Kenya losing tourism edge to regional countries

Kenya’s tourism industry has been going through its most difficult period in recent decades. The woes of the industry have been blamed on travel advisories issued by some western countries. However, this is not the only explanation for the problems the sector is facing. The World Tourism Organisation released a Yearbook of Tourism Statistics showing the growth in global tourism arrivals from 1995 to 2014. The website of the World Bank has data from the Tourism Yearbook. The publication shows that Kenya’s tourism industry is facing fierce competition from Uganda, Tanzania and Mozambique, which are offering cheaper tour packages.

From 1995 to 2014, tourism arrivals in Tanzania increased by 290 per cent while in Uganda this increased by an even bigger margin of 690 per cent. In contrast, tourism arrivals in Kenya increased by a modest 37 per cent. In 1995, Kenya was receiving more than five times as many tourists as Uganda. In 2014, Uganda received more tourists than Kenya. In 2014 tourism arrivals for Uganda were 1,266,000, which was more than Kenya’s 1,261,000.