Reports that hundreds of tourists have been blocked from accessing and leaving Masai Mara Game Reserve are sad indeed.
On Thursday and Friday, tour operators, who included tour guides and drivers, blocked the 60km Narok-Mara road protesting over the poor state of the road. The operators, who used their vehicles to block the road, had vowed not to open it until Roads Minister Franklin Bett assures them it will be fixed within one week.
As a result, most tourists missed their scheduled flights inside and outside the Mara.
The chairman of Tour Guides and Drivers Association, Andrew Mungatana said they had protested over the state of the road for the past 10 years yet nothing had been done to fix it. Equally, stakeholders in tourism have repeatedly demanded the Government must live up to its often made and yet to be delivered promises to have the crucial tourism road fixed.
The road is a key link to the world famous Masai Mara Game Reserve and it is sad that while millions of shillings have been generated from this road, its sorry state continues to betray its importance and the Government seems to be doing little to address the problem.
Just last week, President Kibaki led a big Kenyan delegation to London to market the country as an ideal tourist destination.
But such marketing ventures will amount to nothing if they are not matched by an efficient infrastructure and a good road network to enable tourists reach their local destinations of choice.
Mr Bett and his team at the Roads ministry must now wake up and ensure there are no delays in the planned improvement of this crucial road which leads to one of the most high profile parks in the country.
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