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Victoria Falls. At least 3 000 delegates, among them ministers of tourism from 186 countries, captains of the tourism industry, tourist wholesalers and other stakeholders are expected to attend.

What makes the General Assembly special is the fact that this is the first ever time it is being held in Southern Africa and the second ever time it has been held on African soil after Senegal hosted it in 2007. With this in mind, we doubt very much if the business community would want to miss out on such a historic gathering where opportunities of clinching business deals in various sectors abound.

It is for this reason we question the wisdom of the organisers of the Harare Agricultural Show for running the agricultural showcase during the same period we will be hosting the General Assembly.

The show society has slated August 23 to 31 for the agricultural exhibition, a period that coincides with the hosting of the General Assembly that runs from August 24 to 29 in Victoria Falls.

We do not think, as a country, we needed any other event to coincide with the General Assembly as the world’s focus would be on the UNWTO. Even the attention of the media during that time will be on covering the UNWTO to ensure the general assembly is beamed across the world.

This is not to say that the annual agricultural showcase is of little significance, but rather, we feel it should have been held before the General Assembly or after so that it is given all the attention it deserves by the media, business community and people in general.

It is not a secret at all that the local and international media focus would be on Zimbabwe and Zambia as it relates to the General Assembly and common sense dictates that there would be no counter-attraction during this period.

Organisers of the agricultural showcase to be held at the Harare Exhibition Park can obviously argue that not everyone will be in Victoria Falls during that time as not everyone can afford to drive or fly to the resort town.

They may further argue that the world does not necessarily stop because we are hosting the General Assembly as there are other people who could still attend the agricultural showcase.

But for us what is at stake here is the profile of the General Assembly, in terms of it being the first ever time it is being hosted in Southern Africa, particularly Zimbabwe and Zambia.

Apart from boosting the tourism industry, the UNWTO also affords us the opportunity to show the world that a wrong perception about us had been created by those opposed to our people-centred policies.

It is a time when Zimbabweans are expected to unite for one cause and prove to the world that peace and tranquillity exist and that the country is not on fire as has been portrayed by the West.

Already that peace is being seen as political parties go about holding their rallies and the same is expected during and after the elections.
We would have thought the show society would defer holding its exhibition until after the General Assembly.

Common sense will tell us that more exhibitors would be attracted to the General Assembly in Victoria Falls than exhibiting at the Harare Exhibition Park.
If the show goes ahead, it may end up being one for the kids to have fun and very little in terms of business by way of companies exhibiting there.

Hopefully, the show organisers did their homework and believe there is still value in having it run at the same time with the General Assembly.
Certainly, the media will be camped in Victoria Falls and even the pages of most newspapers will be devoted to coverage of the General Assembly and that could result in problems for the agricultural showcase to get publicity.