The Mozambican government’s decision to close Vilanculos airport to international traffic has met with a brisk response from the Inhambane province’s tourism industry.
According to the Mozambican daily newspaper, Notícias, the tourism sector is “the main source of income for thousands of people in the districts of Vilanculos and Govuro and the five islands that make up the Bazaruto archipelago”.
And tour operators are up in arms, because closing the airport to international traffic will shut down the tourism sector in the region.
The newspaper’s files showed that Vilanculos aerodrome was opened to domestic public traffic in 1962. It was then opened to international traffic in April 1997 – and passenger traffic jumped from 75 000 passengers to more than 200 000 a year.
Its supporters also point to the fact that it has had ten million US dollars-worth of repair and modernisation, which enables it to generate foreign currency income for both the city and the whole north of Inhambane province.
