A TOTAL of 350 exhibitors and 100 buyers have registered to be part of the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo 2022, as reparations for the annual event gather steam.
The expo is scheduled for the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre in Bulawayo from 13 to 15 October. It will be the first in-person meeting since Covid-19 was declared a pandemic in March 2020.
The Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo is widely acknowledged as a signature event and an ideal meeting place for developing quality business relationships and establishing strategic business partnerships with world tourism players.
Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) expressed excitement over the return of the event after previous editions were disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic which negatively affected the tourism industry as a whole.
“We are ready to welcome all our partners from across Africa and beyond to register to attend Sanganai/Hlanganani – World Tourism Expo to #MeetInZim, #VisitZimbabwe and indulge with international hosted buyers and media from key source markets on yet another physical B2B event,” said ZTA corporate affairs manager Godfrey Koti.
So far, exhibitors from South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and DRC have confirmed attendance.
Buyers from Zimbabwe’s traditional source markets that include the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, China and Dubai are expected to attend.
“We’re very delighted to announce that we have had a very positive response from the international community, particularly the critical source markets that we deal with. We shall be having about 100 quality buyers,” said Koti.
“With the pandemic it has been a tough time for tourism but we are excited that the sector is on the rebound on the back of strategies being implemented by the various sector players. We are expectant that the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo will also help us to reposition destination Zimbabwe into a world-class marketing platform that will also, in turn, give us the requisite receipts for the tourism sector as we chase our goal of reaching a US$5 billion economy by 2025.”
Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe president Farai Chimbi encouraged businesses to jump onto the bandwagon of promoting MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions) tourism-related activities.
Chimbi urged businesses to showcase their tourism products and services on the industry’s biggest stage while also acquiring knowledge about different source markets.
“We are super excited of the return of the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo in Bulawayo. We look forward to the tourism flagship expo giving us the opportunity to showcase the best of warm hospitality and products,” Chimbi said.
Over the years, the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo has become a premier tourism exhibition held in Zimbabwe each year and has attracted exhibitors, buyers, investors and media professionals from the local, regional and international markets.
It has also played an important role in promoting Zimbabwe’s tourism industry.–STAFF WRITER.
