This archive report was first published on 10 December 2019.
Balala, MP in fierce fight for Watamu multi-billion hotel project ¶
Published on December 10, 2019
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala has written to the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) seeking to revoke a license for a 61-storey luxury hotel project in Watamu, Kilifi county. The project, Palm Exotica, is estimated to cost Sh28 billion and will be the tallest building in the country.
The project, which will be operated by a yet-to-be disclosed global hospitality chain, has been opposed by Kilifi North MP Owen Baya. Baya claims that Balala is driven by personal interests and not environmental matters, adding that the Tourism CS is fronting the interests of a few hoteliers in Watamu who fear that the mega project will dwarf their establishments.
According to Baya, some foreign investors who fear that the proposed project will dwarf their small hotels and block them from the scenic Indian Ocean have sought the intervention of the CS to have the project stopped. However, Balala insists that the project must not be built on the beach of Watamu, saying it will interfere with the nearby marine ecosystems.
Environmental consultant who studied the project reportedly dispelled fears that the facility will have undesired effects on the coastal ecosystem. NEMA seems to have agreed with the consultant’s report and ignored Balala protest.
The Kenya Urban Roads Authority has already given the developers its approvals for the expansion of the Turtle Bay Road leading to the proposed hotel area.
