This archive report was first published on 30 June 2020.
June 30, 2020 - Kenya's tourism sector is facing an unprecedented crisis, with the COVID-19 pandemic having a devastating impact on the industry. According to a report by the Tourism Recovery Strategy, the sector has lost Ksh80 billion so far, roughly half of the Ksh163 billion it raked in last year.
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala has proposed a new policy to ensure hotels with stable internet are licensed, while those without are denied licenses. This move is aimed at ensuring that the Kenyan hospitality sector competes favourably with competition across the world.
Speaking during the launch of the Tourism Recovery Strategy Report, Balala lamented that the entire tourism sector is out of business at the moment, with 2 million Kenyans employed in the sector currently out of work. He assured that once the sector starts opening, those who have been sent home on redundancies will be given the first priority to come back.
CS Balala further asked investors in the tourism industry to attract domestic tourism by lowering their rates to the tune that local tourists will be tempted to spend on. He noted that domestic tourists will not pay USD300 to go to Maasai Mara, but if the pricing is going to be high, they will not even get domestic tourism.
President Uhuru Kenyatta had earlier announced a Ksh2 billion package to cushion the sector. The President noted with concern the fact that the hospitality sector has been greatly hit as a result of the lockdowns and assured that his administration will focus on intervention by offering an initial Ksh2 billion from the exchequer to support hotels and all related hospitality establishments.
