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Oliver Kazunga

Senior Business Reporter

PORTUGUESE restaurant, Chicken Hut is partnering various organisations in the region to promote the growth of Zimbabwe’s tourism sector following the opening of borders through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
As a result of the anticipated volume of trade and movement of people across Africa, Chicken Hut is partnering various regional organisations to foster travel into Zimbabwe through the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in Harare.

Some of the partners include airlines such as Airlink as well as Carsafe National Airfreight.

The AfCFTA, which was operationalised in January 2021, seeks to streamline customs procedures, reduce bureaucracy, and harmonise technical standards to ease the movement of goods across the continent’s borders.

Under the AfCFTA agreement to which Zimbabwe is a signatory, the continent also seeks to eliminate tariffs on 90 percent of goods traded between member States.

The objective is to foster regional economic integration and boost intra-African trade by 53 percent by next year, with the potential to create 30 million jobs and lift 30 million people out of poverty.

Chicken Hut marketing director Ms Celia Mhlanga said: “Chicken Hut wants to be aligned with the new Africa where we are a single market.

“As a brand with a huge following on social media platforms, we want to drive a campaign so that more people from the region come to explore our capital city.

“We will bring influencers from various countries on Harare familiarisation tours, which we believe will raise awareness of our brand and also grow Zimbabwe’s tourism sector.”