REPORT OF THE AUDITOR-GENERAL ON THE PERFORMANCE OF THE TOURISM SECTOR IN ENSURING AN INCREASE IN THE LENGTH OF STAY OF INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS.

Zambia stands out as one of the prime tourism destinations in Africa offering a wealth of natural tourism assets such as waterfalls, lakes and rivers which hold close to 35% of Southern Africa’s total natural water resources, and wildlife protected areas occupying about 32% of the country’s total land area. Zambia is divided into two tourism circuits, namely the Northern and the Southern Tourism which are highly endowed with the wealth of natural tourism assets (Office of the Auditor General, 2020).

The tourism sector is an important contributor to the country’s economic development through job creation, foreign exchange earnings, contributions to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and other economic facets. The Seventh National Development Plan (7NDP) recognises tourism as one of the sectors for economic diversification and job creation due to its potential to generate revenue, foreign exchange earnings and employment. Research conducted by Tabetando in 2020 showed that in 2019, Zambia’s tourism industry contributed 7% of GDP (USD 1,701 million) and 7.2% of total employment (469,000 jobs) whereas international visitors spent USD 849 million, representing 10% of Zambia’s total exports.

It is evident that Zambia’s tourism sector has the potential to contribute to the country’s economy, however, the sector faces a number of impediments which are highlighted within the Seventh National Development Plan such as the lack of a comprehensive national tourism plan; underdeveloped tourism-related infrastructure; limited investment in the tourism sector by both local and foreign investors; limited tourism product offering range and scope; inadequate tourism promotion and marketing; low participation by locals in direct and indirect tourism development; and Zambia being perceived as high cost.

The sector has also been one of the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. During the first half of 2020, the country received only 290,244 international tourists compared to 634,757 during the same period in 2019 representing a 56.3% decrease (Government of the Repulic of Zambia, 2020). Out of 257 lodges and camps, 165 have closed with over 7000 jobs likely to be lost. In addition, 165 tourism businesses in Livingstone and Zambia’s protected areas face bankruptcy (Tabetando, 2020). In order for Zambia to fully benefit from the tourism sector, there is the need for urgent action to address the challenges the sector faces.

The Office of the Auditor-General in accordance with Article 250 of Constitution of Zambia (Amendment) Act No. 2of 2016, Public Audit Act No. 13 of 1994 and the Public Finance Management Act No. 1 of 2018 conducted an audit to assess the extent to which the measures put in place by the Ministry of Tourism and Arts had promoted an increase in the average length of stay of tourists visiting the Southern and Northern Tourism Circuits in order to improve the performance of the tourism sector. This document seeks to provide an analysis of the Auditor General’s findings and measures put in place by Government to restore growth and diversify the tourism sector going forward.

DOWNLOAD HERE:

https://pmrczambia.com/wp-content-uploads-2021-09-report-of-the-auditor-generals-on-the-performance-of-the-tourism-sector-in-ensuring-an-increase-in-the-length-of-stay-of-international-tourists-pdf/