Ngoni Dapira

THIS year’s inaugural decentralized Sanganai/ Hlanganani/ Kumbanayi World Travel Expo being hosted by Manicaland Province has come with a stroke of luck as maiden daily commercial return flights from Harare to Mutare are expected to land at the former Rhodesian military airbase, Grand Reef, from next week Monday to Sunday.

Grand Reef Aerodrome is located near Odzi  township about 37 kilometres west of Mutare with a runway of 1200m x 30m. This has been a much awaited pipe-dream for locals since 2017. Multi stakeholder campaigns for direct air connectivity to the eastern border city were initiated by the local business community spearheaded by Mutare real estate businessman Joseph Sanhanga through his company Ferro Consulting Pvt (Ltd). But finally, now the dream is alive.

This was revealed last week Thursday in Mutare during a stakeholders tour of projects being undertaken in preparation for the international tourism exhibition. The Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development Honourable Felix Mhona, the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Hon Barbra Rwodzi and the Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs and Devolution Hon Advocate Misheck Mugadza , among other senior government officials, were being given progress reports during the tour.

The official opening ceremony and exhibitions of the Sanganai/ Hlanganani/ Kumbanayi World Travel Expo will run from next week Wednesday up to Friday at Mutare Sports Club. However international buyers are expected to arrive in the country today (Friday) and tour various tourism destinations in the Eastern Highlands starting from tomorrow until next week Tuesday when they return to Mutare for the official opening  and exhibition events. This prestigious event is the country’s premier international tourism exhibition which is organised by the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA). It is being hosted by Manicaland Province for the first time as part of a government initiative to decentralize tourism promotion.

Conventionally called the Sanganai /Hlanganani World Travel Expo, as this year’s hosts, Manicaland dubbed it ‘Kumbanayi’, a Manyika word meaning get-together. This is a new tradition which will see the host province each year coming up with its own third ethnic synonym added on to the expo’s original designation. More than 409 exhibitors and 95 buyers, including 83 internationals and 12 locals, have confirmed their participation at this year’s tourism expo running under the theme, “Devolving Sustainable Tourism Development-Our Future.”

In his report on the Grand Reef aerodrome, Air Zimbabwe chief executive officer, Edmund Makona, said they acquired two planes, a 12 seater caravan and an ATR 42-500 aircraft. He said they gave the manufacturer specifications of the Grand Reef airstrip topography for recommendations on the best aircraft they could use and the ATR was best recommended.

“We (Air Zimbabwe) are here to ensure that we provide the right equipment for the right reasons. We looked at the ATR 42-500. As Air Zimbabwe we are known for safety which is the overriding factor in aviation. We did engage the manufacturer of the ATR for the operational performance of this aircraft for this specific aerodrome and we got a nod. The lessor bringing the ATR 42-500 was also engaged and through their processes and operations performance figures they also found out that this is the right aerodrome for the specific issues we are looking at,” said Makona.

According to Wikipedia the ATR 42-500 is a twin-turboprop regional aircraft designed and built by ATR (Aérospatiale-Alenia Regional Transport), a Franco-Italian manufacturer. It is a popular choice for small regional airlines because it can carry up to 48 passengers and operates from short runways.

To ensure a successful operation, Air Zimbabwe has collaborated with key stakeholders including the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ), Airports Company of Zimbabwe (ACZ), National Handling Services (NHS) and ZTA.

To enhance customer convenience, the airline has also partnered with PayNow to facilitate online payments for pre-booked tickets. Makona revealed that there will be a demonstration flight from Harare-Mutare and the ATR plane is expected to land at Grand Reef aerodrome at 6:30am tomorrow (Saturday). After that demonstration flight the public pilot flights will start on Monday till Sunday (8-14 September). Oneway tickets from Harare/Mutare are going for $85 whilst return tickets are going for $150.

“We have already made sure these flights are now in our system and we want to also take this opportunity to link Mutare with Victoria Falls through a Victoria Falls –Harare flight then Harare- Mutare flight. We however want this to become a permanent feature. In our minds we are also looking beyond Mutare. This is the right place to link Mutare with Beira because we believe there is traffic to sustain that route. Also linking with Buffalo Range and Masvingo,” said Makona.

