County reaps millions of shillings from four-day devolution conference

The Second Annual Devolution Conference which ended last Thursday in Kisumu County left hundreds of millions of shillings in the lakeside city.

The four-day event left business owners smiling all the way to the bank. It was held at Tom Mboya Labour College, a complex built on a six-acre piece of land and named after the late Thomas Mboya, a Kenyan nationalist renowned for his contribution to the growth of the trade union movement.

According to host Governor Jack Ranguma, businesses in the county and neighbouring counties made more than Sh1 billion in profit.

"The conference has shown the potential of the city, which has been hidden to many. Transporters, hoteliers, fishmongers, tour guides and many other players made a killing from it," Ranguma said.

The Council of Governors (CoG) set aside Sh217 million, out of which Sh145 million was given to hotels for accommodation and meals.

"Two thirds of the total budget went to local hotels for bed, breakfast and lunch," William Orondo, Kenya Association of Hotel Keepers and Caterers, Western Region chairman said.

This followed media reports that local hoteliers were protesting that catering services had been given to two Nairobi-based hotels.

Indeed employees of one of the hotels turned up in Kisumu on the eve of the conference ready to offer their services but were ordered back to Nairobi the following day.

The main beneficiaries were the hoteliers who pocketed the highest amount of money. The hotel industry united and worked under Imperial and Royal City hotels.

According to Edris Omondi, the Group General Manager, Royal City Hotels, the event was a boon to hoteliers in the region.

"We are happy as an industry because all of us were involved. We believe we have showcased our capability to the world. We can't take this for granted," Omondi said.

He revealed that his hotel was charging Sh1,600 for lunch and supper per delegate.

But there was a glitch on Thursday when lunch provided by Imperial Hotel was finished after only 1,000 delegates were served, leaving the rest without lunch. The hotel's management blamed CoG, claiming they were told to cater for only 1,000.

However, Omondi says the conference was a blessing to them. "The hotel industry here is super. We now have a better pedestal to negotiate for more business to promote our Western circuit. We need more marketing and advertising since we are up to the task," Omondi said.

Many other hotels made money as governors hosted parties for their delegations where they ate, drank and danced. Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero hosted his delegation at Nyanza Club while his Kiambu counterpart William Kabogo and his team were at Sovereign Hotel.

The CoG made Sh85.5 million from registration of the 5,000 delegates who paid Sh17,100 each.

Entertainment spots, taxi drivers, boda-boda and boat riders and some hotels increased their rates by as much as 200 per cent. Ordinarily, accommodation per night in Kisumu ranges from Sh5,000 to Sh20,000.

Club Signature, which was the favourite for the delegates including governors and senators was selling beer at between Sh200 and Sh300 though Sh200 is the average price of beer in Kisumu.

Robinson Anyal, chairman of Hotel Managers Association in Nyanza, said the conference had thrust Kisumu to national limelight as one of the best destinations.

"We have hosted 5,000 delegates and this shows this industry has grown tremendously in the last five years. This also tells investors that the hotel industry in Kisumu is worth investing in," Anyal said.

He added: "We didn't know as county we had such a huge capacity to handle such number of guests. By hosting the conference, we are optimistic that more of such occasions will be held here," he said.

Traders at Lwang'ni and Dunga beaches hosted many delegates who enjoyed the beautiful lake scenery and the fish delicacy.

Monica Mwende, a delegate from Makueni, said such conferences need to be taken to counties on many occasions.

"All the time people go to Nairobi and Mombasa. We need to develop other counties too by taking such functions to them. The Kisumu conference has offered delegates an opportunity for new experiences," she said.

But the rush to make quick money has exposed about 20 hotels which could be operating illegally. The facilities, according to The Standard on Sunday investigations, operate without proper names and with no signboards.

''We never knew that these 20 facilities existed. They could be operating illegally. The government needs to come in and restore sanity in the sector," said Mr Anyal.

With the demand to accommodate more than 5,000 guests, property owners converted their facilities into guesthouses to cash in on the event.

According to Tom Odhiambo, the Regional Manager for Tourism Regulatory Authority (TRA), the city has 3,000 standard quality beds in hotels and guesthouses.

He said it may be difficult to tame such apartments since many of them are presented as people's homes.

"We, however, conduct routine monitoring to ensure all hotels and guesthouses are labelled and have valid operating licenses," he said.