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Covid-19 inspires Zimbabweans to rediscover natural wonders

Published

3 years ago

November 30, 2021

VicFallsLive

BY KUDZAI MAZVARIRWOFA

The distant braying of a zebra carries over the crisp breeze.

An endless expanse of greenery meets a body of deep blue water, glimmering silver where the sun kisses it.

Visitors of all ages turn their faces up to the warm rays, revelling in what they had once taken for granted: their country’s natural beauty.

“The thing that Covid has certainly brought home is that people need to escape urbanization,” says Gary Stafford, owner of Kuimba Shiri Bird Park, a wildlife refuge that has become a popular day trip from Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital.

“They need to get out of the house, they need to get sunshine, they need to get air, they need to feel the grass beneath their feet.”

When Zimbabwe closed its borders in March 2020, the influx of tourists drawn to its waterfalls and wildlife — more than two million international visitors per year — dropped to zero overnight.

Pandemic travel restrictions threatened to cripple the tourism industry, which had accounted for eight percent of the country’s gross domestic product and supported 393,500 jobs, according to a 2017 report from World Travel and Tourism Council, a research organisation based in London.

Local citizens, however, have softened the blow — taking advantage of bargains at luxury destinations and increasing their visits to low-cost attractions within driving distance, eagerly seeking out safe recreation opportunities and a change of scene after being confined indoors during lockdown periods.

“They don’t have to travel far and, because of the size of the area, do not feel crowded, thereby able to relax and enjoy time out in the open,” says Ken Worsley, director of the Mukuvisi Woodlands Nature Reserve and Environmental Education Centre, a 270-hectare park in the Harare suburbs where people come to walk their dogs, run, cycle, ride horses and spot wild animals.

From 2016 to 2019, Zimbabwe’s tourism industry earned more than US$1 billion a year, largely from foreign visitors.

With the country’s borders closed for most of 2020, it earned only US$369 million last year, says Godfrey Koti, head of corporate communications for the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority.

At Victoria Falls, one of Zimbabwe’s biggest tourist attractions and a Unesco World Heritage Site, the number of visitors plummeted nearly 70 percent, from 493,698 in 2019 to 155,366 in 2020.

In response, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority launched the ZimBho campaign in October 2020, a marketing initiative encouraging domestic travel and awarding prizes for related social media posts.

The campaign has been a success, Koti says.

“There has been a sharp increase in domestic tourism,” he says, also crediting “the absence of international tourists and a general increased appetite in travel.”

Paul Matamisa, head of the Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe, agrees, but notes that overall attendance remains significantly lower than usual.

“The level of domestic travel has been welcomed by the travel and tourism sector, but it does not, of course, replace the drop in international arrivals,” he says, adding that local visitor numbers also fluctuate due to periodic tightening of lockdowns in response to Covid-19 case numbers.

Parks and recreation centres near Zimbabwe’s capital, less dependent on foreign visitors to begin with, seem to have experienced the greatest gains.

At Kuimba Shiri Bird Park, just a one-hour drive west of the capital, urban families can try birdwatching, horseback riding, boat rides, fishing and other lakeside activities.

Thirty years since he opened the park, Stafford says the pandemic has prompted a surge of first-time visitors.

“We are getting a lot of people who ordinarily have not come out here, who have been in their little circle in the city, coming out to the bird park,” he says, “which is quite nice.”

At Chinhoyi Caves, a national park two hours northwest of Harare, managed by Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, visitors come to enjoy scuba diving, cave tours and a lion park.

“Of course, during the lockdown, the numbers reduced drastically, but they have since started picking up — especially locally,” says public relations manager Tinashe Farawo.

To further boost ticket sales and other visitor spending that helps fund wildlife management efforts, the authority has encouraged special offers such as the ZB Bank “Stay now, and Pay Later” programme, which allows the bank’s account holders to delay payments.

Through a package deal, Innocent Mozeka says he paid US$145 for a two-day trip to Zimbabwe’s Eastern Highlands — less than half of what it would typically cost for travel, accommodation, food and activities.

“Crisp air, lush green forest, rolling landscapes,” he says, enthusiastically describing his vacation.

“I wouldn’t mind staying for a week because of the serene atmosphere and beautiful environment, fresh air, receptive community.”

Zimbabwe resumed international flights in October 2020, and reopened its land borders in December 2020, but visitor numbers remain well below pre-pandemic levels.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development estimates that countries with low vaccination rates, such as Zimbabwe, will see a 75 PERCENT reduction in inbound tourists in 2021.

The Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe is counting on domestic levels to keep rising, during and beyond the pandemic period, Matamisa says.

“It is to be hoped that the thrust of encouraging domestic tourism will be sustained when things get back to normal,” he says.

“And it is also hoped that people who travel abroad extensively in normal times may undertake more local travel as a result of ‘rediscovering’ their own country for holiday purposes.” – Global Press Journal

National

Coal train in flames: NRZ locomotive damaged in fire incident

Published

3 weeks ago

April 16, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY WANDILE TSHUMA

A National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) locomotive suffered significant damage after catching fire while transporting export coal to Zambi. The incident occurred between Kalala and Matetsi sidings, resulting in the explosion of the locomotive’s fuel tanks.

