NAIROBI: Visitors to Kenya are down 25 per cent this year as the country’s tourism industry feels the effects of militant attacks
Deadly terrorist attacks in Kenya over the last two years have led to a 25 per cent fall in visitor numbers, denting the country’s tourism industry.
The east African nation, which was once popular for its sandy beaches and safari tours, lost a quarter of its visitors in the first five months of 2015 – 284,313 down from 381,278 in 2014, according to Kenya Tourism Board figures seen by Reuters. This follows a fall of 4.3 per cent the year before.
The decrease shows the effect that a spate of Islamist militant attacks that have killed hundreds has had on Kenya’s tourism industry.
Tourism is a vital foreign exchange earner for the country, but a two-year slump has forced hotels to shut, cut job numbers and sent the shilling to 3-and-a-half-year lows.
The number of visitors from Britain, the biggest contingent, fell by 35 per cent to 36,022 so far this year. Tourist arrivals from the United States dropped 22 per cent to 30,083.
Kenya has been hit by a series of attacks by Somalia’s al Shabaab Islamists in the past two years. Gunmen raided Nairobi’s shopping mall in 2013, coastal towns in 2014 and a university in April this year. More than 400 people have been killed.
“Tackling insecurity decisively remains the top priority of the government’s strategy to sustain the growth momentum of the economy while creating jobs and reducing poverty,” finance minister Henry Rotich said in Thursday’s 2015/16 budget speech.
“These terrorist activities continue to undermine the investment climate in the country and have contributed to the loss of jobs and declining activity in our tourism industry,” Rotich said.
His budget for the year starting July 1 allocated 5.2 billion shillings (£34.5 million) for “tourism recovery”.
In the 2015/16 budget that saw the deficit climb to 8.7 per cent, a level economists said was cause for concern, he outlined plans to boost spending on the security services.
Diplomats say Kenya’s campaign against militants has been hampered by rivalries between security agencies.
One Western diplomat said the recent creation of centres on the coast to coordinate between agencies and share intelligence has helped, but said it needed to be extended across the nation.
