By The Citizen

South Africa’s loss is Zimbabwe’s gain as far as the latter country’s burgeoning tourism and hospitality sector is concerned.

Zimbabwean hotel, lodge and restaurant employees – documented or not – who have either fled South Africa or sought repatriation to escape xenophobia, are returning home at exactly the time their country needs them most, say industry sources in Victoria Falls and Harare.

The trickle of trained hospitality staff back to Zimbabwe is expected to become a flood; twin consequences of the eruption of xenophobia in South Africa and significant ongoing investment in the local sector over the past few years, says Tinashe Nyamudoka.

Nyamudoka returned to Harare three months ago after spending the past 18 years, most of those as sommelier in some of Cape Town’s top hotels and restaurants. He branched out during the Covid pandemic into blending and bottling his own wines, Kumusha (“Home” in his native Shona language).

“I sell a lot of wine here in Zimbabwe but I’m also consulting for restaurants – mostly front-ofhouse and service – that are actively recruiting. They are targeting Zimbabweans who gained experience in South Africa,” he says.

“These are brands with which many South Africans are familiar… La Parada, Mozambik, Doppio Zero and Cubana. Tiger’s Milk opened in Harare last week and most of the staff were Zimbabweans coming from South Africa.”

There are, says Nyamudoka, several new hotels being built in the capital and especially in and around Victoria Falls.

Several new hotels being built in the capital

“There is a new Hyatt in Harare and one that is due to open soon in Victoria Falls.”

Construction of new hotels is on the up, he says, adding “there is rapidly growing demand for beds and investment in hotels is an area where Zimbabwe has lagged behind its southern African neighbours for a long time”.

Longtime Victoria Falls-based tourism and hospitality consultant Dave Cooper says his clients have watched events surrounding the March and March anti-illegal immigrant campaign unfold with an unfortunate sense of relief.

“The industry here took a knock with Covid and there was a skills drain particularly to South Africa. When businesses reopened, they found it difficult to source the required levels of expertise,” says Cooper.

“The positive thing for those who migrated and have recently been forced home is that a lot of hotels have opened in the interim and the skills they honed in South Africa are in huge demand.”

Zimbabwe’s hospitality sector booms

The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), Tourism Trends and Statistics Report for 2025, noted a 10% growth in overall visitor numbers last year compared to 2024, despite a drop in holidaymaker numbers from Europe, Oceania and the Middle East.

This was offset by a 16% increase in tourists from other parts of Africa, with those from South Africa contributing less than 28% to the total. Among these was a large contingent of Zimbabweans coming home to see friends and relatives.

Cooper predicted the growth trend of visitors from other parts of Africa, especially Southern African Development Community countries, would accelerate as these retaliate against perceived South African xenophobia.

“South Africa won’t see the tourism effects of their recent actions immediately, but the backlash will happen and it will be significant,” he said.

The ZTA report says tourism receipts last year “surpassed 2019 levels, reaching 104% of pre-Covid earnings”.

$194 million investment surge

The report added that investment in tourism last year amounted to $194 million (about R3.1 billion).

Zimbabwe tourism sources say this will at least be matched in the next few years as private concessions in the Matusadona, Zambezi, Mana Pools and Hwange national parks are developed to international standards.

“The real issue isn’t nationality, it’s skills,” says Brett Tungay, national chair of the Federated Hospitality Association of SA.

“If experienced workers leave because they no longer feel welcome or if the environment becomes uncertain, there is a risk of losing skills that cannot be easily replaced.

“This can affect service standards, the transfer of skills to younger staff and – ultimately – the visitor experience.”