Adding, “We are testing the market, understanding demand and exploring the long-term viability of this Mutare route. If the demand is there, Air Zimbabwe will be ready to make it a permanent feature of our network,” he said.

ACZ mechanical engineer, Edmond Chinyadza, who is the project manager for the Grand Reef Aerodrome project, said from the first assessment they thought the runway surface was up to standard but after bush clearance works by the contractor they realized the vegetation cover had encroached an area of almost three (3)metres into the runway.

“What we have done with the contractor in terms of reclamation, we have managed to cut all the undergrowth on the edges of the runway then we are going to re-establish the runway edges which will maintain the 30 metres width of the runway declared for this runway. The 1200m distance is still available but a bit of work needs to be done which to-date we have done 50 metres on both ends. We also need to put another asphalt layer to meet the standards of ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation),” said Eng Chinyadza in his project brief.

The contracted company, Gap Construction, started construction works in July. They are building a new terminal building, new apron facility, doing the reclamation of the runway and taxiway and refurbishment of some of the old housing buildings which will be used by immigration and security officers stationed there as offices including a police post.

 

The company is also doing renovations at Mutare Sports Club in preparation for the expo where they have put up a tarmac road, built a new cricket pavilion media centre, refurbished the clubhouse building and the recreation centre, put new rooftops on all the buildings and revamped the rundown tennis court, changing (shower) rooms and toilets, turning them into modern facilities. Gap Construction project engineer, Eng Shadowlit Ndou said they are on track and should be able to meet the deadlines of renovations at the venue and at Grand Reef for the temporary use of the airstrip before CAAZ certification.

CAAZ director general, George Mashababe, said as the regulators they are putting a waiver for the use of Grand Reef Aerodrome just for the tourism expo, but more works will need to be done to ensure compliance with national and international standards, particularly those set by ICAO.

“As CAAZ our role is to certificate the facility, so we do not interfere with the preparation operations, but our experts have been around. We stand ready to review the works that would have been done. What we are going to do is not certification of this aerodrome, but to seek if the aerodrome can meet just the minimum requirements so that we give it a waiver for use in that window for the Sanganai expo. Then going forward we have to take the aerodrome through the normal five phase certification. But what we can say for now is we are ready on the margins for the ATR plane to land. It can get in but more works will need to be done after the Sanganai expo,” said Mashababe.

Transport Minister Mhona said the revival of the Grand Reef Aerodrome project shows that the whole of government approach works after they joined resources with the Ministry of Tourism. He said before this, they were struggling to mobilise resources alone as a Ministry.

“I was here three years ago and it was a bushy area. We were struggling with ACZ to mobilise resources to start works, but wonders with the Sanganai expo we have managed to get funds from the Ministry of Tourism. We are also grateful to His Excellency President Emmerson Mnangagwa for availing the resources. So we are very grateful as a Ministry,” said Min Mhona.

In October 2021, Fly City Air, became the first commercial passenger chatter flight that introduced the  Harare- Mutare flights at Mutare Aerodrome in Sakubva. Using Cessna model 12-seater planes operated by Falcon Air, the chatter flight was 30 minutes. However, the 950m runway at Mutare Aerodrome is not easily navigable for planes bigger than the Cessna, unlike at Grand Reef Aerodrome, which is why Grand Reef was always considered the best option, whilst the bigger airport in Mutasa is being worked on, which has space for a runway of 2000m to accommodate larger aircraft.

Min Mhonha added that the former Rhodesian military airbase will now be turned into a master piece airport as the Second Republic government pushes to change its colonial historical narrative as a Rhodesia stronghold airbase. He said the airbase was used by the Rhodesian army to conduct ground and air attacks on bases and refugee camps in Mozambique. Grand Reef has however since been demilitarized and is now open to the public.

Rhodesia’s Grand Reef Air Base was a large and strategic Forward Airfield (FAF) which became one of the key operational centres for Rhodisian forces. “Grand Reef Airbase carried out cross-border raids on guerilla camps in Mozambique and Zambia, including the gruesome Chimoio attack of 1977 where thousands of our innocent souls perished. Grand Reef was also used as a recovery base for the Rhodesian troops who took part in the Chimoio attack. We however want to change the narrative and build a master piece airport in honour of our people that perished from the air attacks,” said Min Mhona.

