Kenya launches 5 year tourism strategy
Kenya’s Ministry of Tourism & Wildlife launched a new strategy which it says will underpin the recovery and growth of the tourism sector for the next five years. kenya tourism
Dubbed ‘the new vision for Kenya’s tourism’ the strategy will detail a road map for the sector and will shape the future of sustainable tourism in Kenya.
Speaking during the launch , Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the strategy was an important part of his ministry’s mission to accelerate economic transformation.
“The strategy was developed with a clear vision of propelling the sector to newer and higher heights.”
“It fully captures the Magical Kenya tourism brand and highlights the opportunities that the sector can leverage to ensure growth,” Najib said.
A key component of the new plan is to diversify away from the country’s dependence on Safari and Beach tourism.
The plan highlights four main pillars -: branding, marketing, experiences and enablers.
It calls for promoting Kenya as a multi-product destination with diverse offerings to compete with its neighbours and other emerging destinations.
It also aims at diversifying tourist flows into Kenya from the traditional Europe and North America markets to emerging markets such as India and China. kenya tourism
Signs of recovery pos-COVID-19 pandemic
In 2021, earnings from international arrivals in Kenya amounted to 146.5 billion Kenyan shilings (KSh), around 1.3 billion U.S. dollars. This represented an increase of some 65 percent in comparison to the previous year, when the Kenyan tourism sector recorded a revenue of roughly 89 billion KSh (774 million U.S. dollars). The COVID-19 crisis interrupted an upgoing trend in tourism earnings registered in the last years. Since 2015, the sector recorded growing revenue year-by-year, after a slow down started in 2011, as a consequence of an upsurge in violent terrorist attacks.
Relevance of tourism in Kenya’s economy
Home of Mount Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa, Kenya is extensively known for its rich nature and wildlife. Tourism plays, therefore, a key role in the country’s economy. In 2020, the sector contributed 4.2 billion U.S. dollars to Kenya’s Gross Domestic Product. By the same year, travel and tourism accounted for 6.4 percent of the total employment. Lastly, international tourists spent 581 million U.S. dollars in Kenya, which was equivalent to six percent of the country’s exports.
