The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) Friday announced that the Ethiopian Airlines is the official carrier for its international buyers and journalists who will be attending the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo.
The expo will be held from 13 to 15 October at the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre.
It is a platform for partnerships and connects industry players under the same roof with buyers, agents, journalists and potential travellers. The exhibition forms part of the Tourism Recovery Plan with the aim of achieving a US$5 billion industry by 2025.
The Partnership:
The Ethiopian Airlines will cater for foreign inbound visitors who will be coming for the tourism expo.
It will be flying from Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom via Addis Ababa, to Joshua Mqabuko International Airport. The airline was already flying into Harare and Victoria Falls.
ZTA chief executive officer Ms Winnie Muchanyuka welcomed the development saying:
The ZTA is pleased to partner with the Ethiopian Airlines as the official International Airline partner for Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo from 13-15 October 2022. This expo, the first after prolonged suspension due to the Covid-19 pandemic, is a business opportunity for all travel and tourism players, Ethiopian Airlines included. We are obviously delighted with the vote of confidence in both the expo and Bulawayo as a destination.
In an exclusive statement to Sunday News, Ethiopian Airlines said:
We are pleased with our partnership with Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo through the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority. Ethiopian Airlines is the official carrier for the international buyers and exhibitors. Ethiopian Airlines has enjoyed a mutually beneficial partnership with Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo over the years and continues to do so.
It is known that the past years have been challenging ones, the continued effects of the pandemic have shaken the industry and the economy. Despite all the adversary factors, Ethiopian Airlines has continued to fly to Harare uninterrupted, demonstrating our perseverance and devotion to our customers and to the country in challenging time.
The Zimbabwean government has in recent years introduced a number of incentives in a bid to boost the tourism industry to become a US$5 billion industry by 2025.