Reforms programme to boost tourism industry in Zomba
Authorities in Zomba are implementing various projects under the Public Sector Reforms Programme aimed at revamping the first capital city of Malawi into a national heritage to attract more tourists and improve revenue collection.
This was disclosed on Monday during a media tour to various departments in the city organised by the Public Sector Reforms Programme under the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC).
One of the implementers, Zomba City Council (ZCC), has lined up six reforms projects such as urban governance and decentralisation, enhancing revenue collection, environmental management and climate change adaptation, cultural heritage improvement and ecotourism as well as encouraging research and innovation.
Speaking in an interview, ZCC chief executive officer Dyson Jangiya said as one way of improving revenue collection, the council introduced e-ticketing in 2017 and has since seen a 53 percent revenue growth from K69 million in 2016/2017 to K106 million in the 2017/2018 financial year.
He said: “We want to turn the historical background of Zomba into a national pride. More people should be coming to this city to appreciate the historical places and buildings. For a long time we have not been utilising these national treasures for the betterment of Malawi and with these reforms, we are now on track in achieving our projects.”
According to National Herbarium and Botanic Gardens of Malawi director general James Seyani, they are putting up new structures and rehabilitating the buildings as well as modernising the recreation centre to create an attractive environment for tourists.
Emmie Galafa, director of technical services at OPC’s Public Sector Reforms Management in the unit said she was impressed with the efforts undertaken by the two institutions which she said were in line with the commitments they made to her office.
President Peter Mutharika launched the Public Sector Reforms Programme in 2015 to improve performance and service delivery.
