Mozambique: Nyusi challenges private sector to continue investing in tourism - AIM
File photo: Domingo
Mozambique emerged at Africa’s Travel Indaba fair, recently held in South Africa, as the third most-searched tourist destination in Africa after Kenya and Botswana, as a result of reduced costs and more flexible border visa issuance, in addition to the entry of new airline operators.
This information was provided by Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Domingos Artur, during International Tourism Day ceremonies in Maputo on 27 September, where videos on tourism attractions, exhibitions and cultural activities were on offer.
However, the great demand for information about Mozambique is still not accompanied by actual travel by tourists, which has prompted the government to ask a South African company to conduct a tourist survey to help understand the phenomenon.
Andrew Hedley, managing director of Amadeus, a South African online company specialising in tourism research, spoke about what has been verified through this electronic platform.
Hedley said that tourists from South Africa, the United States of America (USA), Spain and Lisbon had used the Amadeus platform to search information on hotel services in Mozambique prior to traveling to the country and causing the peak in reservations seen in August, July and September of this year.
“The numbers show us that, with the exception of South Africans, tourists from the northern hemisphere seek information about Mozambique during their vacation, which coincides with the summer season in the country,” he said.
He admitted that there were cases in which the search for information about Mozambique did not translate into actual visits, but stressed that among African countries, Mozambique was the target of more searches about the hotel industry, transportation and others sectors.
“But, to our amazement, that number of searches does not translate into reservations. More people research Mozambique than actually make reservations and come. We still do not know the reason for this,” Hedley said.
He said that the hotel industry, the government, the private sector and key stakeholders should consider joint strategies to address this scenario and turn interest into actual visits because, he said, the discrepancy was not justified by the data.
By Idnórcio Muchanga
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