It was important today to reproduce a story in the Daily Mail, United Kingdom, in which millionaire Australian businessman Peter Holmes à Court pays tribute to a friend who died in a train accident in Victoria Falls resort. NewsDay Editorial
The accident happened during Holmes à Court’s wedding when a National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) goods train rammed into the back of the tourist-laden tram — what began as a day of joy, ended in such heart-rending tragedy.
The story on The Centre Spread spells out the major themes affecting Zimbabwe tourism today.
Ironically, only a year ago, the resort town where this tragedy took place had been host to the biggest tourism indaba in the world — UNWTO conference — which was set to launch Zimbabwe as one of the most important tourism destinations on the globe. The country even won an award — which some say is from a dubious organisation — as a result of that event.
The train accident was a result, according to the NRZ, of a signal fault.
This points to the sorry state of the country’s infrastructure. It is not only rail infrastructure that’s in a deplorable state. Our roads too are known more for the carnage on them than for safe and enjoyable travel.
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Our national airline too, though it is said to be one of the safest in the world, has major issues to do with the age of the aircraft and ground infrastructure such as the runways, the signalling equipment and the perimeter fences which are sometimes breached by wild animals, endangering travellers
For Zimbabwe’s tourism potential to blossom, the infrastructure has to be fixed. The fall-out from the Victoria Falls accident is immense. It is important to note two events that immediately ensued. First, the injured, including the now deceased, had to be airlifted to South Africa for treatment. This implies that tourists have no confidence in our health delivery system. This will keep them away. Second, the wedding had to be transferred to Botswana. This, again, is a vote of no confidence which will be taken seriously by future visitors.
The accident couldn’t have happened at a worse time, involving a more cosmopolitan crowd. The passengers on the tram were from countries we court most for tourists — the United States, UK, the Netherlands and Australia. One of the injured tourists is an award-winning American photographer who has covered conflicts in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. It would be very interesting to note what he is going to say about Zimbabwe in the face of this tragedy.
One of the most important catchments for tourists in the near future will be the Zimbabwean Diaspora, especially those people that have found permanent homes elsewhere, but are nostalgic about this country and would like to reconnect and bring their friends to see their place of birth.
Such a one was the chief protagonist in the train crash drama, the quaintly named Peter Holmes à Court who has Zimbabwean roots. His father was born and bred in Bulawayo and went on to become the first billionaire businessman in Australia.
There is no doubt this bunch of tourists were the pick of the crop, just what any thriving tourism industry craves. The way forward is to act quickly to repair our dilapidated infrastructure. And also, to show we care when such tragedies happen. This was not apparent in the way government responded to the tragedy.