;
bob@zamnet.zm
From the
Wildlife and Environmental Conservation
Society
Notice for
the Annual General
Meeting
Please
accept this as official notice that the
Annual General Meeting for the Wildlife
and Environmental Conservation Society
(WECSZ) will be held on 31st May 2008
at the Intercontinental Hotel,
Lusaka. The time for the meeting is
set at 09:00hrs.
All
nominations for Executive Committee
(EXCO) positions must be submitted to
the National Office no later than 3rd
May 2008. Please use the attached
form for nominations.
For any
information, please contact:
National
Office
P.O. Box
30255
Lusaka,
Zambia
Telephone:
260-211-251630
Email:
wecsz@zamnet.zm
From
the Livingstone Museum
E-news
History of
the Livingstone Museum
How the
Museum Began
The first
notable effort to establish a museum in
Livingstone was in 1930 when Mr Moffat
Thomson, then Secretary of Native Affairs
for Northern Rhodesia, convinced the
colonial government of the necessity to
collect the material culture of various
ethnic groups, which was dying out.
In March 1930, Sir James Maxwell, Governor
of the territory, instructed all District
Officers to collect suitable articles and
purchase them. These collections were
housed in Mr Thomson's office along
Queen's Way (now Kuta Way), Livingstone,
and formed the foundation of what was
later to be known as the
Museum.
In 1934
Sir Hubert Young, Governor, arranged for
the collections to be displayed to the
public in the old Magistrate's Court
building (no longer existing, behind the
present New Fairmount Hotel). He
also decided to extend the collections
into a memorial of David Livingstone and a
collection of letters and other relics of
the explorer and missionary were obtained
through donations and loans from
individuals. Consequently the new
museum was named the "David Livingstone
Memorial Museum". Mr A.W. Brew, the
Curator of the Victoria Falls conservancy,
was appointed Curator of the Museum on
part-time basis. The collections
were open to the public three days a
week.
First
Museum Building - Old Magistrate's Court
(1934-1937)
In 1937
the Museum moved to the United Services
Club building, which was more spacious and
had fallen into disuse after the club
moved to Lusaka. This building (no
longer existing) was located next to
Government House, between the present Kuta
Way and the railway line, near the current
Office of the President offices on
Akapelwa Street. Within the same
year the Rhodes-Livingstone Institute was
started. The Museum was incorporated
in the Institute and the collection was
expanded to include the relics of Cecil
Rhodes and the British South Africa
Company. A single Board of Trustees
administered both the Institute and the
Museum and Mr W.V. Beresford was seconded
as Secretary of the Institute and Museum
Curator. The first full-time
Curator, Dr Desmond Clark was appointed in
1938.
Second
Museum Building &endash; United Services
Club (1937 to 1951)
In 1945
the Museum was separated from the
Institute as the "Rhodes-Livingstone
Museum". In the same year
fund-raising for a purpose-built Museum
building started, spearheaded by Colonel
Sir Ellis Robins. The building plans
were done by Major W J Roberts in a
Spanish Design. Work on the building
started in 1949 and the building was
completed in November 1950. This
first part of the building constitutes the
present Galleries of Archaeology,
Ethnography, David Livingstone, History,
and the Temporary Exhibition Gallery. The
first exhibitions in the galleries were
completed in 1951 when the Museum was
opened to the public.
Official
opening of the Museum, 1951, in the new,
purpose-built building on Mosi-o-tunya
Road
By 1958,
the Museum building was found to be
inadequate for the expanded operations of
the Museum. There was need for
workspace and storage rooms for the
collections. Work on a Research Wing
began in January 1960 and was completed by
December the same year. It was
officially opened in 1961. This part
houses the storerooms, offices and
workspace for Archaeology, Ethnography and
History, as well as the
library.
Just
completed research wing, 1961
The name
of the Museum changed from the
Rhodes-Livingstone Museum to its present
name of the Livingstone Museum in
1965.
Clare
Mateke &endash; Keeper of Mammalogy
And some
more African tourism news again taken from
Gill Staden's 'The Livingstone Weekly' in
Zambia (and for those who asked where
exactly this is &endash; a major Zambian
tourism town across the border from
Zimbabwe, overlooking the world famous
Victoria Falls of the Zambezi River).
Contact Gill for more information at
<livingstonian@zamnet.zm>
David Livingstone
Safari Lodge
I suppose
most of you are wondering when this hotel
is due to open. Well, I expect it
will be April. There have been
delays because there have been alterations
to the design ... to include a spa, as
well as other things.
