Nkhotakota District Council: Tourism Reform

Nkhotakota District is located in the Central Region of Malawi and has an estimated population of   395,897 people. The District is administered by a Council which is a branch of the country’s Local Governance Structures.

Nkhotakota District Council derives its mandate from the Local Government Act and the Decentralisation Policy primarily to make decisions on local governance regarding the city’s development.

In order to effectively execute its mandate, Nkhotakota District Council initiated a number of reforms as part of the Malawi Public Sector Reforms Programme that was launched by His Excellency President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika in 2015.

The Reforms Initiated by Nkhotakota District Council include: Tourism Reforms; Establishing of Agricultural Produce Markets; Development of By-Laws; Revenue Collection Reforms; Development of a Website, Effective and Efficient Use of council Business ventures and Efficient and Effective Delivery of Health Services.

Nkhotakota District Council has registered positive strides in implementing most of its reforms but our focus today is on the Tourism Reforms, where the council is facing challenges and is seeking partnerships in order to make positive headway in implementing the Reforms that have the potential of improving the council’s revenue generation capacity.

Planned Activities

• Mapping of Tourist Centers. 
• Construction of Hot Springs.
• Construction of Cultural Center.
• Deployment of Tourism Officer.
• Promotion of Livingstone Trees.

Progress Made

Currently, Nkhotakota District Council has managed to conduct the mapping exercise of Tourist Centers in the district but is lacking the capacity to construct the hot springs, cultural center and promote the Livingstone Trees that have a historical background as Dr. David Livingstone is said to have rested under the trees and met Jumbe and other Chewa Chiefs and made a treaty to end slave trade.

Strong and vibrant Public Private Partnerships (PPP) will enable Nkhotakota District Council to kick start its Tourism Reforms and transform Nkhotakota District into a vibrant tourist destination.