Kenya’s tourism will not only weather terror attacks, but recover and flourish
What you need to know:
- The tourism sector has not been left behind. Security checks and surveillance have been stepped up in hotels and other tourist facilities to ensure our guests are safe during their entire stay in Kenya.
- KTB have diversified the product offering to include adventure, sports and golf tourism on top of the authentic wildlife safari and beach destination packages.
Kenya’s tourism sector is facing a myriad challenges ranging from insecurity, poaching, adverse foreign travel advisories and competition from other destinations.
At the crux of this unfortunate turn of fortunes is the recent spate of terror attacks targeting public transport, hotels, markets and places of worship in Nairobi and Mombasa.
Kenya’s military campaign in Somalia to stabilise the war-torn nation and free it from the throes of Al-Shabaab is being used by the terrorists as an excuse to unleash their carnage on Kenyans.
As testimony to the futility of terrorists’ dastardly actions, Kenyans have collectively refused to bow to the cult of terror, hence the desperation on the part of criminals who, driven by cowardice, choose to harm innocent men, women and children.
Terror has without doubt affected the tourism sector negatively. But I am certain the sector will weather these trying times and recover from the slump of the past years.
NOT FAR-FETCHED
Kenya’s tourism sector has risen from the ashes of past crises to emerge stronger than ever. It weathered the challenges of the tribal clashes of the 1990s, the 1998 American Embassy bomb blast, the 2002 Kikambala terror attack and the 2007/8 post-election violence.
Indeed, the sector has time and again demonstrated the robustness to surmount the harsh cyclic impact of devastating events such as the ones I have cited above. So, to say that Kenya’s tourism will recover is not far-fetched but grounded on past experience.
The contribution of the tourism sector to the Kenya Vision 2030 national development roadmap cannot be over-emphasised. Tourism accounts for about 11 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product and remains one of the largest foreign exchange earners.
It is true that the sector has recorded a decline in the past years. For instance, the sector posted a two per cent drop in earnings in 2013 at Sh93.9 billion compared to Sh96 billion in 2012, which was still lower than the record Sh97.9 billion it posted in 2011.
A combination of factors including insecurity, Value Added Tax, unfavourable travel advisories by governments in some key source markets, have constrained the sector’s growth.
To accelerate the sector’s recovery, the government has committed to allocate Sh200 million to support various initiatives targeted at boosting tourist arrivals and showcasing the country’s unique attractions to an international audience through the Kenya Tourism Board.
To spearhead the recovery, Tourism Cabinet Secretary Phyllis Kandie recently appointed a Tourism Recovery Committee comprising various industry experts and investors. In addition, the government has put in place enhanced security measures.
The tourism sector has not been left behind. Security checks and surveillance have been stepped up in hotels and other tourist facilities to ensure our guests are safe during their entire stay in Kenya.
The message that KTB sent out to the world at the recent Indaba Tourism Fair in South Africa, which attracted over 10,000 exhibitors, is that Kenya is a safe place to visit.
WORKING WITH KENYA'S NEIGHBOURS
Besides responding decisively to the security challenges in collaboration with the government and other stakeholders, the tourism sector and KTB have diversified the product offering to include adventure, sports and golf tourism on top of the authentic wildlife safari and beach destination packages.
Regionally, Kenya is working with its neighbours to develop a common marketing plan to promote East Africa as a single tourist destination.
Some of the key initiatives include the launch of a single tourist visa, a common tourism logo, and joint participation at key international marketing exhibitions such as the World Travel Market and International Tourism Bourse. KTB has also been promoting the ‘Tembea Kenya’ initiative aimed at encouraging Kenyans to tour their country.
We are also working closely with the media to achieve this goal. Recently, we sponsored a local media familiarisation trip aimed at showcasing some of the tourism attractions that Nairobi and its neighbouring counties of Machakos, Kajiado, Kiambu and Nakuru have to offer.
We appeal to all stakeholders, more so Kenyans, to support the tourism sector during this hour of need. One can check out www.magicalkenya.com for more information. Kenya’s tourism industry will recover.
Mr Ndegwa is the Managing Director, Kenya Tourism Board.