Now, Errol
Tarr, the landscaper is busy moving soil
all over the place to create an indigenous
garden. The David Livingstone is
within the National Park, like Sun
International, and the planting is limited
to indigenous species. It is going
to be fun watching it all come
together. Fortunately the site
already has loads of trees. Now the
bobcat (a small earth-mover) is busy
moving the soil to create an interesting
landscape ... and soon the planting will
begin.
All this
rain though, is causing a bit of
havoc. The soil on the site is quite
clay-ey. Yesterday, walking from the
Waterfront to the site, I slipped into a
hole of mud, covering shoes and
trousers. And the gardens were
unworkable. And this rain today will
probably stop a lot of work
tomorrow.
The
Interior Designer, Belinda Jones, is busy
plastering the walls with African
artefacts, paintings and
curiosities. I can't really comment
on all this very much as it is not my
forte, all I know is that she will do a
fantastic job and that the final result
will be amazing.
I have
watched the David Livingstone grow from
the start (I work for the project) and it
has been a rocky ride, but so
interesting. Now that it is all
coming together, it all seems worth
it. But, to be honest, I will be
glad to see it finished and the first
guests arrive ... then my job will be over
...
We have
had lots of agents come to see the hotel
as it has grown and all have been agog at
the site and the architecture. Now
that the interior designer and the
landscaper are putting the final touches
to the product, it is all coming together
to make a first-class hotel ... so now ...
over to the management team
Just to
let everyone know that we have used as
many local suppliers as
possible:
Kubu
Crafts have made the woodwork design
pieces, like bar counters, reception
counters, etc
Fallsway
Timbers have worked tirelessly to make all
the doors and room furniture;
Emmah's
Wear is surrounded by cushions and
curtains in her workshop waiting for the
rooms to be ready;
James
Hitchins, of JPA, has made all the
pool tiles and copings;
The
contract company is a Zambian company
which used the skills of engineers and
consultants from Zimbabwe who had worked
on projects like the Victoria Falls Safari
Lodge, Elepant Hills, Kingdom, etc.
It was a priority of the project to use as
much expertise from Zambia as
possible. Several Zambian
subcontractors were used. Of course,
many of the subcontractors had learned
their skills from the Sun International
project - electrical, bricklaying,
etc. So, it just goes to show how
development takes place ... prior to the
Sun hotel our artisans could not have
managed such developments ... but, with
experience, they can.
* * * *
*
This leads us
onto the new visa fees
...
It would
be nice to think that Livingstone can
experience a lot more hotel development to
use the skills of our artisans, but
it is unlikely with the present visa fee
regime ... If any
hotel company did a bit of research
into hotel feasibility in Livingstone they
would decide not to bother ... it is not
economical.
While I am
on the topic of the new visa fees ... it
seems that the tour operators have given
up trying to fight it. Why
bother??? The Government is
making a short-term killing in visa
fees. The fact that the local
economy is suffering and that the
long-term effects are devastating is not
worth worrying about ... live for today
...
One farmer
asked me this week about the new visa fees
... he was devastated ... he had been
planning an extension to his farm to
cope with increased demand for his
products ... forget it, I said, ... we are
on the way down, there will be no
increased demand ...the tourists will not
pay those fees ...
And, so
... onto new development
...
And also,
while I am on the topic of new hotel
developments ... I have heard that the
deal has been signed between Legacy Hotels
and ZAWA. I don't know any
details except that the development is
split between the original ZAWA concession
in the Mosi-O-Tunya National Park and an
area in Mukuni District. I just hope
that Legacy have done their research
properly otherwise they could be stuck
with a 'white elephant' ... and not
the ones they want to use for elephant
safaris.
Mabula
Farm
Mabula
Farm is about 40km north of Livingstone,
on the Lusaka Road,
take a right
the farm is just a short distance
off the road. Here, the owners have
changed the face of a farm
from one
of tobacco and dairy cows to game farm and
eland domestication.
I was
invited to go and have a look at the farm
during the week. We were picked up by a
bus at Falls Park. Unfortunately we were
running African time and left 45 minutes
late
but, what can you do
And then, as we weaved our way along the
Lusaka road between potholes, the heavens
opened and the rain poured. It took us
about 45 minutes to get to the farm by
which time the rains had faded and all
became well with the world.