Adding, “The mountainous area makes us not able to expand our runway to around 1700m as we would have wanted but the good news is that there will be a bigger airport in Mutasa where there is a bigger space, which we are almost done with the feasibility. We won’t be abandoning Grand Reef as other planes will land here just like what we are going to do at Charles Prince Airport in Harare. Charles Prince Airport is going to be turned into the biggest airport in Zimbabwe whilst the Robert Mugabe International Airport will be for domestic planes,” said the Transport Minister.

Tourism Minister Hon Rwodzi thanked President Mnangagwa for allowing them to dream big as Ministers and supporting them, which is what is being witnessed by the whole of government approach to make this year’s inaugural decentralized tourism expo a splendor.

“As a sector that is contributing significantly to the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the country tourism can only be promoted through the accessibility of all the tourism attractions in the country which is why we are celebrating this milestone in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport as we refurbish Grand Reef and pave way for direct flights to Manicaland,” she said.

Minister Rwodzi said last year, tourism contributed 12 percent to the GDP overtaking agriculture due to the El Nino-induced drought and mining that was affected by the fluctuation of global prices. She said they chose Manicaland to host first because the Eastern Highlands needs to be promoted as the second best tourism attraction after Victoria Falls.

“This year, we are in Manicaland, and next year, we will be in Masvingo before moving to Mashonaland West. We want to promote our local destinations countrywide. Hosting the expo in Manicaland this year offers a unique platform to highlight the region’s natural beauty and economic potential as a sleeping giant with many matchless tourism attractions that just need promotion.”

Min Mugadza said as the resident Minister he is pleased with the infrastructure development projects coming to Mutare after years of lobbying.

“We are going to have two big functions this year which as you can see are already unlocking many developmental projects. We have the Sanganai Expo and the Zanu-PF Congress in October. The airport projects which will enable direct air connectivity to Manicaland and the Christmas Pass Bypass road project to decongest Christmas Pass were long overdue, but now we are on track and I’m grateful to Minister Mhona and Minister Rwodzi for pushing the whole of government approach to make this a reality and above all the visionary leadership of our President, His Excellency President Mnangagwa who is making all this possible. At Mutare Sports Club the venue for Sanganai Expo, we are almost at 100 percent complete and we should meet the deadline,” said Hon Min Advocate Mugadza.

Traditionally hosted in Bulawayo, the annual event brings together a wide mix of stakeholders, including local and international exhibitors, dignitaries and travellers.

For the past 17 years the event has been hosted at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Company’s fairground, the Zimbabwe International Exhibition Centre (ZIEC), in Bulawayo. The Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo is Zimbabwe’s premier event and offers a platform for networking and business partnerships with international tourism players.

The event is a successor of the Shanyai/Vakatshani, the Zimbabwe International Travel Expo (ZITE), which was held annually at the Rainbow Towers Hotel and Conference Centre in Harare. ZITE started off as a small expo in 1982 and grew over the years to become one of Africa’s leading tourism showcases by 2007.

Background

The pipe-dream for direct air connectivity to Mutare has been a topical issue for the past 10 years, especially from tourism operators and business lobby groups that complained to be losing out from competitors in other regions with direct air connectivity. It was only in January 2019 that meaningful progress was really seen after Mutare based real-estate businessman Joseph Sanhanga was given the green light to pursue inquests on the feasibility of developing the Grand Reef Aerodrome as a stop-gap measure by the then Transport Minister Dr Joram Gumbo. The unforeseen global covid-19 pandemic that started in 2020 however stalled all projects up to 2023, as all priority shifted to combating the pandemic.

It was only after 2023 that Government started revisiting some of the envisioned key projects like the Grand Reef Aerodrome that had been shelved due to the covid-19 pandemic. Sanhanga had already done the Bill of Quantities for the project and entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with CAAZ in 2019 before it was split into two entities, CAAZ and ACZ  in 2020. The agreement would allow Ferro Consulting to mobilise resources for the project in a Public and Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement then enter a built operate and transfer agreement. However, according to Sanhanga bureaucratic systems stalled things because of complications in getting the joint venture signed and this also frustrated the potential investors’ that were kept on-hold for too long.