Serena group lashes out at Tourist Board

PHOTO | FILE Kenya Tourist Board managing director Mureithi Ndegwa during a past media briefing.

What you need to know:

  • Falling foreign arrivals plague struggling industry
  • The accusation came over the major battering that tourism has taken from raging insecurity at the Coast; beach tourism accounts for a major revenue stream for the industry.

The Serena Hotel group has launched a scathing attack on the Kenya Tourism Board which it accuses of burying its head in the sand over the falling figures.
The accusation came over the major battering that tourism has taken from raging insecurity at the Coast; beach tourism accounts for a major revenue stream for the industry.

Operators say the industry suffered up to a 50 per cent decline over the same period last year when the country held a General Election.

Serena’s director of sales and marketing Rosemary Mugambi criticised Kenya Tourism Board managing director Mureithi Ndegwa for his claim that the industry had suffered only a four per cent drop.

In a statement on the hotel’s website Saturday, Ms Mugambi says, “We wonder if KTB and the Kenya tourism industry live in the same Kenya”.
Last weekend, Mr Ndegwa told reporters that despite efforts by the government to revive the tourism sector by offering holiday incentives, the industry’s performance has declined by four per cent compared to the same period last year.

FLOW OF LOCAL TOURISTS

The incentive was, however, meant to ensure a flow of local tourists to the country’s traditional destinations in view of the decline in international arrivals.

Speaking at a press conference at their offices on Saturday, Mr Ndegwa noted that in 2013 the industry recorded 398000 arrivals while in 2014 it has recorded recorded 381000 arrivals.

“The government has, however, allocated Sh500 million to be channelled into recovery projects for the industry,” he said.

According to the KTB boss, as a destination Mombasa is suffering badly because of attacks and travel advisories.

It is against this background that KTB has will be holding the fourth edition of its Magical Kenya Travel Expo (MKTE) from October 8 to October 10 in Nairobi to bring together travel agents, tour operators, hoteliers and trade media from Kenya’s tourism source markets from around the world.

“We expect about 150 hosted buyers representing over 30 countries from Kenya’s key source markets in Europe, Asia, Americas, Africa and the Middle East,” he said.

According to the KTB managing director, this is one of the major events the board has identified as a platform to reinforce Kenya’s resilience.

But Ms Mugambi countered that in 2012, the industry declined by 30 per cent, and in 2013, the Coast sector dropped by between 30 per cent and 50 per cent.

“In the year 2013, the safari market to Tsavo, Amboseli, Mara, Mt Kenya and Nakuru which form Coast’s main attraction dropped by 20 per cent,” she said in her statement.

“Tragedy is when one does not accept that there is a problem, one never seeks solutions. Businesses are suffering, our Kenyan brothers and sisters are losing jobs, the manufacturing, agriculture, fishing, curio suppliers, and boat operators are all being impacted negatively. Kenya Revenue Authority Revenue from tourism industry must be way down. It is just not business as usual, let’s not kid ourselves”, she said.

But some tourism players in Mombasa County believe that despite the bleak times the sector is going through, things can be reversed if the escalating insecurity issue can be dealt with quickly.

The sector could actually take a recovery path as soon as the next high season in November-December-January 2015.

Neighbours Tanzania and Uganda meanwhile, are reaping a windfall from Kenya’s situation as tourists who originally booked to stay in Kenya now prefer those relatively safer destinations, managers told the Sunday Nation.

The managers want Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho and County Commissioner Nelson Marwa to stop their wrangling immediately as this only works to aggravate the already grave situation.

They also want the government to fix the problem urgently by sealing loopholes and by initiating alternative strategies to fight terrorism and general insecurity for tourists and the public before the industry sinks deeper into oblivion.

The managers and operators still believe that the sector can come out of the current limbo if the government and community make a strong resolve to fight the insecurity they describe as the single-most devastating factor at the moment.

Current bed occupancy figures have plummeted to below 10 per cent in some hotels that would ordinarily be operating at about 50 per cent this July as the high tourist season sets in.

Heritage Group of Hotels Limited chief executive officer Mr Mohamed Hersi, a long-time and experienced industry player, says hotels in the Coast region, considered to be the hub of tourism in the country, are operating at between seven per cent and 40 per cent occupancy.

“The situation is very bad at the moment. The recent killing of two tourists in Mombasa’s Old Town that for a long time we considered as one of the safest places in the country, a Russian and a German, has kind of been the last straw on the camel’s back,” he said in an interview at The Voyager Beach Hotel on Friday.

“It worries us a great deal. The authorities must deal with this monster urgently, decisively and fast. Security must be restored, not only for visitors but for all people,” he said.

He described as a “useless war of words” the public outbursts and accusations between Governor Joho and Mr Marwa, two leaders who should steer clear of petty wrangles as they have an obligation to restore confidence, instead of engaging in such sideshows.

“Their differences, accusations and counter-accusations are making the problem worse when they should be striving to solve it,” he said.

CONTINUES TO DROP
Sales and marketing manager of Travellers Beach Hotel and Club Wafula Bonface Waswa said his hotel with more than 250 beds was operating at 18 per cent.

The number of foreign arrivals continues to drop, he said. In 2013, the ratio of foreign versus domestic tourists was 50:50. Today, it is 30:70, he said.
“We are in constant communication with international agencies, and the situation is hazy. They always ask us to reduce the bookings which they had earlier confirmed,” he said.

“Tanzania and Uganda are benefiting big from our situation. It’s unbelievable that Uganda which has a limited wildlife attraction has more visitors than we do and Tanzania has become a strong competitor because of security”.

Because of the situation, he said local tourists are asking for reduced rates, but this is not always realistic or unattainable because it puts the hotels in a dangerous financial position.

“If we continue to do that, we won’t be able to meet even the basic overhead costs like electricity, water and general maintenance. We have also to shelve off workers’ salaries and remunerations or even lay some of them off,” he said.