We were
taken to the new boma which overlooks a
waterhole and open woodland. The boma has
a bar, restaurant and swimming pool
&endash; all rustic-looking, but solid,
and in good taste. After a welcome drink
and some chat we helped ourselves to a
buffet lunch. During the lunch we watched
as an eland wandered down to the
waterhole to drink, much to the delight of
everyone. And then, surprisingly, another
five eland joined it, with a couple
of human herders bringing up the rear.
This was our first sight of the
domesticated eland. Eland, as you probably
know, are large mammals. After lunch the
bull eland, which we were told was only
around three years old, decided to come
and join us on the lawn in front of the
boma, which was not the best idea. As he
looked as if he was going to come into the
restaurant it was decided that he should
return to his lady-friends by the
waterhole so he was enticed and cajoled
back down towards his herd.
We were
then taken to the eland pens. The eland
are kept like domestic cattle in fenced
areas where they are fed and looked after.
The ones we had seen by the waterhole were
the ones who had been completely
domesticated and were happy to go out for
a walk with their herders and return in
late afternoon. In the fenced areas there
were another 50 or so eland which are
undergoing training. We were taken to a
closed-in area (closed in by wire fence
and covered in thatch). We climbed
some stairs to a platform which stretched
to the middle of the enclosure; the eland
were allowed into the enclosure and the
farmhands fed them with game pellets. What
an extraordinary sight. There we were,
high up on a platform, with the most
graceful of antelope playing, eating and
sparring below us.
This
project is one of a kind in Zambia. Chris
said that she learned what she could from
a previous experiment of eland
domestication project in Zimbabwe.
She also said that they have domesticated
eland in Russia
can't quite get my
head around that, but apparently it is
true. The great thing about eland is that
they do not suffer from all these horrible
diseases which seem to be besetting cattle
in our region and are relatively
trouble-free maintenance-wise. When she
needs a vet, Chris can call Ian Parsons
from Mazabuka, but much of the work she
can do herself, sometimes with a telephone
call to Ian.
Mabula
Farm covers an area of 1,600 hectares
&endash; bigger than our Mosi-O-Tunya Game
Park. The whole area has been fenced and
animals introduced. They have zebra,
giraffe, waterbuck, wildebeest, tsessebe,
kudu, impala, puku, reedbuck, duiker,
grysbok, steenbok, klipspringer, bushpig,
warthog, porcupine, jackal
There
are no big cats, of course, so walking,
horse riding, are practicable. During our
visit we did not have time to go for a
drive, walk or horse ride
but that
is OK because it means that I need to go
again
and this time with my camera
which is still on holiday with my son,
Muftau, in India.
Anyone can
visit Mabula Farm. There is even a
campsite if you want to stay overnight.
But booking is essential and there is a
charge for entrance. Contact them on 0977
866517, 327495 or email
mabulagamefarm@zamtel.zm
Local
Cowboy
Cliff
Sitwala is known to us all as Local
Cowboy. Cliff runs cycle tours in
and around Livingstone. But, behind
the scenes, Cliff has also managed to
build and run a primary school. He
does this through his own earnings and
love of his community.
Recently,
Cliff was rewarded for his caring by
Celtel, which has given him 20 new
bicycles and some furniture for the
school.
Anyway,
the point of this article is about Cliff's
new venture ...
Do you
want to cycle to get fit???
For all
those of us who sit behind computers all
day and need that bit of exercise, Cliff
is offering to take us on a cycle ride at
6.30am from Falls Park to Sun Hotel
... it is only a few kilometres
...
I am
thinking about it but although the spirit
is willing the flesh is extremely weak
..
Also,
Cliff wants to offer cycle rides to school
children but he wants them to be
sponsored. Companies who would like
to sponsor a child need to pay
K10,000.
All
companies who would like to help Cliff
with his enterprise, please contact him on
0978 171547 or email
localcowboy1970@yahoo.com
The
Zambia Success Story
...
by
Jerry W. Bird
What an
amazing country!
We
made so many lasting friendships during
our month-long stay in Zambia, we've
become lifetime ambassadors, eager to
spread the good news at every opportunity.
Example: Africa Travel Magazine's Zambia
Congress edition, with Victoria Falls on
the front cover, is getting prime
circulation in North America, Africa and
beyond.
Continued
Zambia
adds Zest to your Real Africa Safari.
Who wouldn't be awed by their first
sight of Mosi- O-Tunya, the smoke that
thunders, or by the denizens we
encountered up close on, eye to eye on our
Lower Zambezi canoe safari. Zambia is a
fabulous place to get around, thanks to
its regional airlines and highways system
This meant we covered much more territory
than expected and saw more of the sights.
