Has Zimbabwe’s tourism regulator discovered a new way to improve business and accountability or a new revenue stream through on-the-spot penalties?
by BERNARD CHIKETO
FOR AN industry that trades on warm welcomes and jaw-dropping beautiful landscapes, Zimbabwe’s tourism sector has always had a slightly edgy relationship with rules.
For years, operators of hotels, lodges, and safari camps have been known to let licences lapse, guest records go missing, and renovation plans proceed without a nod to the authorities.
The Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA), the state body responsible for licensing and oversight, has traditionally responded with warnings, reminders, and the occasional threat of legal action—none of which produced much urgency.
No longer.
A new flier, circulating among tourism operators this month, announces that the ZTA has introduced “spot fines” for a range of infractions.
The schedule is admirably specific.
Operating without registration will cost a facility $200 per month, backdated for up to two years. Late submission of a renewal or new application: $100.
Making unapproved alterations to a designated tourism facility: a steeper $500.
Failure to display regulatory licences where both law enforcement and clients can see them: $100.
Failure to submit statistical data to a designated tourism officer: another $100.
Failure to keep guest records: $100.
And for facilities that do not meet minimum standards, a flat $100 penalty applies.
The flier’s closing admonition leaves little room for ambiguity: “Compliance is not optional.”
At first glance, the move has a certain logic.
Zimbabwe’s tourism industry has been recovering fitfully from the twin blows of the covid-19 pandemic and the country’s broader economic instability.
International arrivals in 2025 reached roughly 75% of pre-pandemic levels, according to industry estimates, with Victoria Falls and Hwange National Park drawing the bulk of visitors.
For a destination that competes with Botswana, South Africa and Zambia for safari dollars, a reputation for shoddy or unlicensed operators is bad for business.
Spot fines, which can be levied immediately without the drag of court proceedings, are a common tool in many regulatory regimes—from parking enforcement to health inspections.
The more worrying issue is enforcement.
Zimbabwe’s regulatory agencies have a long history of using discretionary powers to extract rents rather than to uphold standards.
Handing officials the authority to levy spot fines on the spot—without a hearing, without an independent appeal mechanism mentioned on the flier—is a recipe for abuse.
A tourism officer with a grudge or a quota to meet could easily find a missing guest record or a misplaced licence in any facility, however well run.
Nor is it clear what happens to the money.
The flier says the fines are “introduced” but does not specify whether they flow to the state treasury, the ZTA’s own budget, or some informal pool.
Transparency matters.
The ZTA would do well to publish quarterly reports on how many spot fines were issued, for which infractions, and how the proceeds were used.
There is also a deeper irony. Zimbabwe’s tourism industry faces far more existential threats than misplaced licence displays.
The country’s persistent power cuts, potholed roads, and unreliable water supply do more to deter repeat visitors than a missing statistical return.
And the reputation of the sector has been battered by reports of poaching, land invasions near protected areas, and the heavy-handed treatment of journalists covering environmental issues.
A spot fine for failing to submit data feels like rearranging deckchairs on the Titanic.
Still, the ZTA deserves credit for its efforts to impose order.
The flier is at least clear, and the penalties are published, which is more than can be said for many informal demands that operators face. But the authority should resist the temptation to see spot fines as a solution to underfunding.
If the goal is compliance, the answer is simpler and harder: consistent, impartial enforcement that catches the big violators as well as the small ones. Otherwise, Zimbabwe’s tourism operators will learn to treat spot fines as just another tax on survival.
Do you have a story to share? Email bchiketo@gmail.com