28 Apr 2024

Government is committed to creating an enabling environment to grow and diversify the country’s tourism products.

President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi said to date, a number of legislative and policy reforms continue to be undertaken by government to create an avenue for active private sector involvement in the tourism space to improve the livelihoods of Batswana.

The President was speaking  at the 39th edition of Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana (HATAB) conference in Maun on Friday.

He said some notable developments included review of the Tourism Policy, and the development of the National Tourism Strategy and Master Plan of 2023-2033 to ensure actualisation of the Tourism Policy.

The strategy, he said would guide Botswana’s tourism development in the next 10 years. Within the strategy, the country has been delineated into eight tourism development areas (TDAs) with specific tourism products that would be developed to diversify the country’s tourism products, he said.

President Masisi further said implementation of the 10 year strategy would enable broadening of the tourism base and product diversity.

“This will also usher in the improvement of other key areas of economic growth, such as nature conservation, culture and heritage as well as agriculture, thereby promoting value chain growth,” he added.

He said development in the eight TDAs would also set aside land parcels for individuals, communities and companies to invest in and develop business ventures. Notable tourism ventures that will be pursued include cultural tourism as well as Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exposition (MICE) markets.

He also underscored the need to bring local authorities on board saying according to the Tourism Policy, they were best placed to provide leadership, advocacy and the necessary planning to ensure that communities and local business get the most out of tourism and minimise negative impacts.

In addition, Dr Masisi further noted that to be successful on the tourism front, the industry needed to collaborate with local authorities to promote conservation, environmental protection, cleanliness and public safety to allow patrons to go out freely at any time of the day.

“We also wish to see close collaboration between local authorities and businesses, including the tourism sector to curb noise nuisance,” he said.

He reiterated that it was also necessary to introduce regulations to preserve Botswana’s historical buildings by reviewing the building code to guide developers who wish to restore the properties.

The current practice of demolishing buildings whether it is public or private buildings without due regard to heritage preservation, he said needed to change because it was not in the best interest of tourism growth and diversification.

President Masisi hailed  the HATAB conference saying it held a great promise to catalyse the tourism industry to greater heights.

Dr Masisi said the tourism sector played a critical role in the country’s economy as the second largest revenue earner and contributor to the national Gross Domestic Product.

He said the hospitality sector contributed approximately 23 000 jobs which represented 4.1 per cent of all formal jobs as per the 2023 Multi Topic Survey conducted by Statistics Botswana.

According to the survey, 94 per cent of these employees are citizens.

“These figures bear testimony to tourism and hospitality as being among the leading creators of jobs in Botswana.  

It is evident that in the post-COVID-19 recovery period,  the share of formal private sector jobs to total employment continues to grow and now stands at 35.4 per cent and if we include other non-government jobs, then the figure is higher,” he pointed out.

Dr Masisi called on the private sector to create even more job opportunities for the nation particularly young people and said government recognised and appreciated the private sector as an important actor for economic growth and job creation. Ends