It’s clear State to blame for death of tourism

Local tourists enjoy a bush breakfast at the Sarova sanctuary in Tsavo west. [PHOTO: MAARUFU MOHAMED/STANDARD]

There is no denying that Kenya’s tourism sector is in a slump and many sectors of the economy and naturally employees are affected. Truth be told, many long-standing internal factors are responsible for tourism’s dwindling fortunes and policy makers and the State know that, but they still blame lean times on foreigners or recent events.

To be fair, some of these recent events played a role too, but it is not a secret that when it comes to tourism, Kenya started losing ground decades ago, but it became easier — and cheaper — for the State (and a Legislature held captive by the State) to blame external forces and not look inward to see that the problems affecting the sector are homegrown.

Kenya’s tourism sector has been killed from within, and the culprit has been the State which has made it difficult for the stakeholders, including its own tourism-related entities to sell Kenya as a destination.

They cannot convince even Kenyans to spend on these beautiful places that are always talked about because there is never an elaborate domestic tourism policy and Kenyans are always given half-hearted and cheap — not low-priced — offers during holiday season as if they are second-class citizens who do not deserve the best, or anything better. (Cheap denotes poor quality).

The cri de couer that things are not looking up in the tourism sector is sounded every year, but little or nothing is done because tourism as Kenyans do not know it, is a foreign concept, an affair that can only be driven by wazungus flying in and checking in to five-star hotels and lodges and not Kenyans engaging in domestic tourism.

As a matter of fact, the phrase “domestic tourism” is an invective, the biggest insult one can hurl at the ever high-flying State officials, State operatives and the politically-correct and affluent Kenyans who take pride in flying First Class to foreign destinations, even using taxpayers’ money, then land back and yap about patriotism and how “Kenya is a beautiful country.”

This year, some Western countries evacuated their citizens after issuing travel advisories. Their actions opened a deluge of knee-jerk reactions, doorway or by-the-way policy statements by the State, complaints, insults, threats, the usual blame game, pity parties, yeah, Kenya is a victim, and is being persecuted yet it is a wonderful host whose facilities are tip-top, state-of-the-art, top-notch...and so is security.

The stagnation or the downward spiral did not start last year, or last month or even yesterday, but has been an on-going process and the irresponsible entity is the State and not foreigners as successive governments have always wanted the world to believe.

First, high taxation regime and the attendant high cost of living have made very many Kenyans think where their next meals will come from and not what to spend on these “beautiful places” whose prices were never tailored for the local market anyway, but were set with foreigners in mind because, as Kenyans have been told, they are the ones with money to waste.

 

Then, there is lack of education and elaborate long-term policies because the State-controlled Legislature cannot think beyond its stomach and come up with better laws that protect locals and improve quality of living.

One does not need to conduct a poll to ascertain that over ninety percent of adult, and salaried Kenyans cannot name and do not know more than five of the country’s national parks and/ or game reserves.

This is because it has been inculcated in them that such places are not for them (to visit) but are basically for foreigners whose countries have no wild animals.

As a matter of fact — and there is no need for a poll — I can vouchsafe that over 95 per cent of Nairobi residents have never been to the Nairobi National Park whose size keeps diminishing by the hour, thanks to lopsided policies, State-sanctioned corruption cartels and the much-touted construction boom that has ring-fenced it with a concrete jungle. Of course wild animals are a nuisance to local communities too — yeah, the human-wildlife conflict — and should all be killed.

They feel so because they never see any profits from the tourism sector as it were, thanks to State-sanctioned corrupt deals which ensure proceeds end up in offshore bank accounts of a few individuals who talk about Kenya’s beautiful destinations after visiting foreign capitals.

It might be pointless to start pointing out how State-instigated ethnic skirmishes that have rocked different parts of Kenya since the 1990s have painted the country as an insecure destination and kept away the cherished wazungu tourists, but it is foolhardy not to admit that even Kenyans fear visiting such areas.

Kenya is not just a hard-sell, but little is done to make it a favourite destination too considering that its Unique Selling Proposition largely remains the traditional wildlife, complemented by poor service, uneducated tour guides, thieving traders who must rip off visitors and the grammatically incorrect sandy beaches (what other beaches are there?) in an era when the world has moved on and incorporated modern amenities and services that can entice visitors.

Oh, spare me the ratty MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences/ Conventions, and Exhibition) argument as a modern service Kenya is embarking on instead of the traditional tourism products. Conferences and conventions Kenya can claim to host cannot boost the dying tourism sector because the complementary facilities are wanting, if not third rate.

Let’s face it. How did a country which was “closed” to the world for almost a lifetime become a favourite destination for high-spending tourists, musicians and celebrities and manage to overtake Kenya — which has been open for decades — in tourism numbers?

That is South Africa, people. It hosts international entertainment events every other day and to it, every little heritage — from informal settlements, prisons to shopping malls, historical government offices, as well as cemeteries and flea markets — are products worth selling to locals and visitors alike, thanks to cooperation between non-State bodies and the State.

That is the difference. In Kenya, that kind convergence between different non-State bodies and State entities is lacking, and every event is a stand-alone function which is overseen only by its organisers or stakeholders.

After all is said and nothing is done, State officials can continue with their knee jerk reactions, whining about foreigners and keep seeing Kenya as a victim, but unless they realise that nobody out there cares, that every little heritage is a worthy product and that the biggest client base is within, Kenya’s tourism sector will just go one way — down!