Story by Oleen Ndori, Foreign Desk Editor
ZIMBABWE is hoping to leverage tourism and culture to penetrate the Japanese and other international markets and deepen economic benefits at the Expo2025 Osaka.
From young and old, the Zimbabwe Pavilion at Expo2025 Osaka, which kicked off this Sunday is drawing huge crowds using virtual reality that allows visitors to experience what Zimbabwe has to offer, ranging from the Victoria Falls, Hwange National Park, and the Devil’s Cataract, along with music and dance that represents the country’s diverse culture.
The global showcase where over 150 countries are taking part and expecting nearly 28 million visitors, provides fertile ground for selling Brand Zimbabwe while drawing more investors and traders into the country.
The country’s envoy to Japan, Ambassador Stewart Nyakotyo says Zimbabwe is at Expo2025 Osaka to connect with the world and to showcase the offerings from the country in various sectors.
“We have high expectations that this expo will result in more strategic partnerships being reached by Zimbabwe with other nations in the world. And already, we have seen the interest from various people who have come to our pavilion.
“We have made enquiries in the area of investment, in the area of tourism, and also the experience that they are having here is a wonderful experience. As you know, Zimbabwe is a tapestry of culture, and wildlife and also generally the people are more welcoming and friendly. And so the experience that the people are getting here brings them to Zimbabwe, even though they are several thousands of kilometres away in Japan,” he said.
Zimbabwe Pavilion Commissioner General, Mr Allan Majuru believes by immersing visitors into the experience of Zimbabwe, the country can use tourism and culture to penetrate the global tourism market while shaping the correct narrative about Zimbabwe.
“What we decided as a team is we wanted to make sure that our pavilion is engaging. And remember, we are here from February up until October. So we need to make sure that we generate content that keeps our clients engaged. So we went virtual.
“So what we’re doing is we are making people experience Zimbabwe, but away from Zimbabwe. As you can see, when we show Victoria Falls, even our company’s agency, they feel like they’re in the falls. They feel like they’re in the company. So that’s the whole idea,” he said.
“We also wanted to be engaging because we want people to feel the warmth of Zimbabwe. We have got a team here that is also engaging the visitors to make sure that they also know that we are a very nice people. I think our key selling point is our people, our warmth and the way we engage with people.
“That is our key focus when we came to this fair and what are your targets? So we have put targets for tourism, we have put targets for trade, we have put targets for investment. But one key thing I think where we are going to struggle to measure is the learning experience and also the issue to do with the branding perspective.
“Remember, we are here to tell our story and we want to tell it the way we want to tell it so that people know Zimbabwe for what it is. But for trade and investment, I think we are targeted to from this fair there’s a 10% jump and even for tourism,” Mr Majuru added.
Visitors who have been to the Zimbabwe Pavilion are equally impressed.
“The experience was so awesome and I want to visit Zimbabwe soon,” one said.
“It felt like I was really at Victoria Falls and wow that was a great experience,” another said.
“I am from the USA and I have been to Niagra Falls but experiencing Victoria Falla through VR was thrilling.”
So over the next six months, Zimbabwe will be part of the over 150 countries participating in the global Expo, which is themed: “Designing future societies for our lives,” with the country participating at the world expo under the theme: “Beyond the Limits,” with its exhibition focusing on Investment, Trade and Tourism promotion.
