Sustainable Development Goals Localisation in the Hospitality Sector in Botswana and Zimbabwe

Abstract

Many countries have fronted tourism as a tool for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in their voluntary national reviews. Nevertheless, very few studies have examined how the tourism industry has been localising SDGs. Therefore, this study is borne out of that knowledge gap. A qualitative approach comprising the use of primary and secondary data from integrated annual reports was adopted. The study found some progress made by hotel companies in localising SDGs. It emerged that Cresta Hotels and the African Sun group of hotels are only at the inception stage of SDG localisation, focusing on several SDGs that respond to the socio-economic and environmental demands of the environments they work in. Given that most of the work under the SDGs only began inception between 2018 and 2019, there is still a long way to go before meaningful progress can be reported regarding SDG localization, with preliminary evidence showing that the hotel industry is likely to have made significant inroads when the SDGs lapse in 2030 if their efforts are not disturbed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study recommends continuous monitoring and support for the sector as the SDG framework offers a better and more focused sector to achieve sustainable and responsible tourism in Zimbabwe and Botswana.