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Victoria Falls Mayor Councillor Nkosilathi Jiyane yesterday said sub-committees had been established with roles having been laid down and what was left was clarity and a mandate from the Government.
Addressing LOC members attending the preparatory meeting here yesterday, Clr Jiyane said next week the committee will be given full powers.
“We now have LOC in place and on 19 January, the inter-ministerial committee is descending here to officially launch LOC and the sub-committees.
“The sub-committees are in the transport, health, environment, security, infrastructural development, resource mobilisation, standards and marketing, and the media, information and publicity falls under standards and marketing committee.
“That process will be done by the Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet, Retired Colonel Christian Katsande, who is coming here with the inter-ministerial committee,” he said.
Clr Jiyane said while the venue of the convention centre had been identified, preparations should also focus on the residents, taxi drivers and other stakeholders.
“Everyone in Victoria Falls should be involved in this event. Residents, taxi drivers, should know how to speak, should know how to receive our visitors and that can be done if they are taught how to up their standards and that is why we are incorporating the residents’ association so that they are part and parcel of this national event.”
He said the event was going to change the face of Victoria Falls as new, state-of-the-art restaurants, shops and other places of interest would be constructed.
In October last year, Zimbabwe and Zambia won the bid to co-host the 2013 UNWTO Assembly, to be held in Victoria Falls and Livingstone. The general assembly is the supreme organ of the UNWTO and its ordinary sessions are held every two years, and attended by delegates from the full and associate members, as well as representatives of the business council.
The event will bring delegates from 176 countries to the Victoria Falls. It will be the largest world gathering of countries in Zimbabwe since the Commonwealth Heads of State and Government Meeting held in the resort town about two decades ago.
This will be the second time that Africa has played host to the event after Senegal in 2005.
The UNWTO consists of 155 countries, seven territories and more than 400 affiliate members representing the private sector, educational institutions, tourism associations and local tourism authorities.