Flights to Victoria Falls, in Zimbabwe are set to rise by 5% following an agreement between the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Zimbabwean government.
The multi-year tourism advisory programme is called the Zimbabwe Destination Development Programme (ZDDP, 2020-2023).
"IFC is providing advisory and technical support to help Zimbabwe increase air access to the Victoria Falls area. The project, which is underway and will initially run for two years, provides technical assistance to government stakeholders to study the feasibility of new routes and frequencies, and to support government's engagement and negotiations with airlines," IFC was quoted as saying by New Zimbabwe.com.
"The aim is to recover pre-Covid-19 flights and bring new flights to Victoria Falls, and Harare, targeting a 5% increase on pre-COVID-19 seat capacity by the end of the project," said IFC.
The ZDDP programme is targeting revenue recovery for the tourism industry in Victoria Falls as a key indicator of success.
The corporation said the project also provides technical guidance on best practices on improving an air transport enabling environment, incentives to airlines, and route marketing.
Airports Company of Zimbabwe acting chief executive, Tawanda Gusha said the agreement was in line with their strategic thrust of developing Victoria Falls as a regional tourism hub.
IFC is a member of the World Bank Group and the largest global development institution focused on the private sector.
