The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) in association with the Tourism Business Council of Zimbabwe (TBCZ) has introduced the Twalumba National Travel and Tourism Awards, whose debut ceremony was held last Friday at the Rainbow Towers Hotel and Conference Centre in Harare.babwe Tourism Authority in association with the Tourism Business Council (TBCZ) has introduced the Twalumba National Travel and Tourism Awards, whose debut ceremony was held last Friday at the Rainbow Towers Hotel and Conference Centre in Harare.
The awards were introduced to recognise and reward operational excellence in defined business areas in Zimbabwe guided by the business areas defined by the ZTA’s registration process. The event is meant to recognise and reward efforts and achievements in travel and tourism growth and development in the country.
Addressing the attendees at the inaugural edition of the event, the Minister pf Environment, Climate, Tourism Hospitality Industry, Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu explained the meaning of the wards’ brand name.
“I am certain that this important brand will soon be a name that will be symbolic with excellence and partnership in the service of travel and tourism in Zimbabwe. It is so befitting as Twalumba is a word borrowed from the Tonga people, whose heartland in the Zambezi valley is among the most important environmental, cultural and tourism assets that our country possesses. Twalumba means “thank you,” thus appropriate in every way for the purposes it now serves as an award scheme that does indeed say thank you to the people and organisations with exemplary profiles.
Turning to the award’s shape, Ndlovu highlighted that “the award itself is a stylised Zimbabwe bird rising to greater things and this too is entirely appropriate as it shows that we, as an economic sector and as a nation, are continuously on an upward trajectory, rising to the challenges and seeking out an even greater future.”
The minister expressed hope that the awards would be recognised internationally.
“As the award categories have been created to encompass all fields of endeavour related to travel and tourism, my hope is that the awards will inspire everyone to be their best and the impact of excellence will be felt by all our visitors be it local or international. I have no doubt that the Twalumba awards brand will be respected not just in Zimbabwe but across the world as an instrument that motivates the sector to be a beacon of excellence in Africa,” Ndlovu said.