02 May 2017

Nata is the gateway to the Okavango Delta, Kubu Island, Chobe, Francistown, Zimbabwe, Zambia and is also part of the international and local transportation network that passes through it to reach every angle of the country.

It entails eminent lodges and guest houses that are well known worldwide and conveniently surrounded by the Nata Bird Sanctuary, Makgadikgadi Salt Pans, Pelican Lodge, Nata Lodge, Elephant Sands and other natural beauties that provide greatest tourism attraction.

As a stopover for many travellers going to Kasane, Maun and Francistown, sajourners find it hard to find a suitable parking and a hiking station. Mostly, visitors wait behind the restaurant and the filling station to get the transport to their destinations.

During bad weather conditions, it is  hard to travel from Nata as there is no organised location for ranking.

This village has three filling stations that the buses and other transporters, some of which  carry large volumes of goods use as their parking, disembarking and boarding place that is surely not safe for none of them. This place has been environmentally eroded.

Nata-West councillor Mr Mbanga Mbanga made an appeal in an interview with BOPA recently that there is a need to regulate human and vehicle traffic in Nata as it is a stop village by provision of bus rank.

Mr Mbanga stated that public transport in Nata operated all night and therefore it was vital to have an organised point where passengers would know where to go to board than roaming around in filling stations looking for transport.

He added that buses loaded and unloaded passengers throughout the night , making it necesary to have  a bus rank as a development as the village is rapidly developing.

Moreover, he said people need to embark in a safe place and this will enable them to know the public transport well with their times like in other places.

Furthermore, he said the development will promote the informal sector such as small business that will be situated near where most of the people pass. Moreover, he said the household economy would improve as informal sector was something to subsist on.

“People survive through stalls, therefore stalls will be available which can boost the household income even council revenue authorities’,” he said.

Nata Kgosi Rebagamang Rancholo added that residents and visitors in Nata should know where to get their buses and taxis well with their times.

Bus ranks are privileged developments as they have stalls that can benefit small businesses and most of resident’s livelihood will improve as it will be a way of meeting people’s need and reduce the rate of unemployment.

He stated that it was imperative for the bus rank to be available in the village as people would not wonder off for the reason that they wanted to travel.

He added that bus ranks were safer places for people, where their goods would be protected and they would travel in any weather condition.

For the taxis, he said it would increase their return as they would know where their customers were than driving around homes looking for customers and as for the people it would be easy for them to get the right taxi to where they wanted to go than waiting for long for the right taxis.

Ester Garebamono, who is a small business owner, said there was a gap in their market because of lack of organised place for their business.

She said small business sales in Nata were low because they were not located in the right places where most people embarked and disembarked.

She further said people embarked and disembarked in different places and most of the visitors did not see them because of lack of organized place which they believe they are their target market.

“We are relying on visitors and residents who are travelling as we sell soft products so if there is no market place here there is no how we can grow our businesses,” she said. ENDS