Kenya targets lucrative Gulf markets

Destination reveals future plans following the conclusion of first Kenya Week in UAE.

Kenya is stepping up its efforts to attract travellers from the UAE by working closer with the country’s travel agents and strengthening relations between the two countries’ governments.

“We are committed to promoting Kenya [in the UAE] through participation at Arabian Travel Market, stalls at Global Village and through local business forums,” explained Kenya Minister for Tourism Najib Balala speaking to ATN at the inaugural ‘Kenya Week’ in the UAE last month — a promotion designed to “strengthen the bones of confidence” between the two nations.

“As a government we will be [in the UAE] almost twice a year; we want to tell the world that Kenya is safe.”

The minister’s message follows concerns that Kenya has yet to fully recover from the violence that followed the 2007 general election.

Balala conceded the country’s image took a beating following world-wide interest in events, but said the government was predicting 100% recovery.

He said the East African country had invested heavily in its tourism infrastructure by building new roads and upgrading existing ones, as well as pumping US $120 million into upgrading Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

The government is also planning to build a new port in Lamu and will be reclassifying four- and five-star hotels next year.

Balala said the current focus in the UAE was to “tell the consumer that Kenya offers value for money”.