According to the NRZ press statement on Monday, “A National Railways of Zimbabwe locomotive suffered some damages after it caught fire this afternoon while transporting export coal to Zambia.” Fortunately, the crew members on board managed to escape unharmed.

The NRZ responded swiftly to the incident, dispatching a rescue train with crews to the site. The team successfully extinguished the fire, preventing further damage. However, the locomotive itself sustained considerable damage.

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, with investigations currently underway. “Investigations are already underway to establish the cause of the fire and the amount of damage to the locomotive,” the NRZ statement read.

In the community

Human-wildlife conflict claims 18 lives in Zimbabwe’s first quarter

Published

3 weeks ago

April 16, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) has reported a disturbing trend of human-wildlife conflict in the country’s first quarter of 2025. According to the authority, 18 people have lost their lives, and 32 others have been injured in encounters with wildlife.

ZimParks spokesperson Tinashe Farawo revealed that the authority received 579 cases of human-wildlife conflict, which they managed to respond to promptly. The incidents have also resulted in significant livestock losses, with at least 53 cattle and 85 goats killed by wildlife.

The districts most affected by these incidents include Binga, Hwange, Kariba, Chiredzi, Hurungwe, Nyaminyami, and Mbire. ZimParks has been working tirelessly to raise awareness about wildlife behaviors and effective preventive measures in these areas.

In response to the crisis, ZimParks has translocated 129 animals back into protected areas and eliminated 158 animals deemed problematic.

“We encourage communities to continue reporting incidents to ZimParks Problem Animal Control numbers and local leadership, such as Councillors, Traditional Leaders, and Rural District Council Authorities, to ensure that we preserve lives,” Farawo urged.

The significant increase in livestock losses, with cattle deaths rising from 18 to 53 and goat deaths from 21 to 85 compared to the same period in 2024, highlights the growing challenge of human-wildlife conflict in Zimbabwe.

ZimParks’ efforts to mitigate the conflict include community initiatives to educate people on managing wildlife encounters effectively.

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Tens of Thousands in Zimbabwe Go Hungry as the Rains — and US Aid — Hold Back

Published

4 weeks ago

April 4, 2025

VicFallsLive

Tanayeishe Musau eats baobab porridge after school at his home in Mudzi, Zimbabwe, where the dish has become a daily staple amid worsening drought and hunger. Once a simple supplement, baobab porridge is now a primary meal for families like his, following widespread food shortages and the suspension of international aid.

BY LINDA MUJURU

This story was originally published by Global Press Journal.

Agnes Tauzeni stands on her parched field. She is a mother to two children, and is expecting another. But now, in a time that might otherwise have been joyful, her hopes wither like the struggling crops before her.

Three times she’s gambled on the rains; three times the sky has betrayed her. Her first two plantings failed. The soil was too dry to sustain life. Though her third attempt yielded a few weak shoots, they offered little promise of a meaningful harvest. El Niño-driven droughts have disrupted once-reliable rains, leaving Tauzeni’s family and many like hers struggling to feed themselves.

“I am always hungry,” Tauzeni says.

She worries about the health of her unborn child, based on how little nutrition she consumes herself.

Adding to this, food aid, previously funded by the US Agency for International Development, halted suddenly in January. That transformed what was already a struggle into a desperate battle for survival.

The food aid ended when US President Donald Trump, on his first day in office, issued an executive order that paused nearly all US foreign aid, most of which was administered by USAID. That agency is now all but defunct.

Food aid in Zimbabwe was an ongoing area of funding for USAID. In November 2024, the agency announced $130 million for two seven-year programs, implemented by CARE and Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture, that would provide food aid and other related support to areas of Zimbabwe most in need. The programs, which stopped, were just part of an ongoing slate of activities designed to help Zimbabwe’s neediest people.

About 7.6 million people in Zimbabwe — nearly half the country’s population — need humanitarian assistance, according to a 2025 UNICEF report. Of those, nearly 6 million, like Tauzeni, rely on subsistence farming.

Through the support of organizations with funding from USAID, people previously received cereals, edible seeds, oil and food vouchers.

“A sudden withdrawal can put the entire community in a dire situation,” says Hilton Mbozi, a seed systems and climate change expert.

Tauzeni recalls that her community used to receive food supplies such as beans, cooking oil and peanut butter to help combat malnutrition.

When Tauzeni got married in 2017, her fields promised abundance. Her harvests were plentiful, and her family never lacked food. Now, those memories feel like whispers from another world. The past two agricultural seasons, those harvests have been devastatingly poor.

With an empty granary and dwindling options, Tauzeni’s family survives on the same food every day: baobab porridge in the morning and sadza with wild okra in the evening. But Tauzeniworries whether even this will be on the table in the coming months.

“The little maize I have, I got after weeding someone else’s crops, but that won’t take us far,” she says.

Tauzeni says a 20-kilogram (44-pound) bag of maize costs US$13 in her village, an amount out of reach for her. Her only source of income is farming. When that fails, she has no money at all.

Hunger like Tauzeni experiences is widespread. Some families now eat just once a day.

Headman David Musau, leader of Musau village where Tauzenilives, says some people in his village did not plant any seeds this season, fearing losses due to the low rainfall. The government provides food aid inconsistently, usually 7 kilograms (15 pounds) of wheat per person for three months.

“It’s not enough, but it helps,” he says.

But without any other food aid, survival is at stake, he says. “People will die in the near future.”