Tourism and ICT lead second quarter growth

Room service hotel staff carries breakfast tray. [Courtesy]

Kenya’s economy grew by 5.6 per cent in the three months ended June 2019 on the back of improved performance in the ICT and tourism sectors.

Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) indicates that a slowdown in economic activities in the agricultural, manufacturing and transportation sectors held back overall growth.

“Agriculture’s performance, as well as that of electricity and water supply, were mostly hampered by a delay in the onset of the long rains,” said KNBS, with the transportation industry held back by a rise in fuel prices.

The agricultural sector, which accounted for 52 per cent of the gross domestic product, registered a 4.1 per cent growth in the second quarter, down from 6.5 per cent recorded over a similar period last year.

“Performance in the sector was however supported by a 17.6 per cent increase in the volume of cut flowers from 35,700 tonnes in the second quarter of 2018 to 42,100 tonnes in the period under review,” said KNBS.

Hotels and restaurant operators also recorded improved earnings as the sector continues to reap from a rebound in the country’s tourism sector.

According to the KNBS however, the growth was subdued in the wake of jitters earlier in the year following a terrorist attack at the Dusit 2 Hotel in Nairobi.

“The accommodation and food services sector is estimated to have expanded by 10.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2019 compared to a growth of 15.4 per cent in the same quarter of 2018,” said the statistics office.

Overall, tourist arrivals contracted marginally from 450,343 visitors in the second quarter of 2018 to 450,124 visitors this year.

The financial and insurance sector recorded 6.7 per cent growth, an improvement from the 4.6 per cent growth recorded over a similar period last year.

Growth in the country’s ICT sector was also robust, standing at 11.6 per cent in the three months to June, up from 11 per cent registered in the same period last year.