The country's elevation allows for a more
pleasant climate than one would expect in
a tropical country - all the more reason
to plan an encore.
Chaminuks, Zambia
Town office has moved to
the following address:
Plot 3515 C, Great East Road, Rhodespark -
Opposite Northmead Shopping Mall
Lusaka, Zambia
Our new telephone numbers are as
follows:
Tel: +260 211 254140 or +260 211
254146
Fax: +260 211 254190
Our mobile numbers and email addresses
remain the same.
Zambia's
Proud History as an ATA member
Zambia
hosted successful ATA events in 1981 and
1993 - however the Africa Travel
Association's 28th International Congress
in May, 2003 was the first
"double-header," with Lusaka and
Livingstone -Victoria Falls sharing the
honors. There's something magical about
any ATA event, and our Zambian friends
added their own zest to the menu. We call
it going for the gusto! For business,
networking and professional presentation,
the Trade Show at Lusaka's
InterContinental Hotel was a sure winner.
To catch some of the Congress action and
attractions, see our magazine's 11 pages
of photo
archives
plus our
AWARDS
page
and comments by key participants and
presenters.
To
drum up advance interest in "The Real
Africa," Zambia's National Tourist Office
staged a USA Road Show, aided by ATA's
Southern California, Atlanta, Washington
and New York chapters. These venues helped
ensure a large, enthusiastic attendance at
the event's launch in Lusaka. At the
Congress opening address, Zambia's
President, Hon. Levy P. Mwanawsa (right)
was upbeat about tourism's potential,
echoed by the theme "Ethno Tourism: A key
to sustainable development and job
creation." In this positive vein, he
stressed the importance of increasing
tourist flow from North America to a wider
range of African destinations. The
President welcomed all ATA delegates at a
sunset reception in the spacious gardens
of Government House.
Photo (top): ATA delegates taking a time
out to catch the spray at Victoria Falls.
Above:
President greets delegates. Left: H.E.
Martin Brennan, U.S. Ambassador to Zambia;
Ms. Mira Berman, Executive Director, ATA;
Hon. Zakia Hamdani Meghji, Minister of
Natural Resources and Tourism, Tanzania,
and ATA President; H.E. Levy P. Mwanawasa,
President, Republic of
Zambia.
H.E.
Martin Brennan, United States Ambassador
to Zambia hosted ATA delegates at the
beautiful embassy complex in Lusaka. He
too expressed confidence that, if managed
properly, tourism can be a catalyst to
better infrastructure development and
conservation. He believes that tourism
should be seen as more than just an income
generator, but as a tool for transforming
the world into a global village. Brennan
was pleased to announce that the U.S.
government will provide $9 million for
natural resource management in Kafue
National Park and Zambezi-Chobe area,
including a program for training Africans
in tourist services allocation because it
does not only consume but generates
resources and wealth." His Co-Chair, H.E.
Prof. Mwelwa C. Musambachime, Zambia's
permanent representative to the United
Nations tackled the timely topics as
moderator for "Community-based Tourism as
a Driving Force," which focused on
cross-ministerial and intergovernmental
measures for fostering sustainable
development.
ATA
President Accentuates the Positive
Why
does Africa continue to attract business
and tourism despite negative influences,
empty rumors empty chit chat from the
media's talking heads?
"Hosting
the congress in Zambia is testimony to
Africa's stability in the face of current
global conflicts and the (tourism)
industry's weakened situation, " said ATA
President, Hon. Zakia Hamdani Meghji,
Minister of Tourism and Natural Resources
for Tanzania. "We are all here because we
are optimistic about the future of global
travel, specifically to the continent of
Africa. ATA member countries, representing
most of Africa's major tourism
destinations, are recognized by the more
sophisticated traveler as among the
world's most safe and stable countries to
visit at this time," Meghji continued.
Photo
: Hon. Meghji (above) with IIPT President
Louis D'Amore. Below: Mira Berman, Hon.
Patrick Kalifungwa, Hon. Zakia Meghji and
Gaynelle Henderson-Bailey, 1st Vice
President, ATA.
