Government Response to the Challenges of Covid-19 pandemic on the Tourism Industry: Towards an Effective Policy Framework for Inclusive Growth in the Future

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated tourism economies globally including that of Zimbabwe. Based on the trend analysis, international tourist arrivals will decline by between 70% and 87% for Zimbabwe leading to a loss of $1.3 trillion in tourism receipts for the full year 2020 and part of 2021. The aim of this study is to examine the interventions that the government of Zimbabwe has undertaken to cushion the tourism enterprises with a view of ensuring inclusive future growth of the sector. The study used a qualitative research paradigm with key informants being drawn from the private sector stakeholders in the tourism industry. The internet was used to access a wide range of secondary data from international organizations, governments, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the private sector globally, in the African continent and in Zimbabwe. The study revealed that government’s interventions were inadequate to ensure future inclusive growth of the sector. It further showed that some enterprises in the sector will be unable to restart business after the pandemic. The study concluded that the current policy frameworks in place are inadequate to ensure future inclusive growth of the sector. It is recommended that the government puts in place a set of robust policy frameworks and programmes that will facilitate the restart and recovery of the tourism enterprises and hence ensure future inclusive growth of the sector.