By: John Kariuki
Worth Noting:
- The Kenya Tourism Board informed the Committee of its primary objective to effectively market Kenya’s tourism products, aiming to achieve four key outputs: International Arrivals, Tourism Receipts, Domestic bed nights, and Brand awareness.
- James Mwaura, CEO of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre, outlined the institution’s main objectives, including improving business events performance, enhancing government systems and structures for efficiency, and capacity development for effective service delivery. He highlighted the challenge of pending bills, particularly from Government entities like the Kenya Revenue Authority, which hampers efficient service delivery.
The Departmental Committee on Tourism and Wildlife, Chaired by Kareke Mbiuki (Maara), is in meeting in Mombasa County for its ongoing series of meetings. Among those who appeared before the Committee were the CEO of the Kenya International Convention Centre; Mr…..
Director General of the Tourism Regulatory Authority, Mr. Nobert Talam, CEO Tourism Promotion Fund Mr. Stephen Kinyanjui; Director and CEO Wildlife Research and Training Institute Dr. Patrick Omondi among others.
During their session with the Ag. CEO Tourism Fund, concerns were raised regarding the exorbitant interest charged by consultants, which often exceeds the project’s actual cost, sometimes amounting to billions.
“We are witnessing a scenario where consultants are compensated more than contractors due to the exorbitant interest rates,” Mbiuki noted.
The Kenya Tourism Board informed the Committee of its primary objective to effectively market Kenya’s tourism products, aiming to achieve four key outputs: International Arrivals, Tourism Receipts, Domestic bed nights, and Brand awareness.
Mr. James Mwaura, CEO of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre, outlined the institution’s main objectives, including improving business events performance, enhancing government systems and structures for efficiency, and capacity development for effective service delivery. He highlighted the challenge of pending bills, particularly from Government entities like the Kenya Revenue Authority, which hampers efficient service delivery.
The Tourism Research Institute, represented by Acting CEO Mr. David Gitonga, emphasized alignment with the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda. Prioritized initiatives include countrywide workforce surveys, analysis of domestic tourism trends, research on the impact of events and climate change on tourism, and promoting tourism value chains linked to SMEs and local communities. Funding constraints, including a 50% budget reduction and staffing shortages, were cited as major challenges.
Lamu East Constituency MP, Ruweida Obo, stressed the importance of adequately funding the Tourism Research Institute to enhance data collection and analysis, ultimately improving the destination’s competitive advantage.
The Tourism Regulatory Authority, led by Director General Mr. Nobert Talam, outlined its mandate to regulate the tourism sector in Kenya and develop standards for sustainable tourism. Key projects for the 2022/23 fiscal year include the classification and grading of accommodation and catering establishments.
Ijara Constituency MP, Abdi, urged the Committee to support the Authority, citing resource constraints for its programs and activities. The Wildlife Research and Training Institute CEO Dr. Patrick Omondi highlighted the Institute’s mandate of a coordinated Wildlife Research and Training to provide information and data to inform management and policy in the wildlife sector.
He highlighted the progress made in establishing a National Wildlife database at its Hqs in Naivasha and appealed for funding support to strengthen its 4 Wildlife Research Centres in Malindi (Coastal and Marine); Nyeri (Mountain and Forest); Tsavo East (Terrestrial); and the Wetlands and Inlands Waters Research Centre in Naivasha.
He also appealed for support towards the 2024 National Wildlife Census to update the 2021 numbers. Today the Committee the Committee will be meeting the Director General KWS.
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