The Ministry of Tourism & Wildlife has launched a new strategy Dubbed “the new vision for Kenya’s tourism” that seeks to diversify the country’s tourism offering, moving away from dependence on Safari and Beach destinations.
The strategy is a five-year plan that is set to provide a road map for the sector and will shape the future of Kenya’s tourism industry by providing a framework that details how to successfully develop sustainable growth in the sector.
Speaking during the launch on Friday, Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala noted that the strategy was an important part of his ministry’s mission to accelerate the economic transformation of communities through providing solutions and opening up new opportunities for growth in the sector.
The five-year plan comes at the backdrop of a challenging environment occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic and will serve as a blueprint that guides the country’s development efforts in the sector over the next five years.
The strategy calls for promoting Kenya as a multi-product destination with diverse offerings to enable it to have a competitive edge against 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.
CS Balala added that the new strategy was an expression of the government’s commitment to accelerate economic growth through investments in key sectors.
He called on stakeholders in the tourism sector to support the implementation of the document through active participation in its implementation process.
“We need to note that this new strategy goes beyond Covid-19 as we are now looking at a much longer horizon than we had planned for earlier. This is because we need to position ourselves to take advantage of emerging trends in tourism. Tourism is a long term business and requires strategic thinking that looks years ahead into the future. We want to get our finger on the pulse so that when things change in other parts of the world, we are able to capitalize on those changes.” Zeinab Hussein Principal Secretary, State Department for Tourism.
With this new strategy, the sector is banking on an increase in both international and domestic tourist arrivals as well as increased revenue from existing tourists.