Livingstone Tourism Association (LTA) says it is working towards upgrading the existing infrastructure in the tourist Capital this year.
Association Chairperson Rodney Sikumba told Money FM News in an interview that there is need to better the infrastructure from the current state they are in so as to make them attractive to tourists.
Mr. Sikumba stated that this is in a bid to ensure that when tourists visit any tourism site in Livingstone, they should be able to find facilities that are user friendly.
And Mr. Sikumba said the only challenge the tourism sector is currently facing is that the United Kingdom (UK) and United States (US) which are the industry’s biggest source markets seem to be having the second wave of Covid-19, while South Africa has introduced tighter restrictions, hence affecting international tourist arrivals in Zambia.
“We are now trying to look at how we can work around our existing infrastructure, better them from the current state they are in, so that whenever you visit a tourism site in Livingstone, you should be able to say this is actually a tourist attraction. You should be able to find facilities that are user friendly.”
“Now the only challenge that we have on the international front is that our source market UK and the US seem to be having the second wave of Covid-19, South Africa has heightened restrictions, so obviously this will be a dilemma on the tourism industry,” Mr. Sikumba stated.
Meanwhile, Mr. Sikumba reiterated that the Association is currently promoting domestic tourism by encouraging locals to travel, so as to keep the sector afloat.
“We now only have ourselves as tourists, so if we do not get it right as ourselves then we will have a big problem. So we just have to make sure that the locals do travel, so you will be able to see that even our market will be targeted at local products. But for now we just hope that the vaccine will be readily available,” he added.