Zimpapers Logo

Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
DUMAZULU Safaris managing director Mr Chris Dube is a beneficiary of the land reform programme and attracts international tourists to hunt and engage in photographic tourism at his ranch in Gwayi, Lupane District in Matabeleland North province.

He is among the few blacks in the country who have successfully penetrated the tourism sector which was largely dominated by whites.

Mr Dube engages international travel agents to market his ranch which is teeming with lions, leopards, giraffes, buffalos, elephants and other small animals.

Clients from as far as Russia, Poland and Belarus among other countries come to his ranch for trophy hunting and others end up visiting destinations such as Hwange National Park and the mighty Victoria Falls.

Trophy hunting is the shooting of animals largely for prestigious reasons.

Mr Dube owns more than 8000 hectares of land, close to Fatima High School.

“So, we are in both consumptive and non-consumptive safari.

Consumptive tourism is when we are talking about hunting and the non-consumptive is when we are talking about photographic safaris, walking safaris, game drives, taking people for tours in parks and outside parks where we take tourists to areas like Victoria Falls,” said Mr Dube.

He said they market the Zimbabwean destination through international agents, although this has been difficult due to sanctions.

Mr Dube said the tourism business is capital intensive hence not so many people are able to break into it as it requires off-road safari vehicles.

“This has been the main business for the white community.

The blacks started coming in after independence but not in big numbers because it was not really open to Africans as such.

People did not know about the safari business except whites,” said Mr Dube.

He said the land reform was a turning point as it saw blacks venture into the sector, which is one of the mainstays of tourism.

Mr Dube said while Americans used to dominate the clients who come to conduct trophy hunting in the country, there has been a shift as eastern Europeans constitute most of his clients.

“I have returning clients.

I had actually opened the East European market which is around Russia, Belarus and Poland.

Those are the clients that I had last year who were meant to be coming this year.

As we are sitting right now, we are waiting for them to reconfirm whether or not they are going to make it.

We are looking at the crisis in Ukraine and Russia,” said Mr Dube.

He said trophy hunters are always willing to pay handsomely for the animals they want to shoot.

Mr Dube said trophy hunting is regulated by authorities while animal ranch owners cannot individually grant licences for hunters to kill lions.

“It is a sport and that is why they call it trophy hunting.

How does it work?

As a producer, someone who has a farm that has animals, on an annual basis we get an allocation of hunting quotas that is coordinated by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority which directs us on the number of animals to hunt,” said Mr Dube.

He said individual game ranch owners are not licensed to kill lions as this is only given to a region seasonally.

This means the whole region is given a certain number of lions that can be killed and during some seasons they may be told not to kill at all to ensure that they do not become extinct.

Mr Dube said while hunting is lucrative it is equally dangerous as mishaps can occur during a hunt.

Mr Dube said only mature male animals are killed during trophy hunts.

He said the rules of the sport do not allow hunters to kill animals while in a car and targeted animals should be given an opportunity to escape.

“But when a target has been made, a hunter must hit vital organs such as the liver and heart.

If you fail to hit vital organs the animal can escape and as far as rules are concerned, a hit animal is considered killed even if it escapes.

That would be the loss to a hunter,” he said.

Mr Dube said animals such as elephants, buffalos, kudus, giraffes, eland among others are hunted during the day while lions, leopards, hyenas are hunted during the night.

“Leopards, lions and hyenas are hunted using bait.

You shoot an impala and hang it on a tree, the leopard comes and feeds, you set up a blind and you can shoot.

That also applies to the lion as well,” he said.

Mr Dube said he can get up to US$$40 000 from a hunting package.

“The average cost for an elephant hunt are in the region of US$22 000 to US$30 000 that being an inclusive package.

When we are talking about an inclusive package, we are talking about the trophy fee, the daily rate which covers the client’s welfare.

Another high paying animal is a lion, you will combine it with a leopard and a buffalo you can sell in the region of US$30 000 to US$40 000,” said Mr Dube.

He said animal trackers and observers, someone employed by the ranch owner to assess a hunt will constitute the hunting team as some of the trophy hunters can be hard to deal with.

Mr Dube said a hunt takes between seven and 21 days and during that period the game ranch owner is expected to provide meals for the client and hire a professional hunter to accompany the trophy hunter.

“For instance, I’m an outfitter (ranch owner) not a professional hunter.

A professional hunter accompanies that client and also make their daily charges.

The outfitter must meet his expenses in terms of food.

So, in any package, the operation costs are about 40 to 45 percent of the package,” he said.

Mr Dube said trophy hunters even if they are professionals have to be accompanied by a local one as they are legally not permitted to hunt on their own.

He said if by mistake the local professional hunter shoots before the client does, he will be expected to pay for the killed animal.

He said trophy hunting is also regulated by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and ranch owners are required to register to be granted a permit to conduct each hunt and the same papers are signed by Zimparks.

“It is done to authenticate if the deposit came outside the country and this is done to protect the hunting industry and when they are satisfied then you can export (the trophy)” he said.

A hunter takes the horns of an animal that is shot, which constitutes the trophy that is exported.

Mr Dube is working towards maximising tourism services provision and has established a 10-bed and 150-seater conference centre named Gwayi Valley Leisure Resort.

He said the leisure resort is not just targeting the international markets but locals as they also explore the country.

“The opportunities are there.

Matabeleland North is a tourism-based economy.

We are looking at Hwange National Park, you are looking at Victoria Falls and we are also looking at the developments that are coming up within the Gwayi Valley and particularly Gwayi-Shangani Lake construction.

With our proximity to the lake, we are looking forward to opportunities that may arise including establishing fisheries, boat cruises, and game drives around the lake,” he said.

Mr Dube said his vision, determination and professional skills have sustained him for 20 years in the tourism business as he trained in hotel and catering. — @nqotshili