Mbanza Kongo - Twenty-three tourists who visited the historic centre of Mbanza Kongo, Zaire Province, for the first time on Saturday and Sunday were delighted with the historical potential of the capital of the former Kongo Kingdom, having called for more investment in the hotel and road infrastructure sector to attract more tourists.
The group, made up of Angolan, Portuguese, Dutch and Mozambican citizens, visited the main historical sites and monuments of this World Heritage city, namely the Museum of the Kingdom of Kongo, the Cemetery of the Kongo Kings, the centuries-old Yala Nkuwu tree, the reply of Nsaku Nevunda, Kulumbimbi and the cemetery of Dona Mpolo, the mother of one of the kings buried alive for disobeying court orders.
For Portuguese citizen Fernando Campos Soares, in addition to the historical and cultural mosaic, the city of Mbanza Kongo has enviable scenic charms that make visitors curious.
He suggested more investment in hotel and road infrastructure to boost tourism in this part of the country.
"I believe that with improved roads, functional hotel networks and complementary services and well-trained guides, the province of Zaire will soon become a favoured tourist destination," he stressed.
The Dutch citizen Anlie Vooyhoeve, resident in Luanda Province for 23 years, said that Zaire Province has tourist attractions that, if well exploited, could help diversify the country's economy and create more jobs.
She also advocated training young people to work in tourist agencies, with a view to publicising and promoting Mbanza Kongo's historical wealth across borders.
In turn, the Mozambican Leonardo Torres Caliano, who also shares the same opinion, suggested that the government and the business community create viable policies so that the historical and tourist potential of the Historic Centre of Mbanza Kongo can be transformed into sustainable sources of income.
The head of the travel agency, Helena Mababa, said that there was a great interest on the part of national and foreign citizens to get to know in depth the history of Mbanza Kongo which is why she advocated the construction of more infrastructures.
She emphasised the role of the local traditional authorities, in particular, and the population in general, in preserving and conserving the monuments and historical sites of the former Kongo Kingdom.
The caravan of tourists also went to the Nzau-Evua caves, about 75 kilometres from the city of Mbanza Kongo, and visited some of the charms of the fishing village of Nzeto, on their way back to the country's capital, Luanda.
The Historic Centre of Mbanza Kongo has had World Heritage status since 8 July 2017.
DA/JL/MRA/jmc
