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George Maponga in Masvingo

The Minister of State for Presidential Affairs responsible for Implementation of Government programmes Jorum Gumbo has warned communities in Chiredzi North to closely guard their livestock from straying into Buffalo Range Airport.

Speaking during a tour of the airport currently undergoing rehabilitation by Government to improve the runway, Minister Gumbo challenged the local National Assembly representative Cde Roy Bhila to join hands with communities around the airport to stop livestock from straying into the facility.

Cattle freely moving across the runway at Buffalo Range Airport in Chiredzi.

This, he said, will improve safety at the facility which is currently being facelifted by Government through the District Development Fund (DDF) under a programme to improve state of airports.

The on-going rehabilitation is geared to ensure that Buffalo Range Airport is geared to accommodate bigger and more aircraft as the nation anticipates recovery of the tourism industry with the world slowly recovering from the effects of the Covid-19 global pandemic.

Buffalo Range is the main gateway to the Lowveld by air and is a key enabler for an ambitious programme to revive tourism in the wildlife-rich area.

Livestock is a cause for concern at the airport with cattle repeatedly straying into the airport precincts in search of pastures.

Buffalo Range links the world by air to the world-acclaimed Gonarezhou National Park which is part of the famous Great Limpopo Trans-frontier Park, arguably the largest wildlife habitat in the world.