The Sunday Mail
An aerial view of the proposed Satonga project
Victoria Falls is a divided town, a resort divided into three.
There are those who supporting the proposed Santonga project, those who are against it, and those who do not care one way or the other.
Those in favour call it a theme park; and those opposed call it a zoo.
“We cannot have a zoo in the middle of such a trans-frontier game reserve,” the antagonists are arguing, to which the proponents of Santonga have a ready answer: “this is not a zoo but an edutainment park.”
The Municipality of Victoria Falls, which owns the turf on which the Santonga battle is being fought, has taken a back seat, limiting itself to a cautiously-worded Press statement two weeks ago in which it said “new consultation processes are being conducted” and these should be respected as recommendations will be made to the relevant authorities.
Those arguing against Santonga ask why it has taken long for the project to take-off if the environment impact assessment was approved way back in 2007.
They add that for a project of this nature to proceed, full public consultations have to take place, which they allege didn’t.
On being queried why they did not consult the public and/or interested persons before approving the project, the Victoria Falls Municipality says it is not taking questions regarding Santonga.
But what, who and where is Santonga?
According to Africa Albida Tourism (AAT), the project proposers, Santonga is an US$18 million investment that will change the face of Victoria Falls with an education and entertainment-themed park.
Explained Dave Glynn, the AAT chair: “Santonga will tell the story of Victoria Falls, in all its aspects — the history, culture and the flora and fauna.
‘‘There will be shows throughout the day, and lots of interaction, with wildlife and hi-tech elements.”
If all things hold equal for AAT, then Santonga will open mid-next year on 80 acres adjacent to Victoria Falls Safari Lodge. The safari lodge is AAT’s flagship investment.
The interaction with wildlife using hi-tech elements has raised the hackles of dissenters, who say there is no need for a zoo in the middle of the Kazungula-Zambezi (Kaza) Game Reserve.
“Victoria Falls is a World Heritage Site and once we build a zoo in its midst, then we are compromising that status and who will blame Unesco if they withdraw that status from us?
‘‘We will only have only ourselves to blame,” argues Tinosi Bhebhe, a tourism player in the resort town.
Another, who requested not to be named, says the biggest challenge is that the project will block the corridor animals use to move from Zambezi National Park to the Zambezi River for water.
“Once that corridor is blocked, the animals will have no option but to come through Victoria Falls town centre to access the river, raising the already existing human-animal conflict in the town.”
But AAT is adamant the project will not interfere with the movement of animals: “There are two substantial game corridors that exist on either side of Santonga, and those are being completely preserved, so there will be no blockages of those corridors”.
Further, those arguing against Santonga say the project will result in job losses in the tourism industry, as tourists will fly into Victoria Falls and head straight for the one-stop theme park while ignoring other activities.
“To make matters worse,” adds Bhebhe, “when tourists come to Africa, they don’t come to see animals in a cage or zoo, they want to see animals in the wild … so why cage the animals?
“And we have the added bonus of having the most beautiful natural waterfall in the world, and you don’t mess with such a natural piece of beauty by adding hi-tech gadgets. If a zoo has to be built, it should be built in America and Europe, not here in Africa . . . Or if AAT is so keen on building such a project, they should go to places here in Zimbabwe where there are no wild animals and build it there, not here.”
AAT avers that Santonga will create 150 direct jobs and 1 500 indirectly, while adding value to the Victoria Falls tourism experience.
That, the project proposer argues, will increase revenue inflows into Victoria Falls by at least 40 percent.
Bhebhe insists Government should be encouraging investors like AAT to look into other opportunities that add value to Victoria Falls, like construction of a tourism school, a convention centre or a movie house.
“It is quite telling that we are such a prime tourist destination, in fact tourism is the single biggest driver of life in Victoria Falls, yet we do not have a college of tourism.
‘‘Isn’t that wrong? And why is it we don’t have an international convention centre built here in Victoria Falls?
“Why is it every time there is a big conference everything has to come from Harare, tents, chairs, cutlery, when we could build our own conference centre?
“After those game drives, don’t tourists want to watch a movie or two? So why is it that we don’t have a single movie house in Victoria Falls?
‘‘Instead some people are busy pre-occupying themselves with the construction of a zoo. We don’t need a zoo here,” fumes Bhebhe.
Others urge the municipality, working with Government, to build international sports facilities for cricket, rugby and soccer, so that Victoria Falls become a more rounded international destination.
“We have favourable weather down here in Victoria Falls, no cricket matches will be washed off. Imagine Brazil, Spain, Nigeria, Japan, all those countries coming for their training camps here in Victoria Falls? After all we are already hosting big name celebrities here so we need to add on to that,” suggests a tour operator.
Others are reluctant to comment, saying the issue has taken on a political hue.
Barbara Murasiranwa, the leader of the Victoria Falls chapter of the Zimbabwe Council of Tourism, says her hands are tied and she cannot comment.
It is the same with Trythings Mutyandasvika, the president of the Hospitality Association of Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls chapter.
Questions sent to Caroline Washaya-Moyo, spokesperson for the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority, are yet to be responded to.
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Walter Mzembi is also yet to respond to our questions.
