Times Of Swaziland: SWAZI RALLY SPECIAL EDITION THEMED ‘VAKASHA EKHAYA’ LAUNCHED

SWAZI RALLY SPECIAL EDITION THEMED ‘VAKASHA EKHAYA’ LAUNCHED
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Delisa Thwala on 26/07/2021 08:40:00


MBABANE – Eswatini Tourism Authority has launched a special edition of the
Swazi Rally this year, themed ‘Vakasha Ekhaya’ which is aimed at stimulating
local tourism.
Due to the unexpected outbreak of COVID-19, this year’s event will not be
taking place in its traditional format.  Riders Ranch will be unlocking Eswatini
by encouraging all emaswati led by the biking community to explore our beautiful
kingdom by riding/driving to different local tourism attractions across the
country on August 28-29, 2021. During the launch, Minister of Tourism and
Environmental Affairs Moses Vilakati said to participate, interested individuals
will be required to register with Riders Ranch and pay a paltry entry fee of
E150.00 per person. Vilakati further said 100 per cent of proceeds would be
donated to the Woman Farmer Foundation, an organisation that empowers women and
girls through agriculture, funds to go towards assisting famers affected by
COVID-19.
“Participation will be to all emaswati, everyone is welcome. The various
points of departure will all be Riders Ranch at different time intervals to
allow for strict physical and social distancing. All registered participants
will be offered routes within Eswatini’s five tourism regions, which offer a
varied and different set of attractions and experiences,” said Vilakati. In
addition, he said, each region participants will be required to stimulate the
tourism economy by spending some money on anything. It could be accommodation, a
gift, a meal or a drink.
“Everyone is encouraged to document their experience on their social media
pages with the hashtags: #VakashaEkhaya, #SwaziRally2021 and #WFF2021,”said
the minister. In closing, Vilakati applauded  the  innovative efforts made by
the team at Riders Ranch. He said it was a good challenge for emaswati to engage
and participate in this campaign. The minister said the size of the country
provides good opportunities to experience different tourism products in a short
space of time.
value
Worth noting is that Swazi Rally brings over 10 000 visitors into the country
with an economic value of 35 million over a three day period. Due to COVID-19,
the ranch will be affected, however, innovation for domestic tourism has been
initiated and local support would be appreciated as said by the Riders Ranch
team. All participating stakeholders were appreciated for welcoming the
innovative idea. The stakeholders include the ETA, Police service, EPR, Manzini
RA, local hotels and, the government of Eswatini. “It was the
first-of-its-kind initiative, but positively welcomed with active public
participation,’’ closed Vilakati.