State pushes to have new terminal ready for cruise tourism season

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala (middle), flanked by among others the Kenya Ports Authority Managing Director Catherine Mturi Mabruk and Principal Secretary for Gender Mwanamaka Mturi in consultation with port workers at the port of Mombasa in Mombasa County on Monday,024th July,2017. Balala was inspecting the ongoing construction of the proposed cruise ship terminal at Berth no one at the port.[Maarufu Mohamed,Standard]

Modernisation of a cruise ship terminal at the Port of Mombasa will be ready for commissioning before the start of the cruise tourism high season in November, officials have announced.

The construction of the new facility at a cost of Sh350 million is jointly funded by Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) and TradeMark East Africa.

Contractors told Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala that progress had been slowed down by the proximity of the terminal to the quayside.

‘’We have been experiencing challenges in carrying out the remodeling of the berth since ships dock directly opposite the old terminal building to discharge goods. We are optimistic that we’ll finish before September,’’ said Charles Mungai of Clarion Architects.

Mr Balala, who was on an inspection tour of the project, directed the contractor to speed up work.

"We have already promised international cruise liners to make Mombasa their home port and we need to ensure that the project work is completed in time before the cruise season begins in November,’’ he said.

The CS travelled to Fort Lauderdale, Florida in the US for the Seatrade Cruise Global Event in March, where he lobbied for more cruise liners to include Mombasa in their itinerary.

During the event, he held fruitful discussions with Holland America and Princess Cruises, which offered to support Kenya’s bid for aggressive marketing of the Port of Mombasa.

REGULAR CALLER

"With the new terminal in place, there will be an increased volume of cruise ships, turning the Port of Mombasa into the main tourist destination in East and Central Africa,’’ said Mr Balala.

The first cruise ship to dock at the Port of Mombasa this year, the Ms Nautica, brought in 1,049 tourists - 654 passengers and 395 crew in January.

A regular caller at the port, the vessel sailed in from Zanzibar, with the visitors spending a day around Mombasa.

The Ms Nautica was on a round trip as it had called at the port earlier in December.

KPA Managing Director Catherine Mturi-Wairi said the region will be marketed as a single destination under the aegis of the Cruise Indian Ocean Association (CIOA) that brings together nations on the Eastern African rim.

‘’There is so much on offer across the region that passengers travelling on board international cruise liners can sample during the ships’ itinerary,’’ she said.

Ms Wairi said Africa, particularly the eastern and southern regions and the Indian Ocean islands, provides an excellent option to the traditional cruise circuits.

She added that to grow the industry and offer the requisite unique experiences, there is need for collaboration among port authorities, major stakeholders and their partners.

The MD, who also chairs CIOA, said the popularity of the safari and cruise tourism in the region is growing rapidly.

Among key objectives of the CIOA is to jointly promote and market the eastern and southern Africa region and South West Indian Ocean islands as well as to perform liaison functions between members and cruise line stakeholders.

CIOA is also mandated to carry out research, develop and maintain a statistical database on port networks.

Ms Wairi says there is huge potential in cruise tourism.

“It will be appreciated that cruise shipping is one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry,” she said last month during a cruise tourism workshop in Seychelles.

“The industry shows no signs of slowing down, with 24 million passengers having sailed in 2016, a dramatic increase from 15 million 10 years earlier.”

Tourism stakeholders are seeking ways to diversify from the traditional bush and beach packages to compete more effectively against other major destinations such as South Africa and Mauritius.