Continuing
on a high note, ATA Executive Director
Mira Berman of New York spoke of industry
partnerships with the World Tourism
Organization, United States Tour Operators
Association, International Ecotourism
Society, American Society of Travel
Agents, Corporate Council for Africa,
Association of Retail Travel Agents,
RETOSA (Southern Africa) and SATH
(Handicapped Travelers). Berman touched on
key ATA projects, such as Bermuda's
African Diaspora Heritage Trail, and
Africa's Second IIPT-ATA Peace through
Tourism Conference in early December,
2003.
Zambia's
Partnership in ATA, SADC and
RETOSA
With RETOSA playing an active role in
promoting tourism from North America to
Southern Africa's 14 nations,
it
is
significant that the ATA Congress in
Zambia set the stage for other key events.
One of the most important venues of the
year is the (SADC) Heads of State Summit
in August. Africa Travel Magazine's SADC
Summit edition features a 32-page Zambia
Tourism insert featuring Congress
highlights and
photos.
The
Zambia supplement will be expanded in
future issues as ATA strengthens its bonds
with the tourism industry in Zambia, a
staunch supporter since 1981.
Banking
on Success
The Development Bank of Southern Africa
(DBSA) hosted the inaugural dinner, where
the bank's Executive Manager J.H. de
Botha, stated, "The DBSA recognizes the
essential contribution tourism can make
towards economic and social development
and the alleviation of poverty. Our
services to the sector can be grouped into
five categories ... finance, agency
services, consultancies, technical
assistance, information and knowledge,
with projects spread throughout South
Africa and the Southern Africa Development
Community (SADC) countries. We remain
committed to tourism infrastructure
development in support of improving the
quality of life for the people of Southern
Africa." Photo: Mira Berman, Hon. Patrick
Kalifungwa, Mr. J.H. de Botha and Hon.
Zakia Hamdani M
Continued
on next
page:
Road
shows Held in South Africa
As its deliberate
marketing strategy, Zambia National
Tourist Board has this year been
conducting road shows in key source
markets. The recent road show was held in
August 2006 in South Africa (Johannesburg
and Cape Town) and Namibia (Windhoek).
South Africa is one of Zambia's leading
tourist source markets.
The objectives of
the road shows are to increase the levels
of awareness among the travel trade in the
markets and to link the Zambian operators
with the foreign tour operators selling
tourist destinations.
ZNTB attended the
road shows with 10 companies from the
private sector namely Holiday Inn, Alendo
Travel, Safari Par Excellence, Sun
International
Dreams,
Zambian Airways, Mulungushi Village
Complex, Wilderness Safaris, Protea
Hotels, Mulungushi International
Conference Centre and Rovos Rail. Cape
Town and Johannesburg attracted 88 travel
trade attendees each while Namibia Other
road shows have been held in Australia,
USA and Canada.
Maramba Cultural
Village in the tourist capital,
Livingstone, is progressing well with
phase 1 nearing completion. The cultural
village which will consist of an art
gallery, open air theatre, 9 model
villages and a 200-people capacity
conference facility is being funded
through the Poverty Reduction Program
(PRP). The village is located next to the
Livingstone showgrounds. In an interview
with the Provincial Cultural Officer Mr
Vincent Kamwanya, he said that the
construction of the cultural village began
in March this year and phase 1 consisting
of the open air theatre is expected to be
completed in November 2006. The open air
theatre consists of a dancing arena with a
seating capacity of 450 people. The other
facilities of the village will be
completed under phase 2 & 3. Mr
Kamwanya said Government policy is to have
cultural infrastructure in all the
provinces and so, this initiative is by
the Ministry of Community Development and
Social services through the Department of
Culture (whose mandate is to promote
culture and art) in compliance with the
policy. It is envisaged that when the
cultural village is fully operational,
both local and foreign tourists will be
privileged to sample Zambia's rich
cultural heritage through art, music,
dance and food.
The Japanese
Market
Zambia National Tourist Board will be
attending the JATA World Tourism Congress
and Travel Fair to be held in Tokyo, Japan
from 21st to 24th September 2006. JATA
World Tourism Congress & Travel Fair
comprises two separate but complementary
events. The JATA WorldTourism Congress is
a marketing conference while the Travel
Fair features a dedicated day for
exhibitors to meet one-on-one with the
Japanese travel trade and consumers to
showcase their travel offerings and appeal
directly to potential Japanese travelers.
of the Tumbuka people of Muyombwe District
in Northern Province of the Nkoya people
of Chief Mutondo Kanongesha. of the Bemba
people of Chief Puta of Chiengi District.
of the Bisa/Swaka/Lala people of
Mkushi.
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