NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 1 – Kenya is looking to grow tourism numbers from West Africa through business and leisure travel.
The Kenya Tourism Board’s (KTB) CEO, John Chirchir, says that the West African market is integral to the strategy to diversify tourist source markets and broaden the country’s destination portfolio.
In particular, he noted that Nigeria and Ghana have shown improvements of 6 percent and 48 percent, respectively, in 2023 and rank among Kenya’s potential markets on the African continent.
He was speaking during a meeting held to mark the beginning of a series of roadshows in the Nigerian and Ghanaian cities of Lagos, Abuja, and Lagos.
KTB and Kenya Airways are leading over 15 travel trade companies for in-market activations set for February 5th–9th, 2024, which will be held in various cities of the two countries and are expected to attract over 400 trade partners.
“With around 1.4 billion people, Africa stands as one of the biggest source markets for trade, business, and tourism. We are starting off with West Africa with roadshows in Acra, Lagos and Abuja which are interesting emerging markets,” Chirchir said
“During the activation, we expect the 17 Kenyan trade to engage in business meeting and direct engagements with potential travellers from the three cities. We cannot ignore the potential that the African Market has for tourism,” he added.
Chirchir also noted that the regular flights between African cities, the ease of travel restrictions, and the Electronic Travel Authorization will make it easier for visitors to access Kenya.
“We currently have regular direct Kenya Airways (KQ) flights to the three cities, additionally other airlines connect Kenya with Acra, Abuja and Lagos,” the CEO stated.
“The easing of travel restrictions and the Electronic Travel Authorization will also help us see a strong demand for outbound leisure and business travel from Nigeria and Ghana and other African countries. We look forward to building partnerships and marketing Kenya through these activations.”
On his part, the Chairperson of the West Africa Roadshow, Consaga Khisa, said, “The partnerships between KTB and the private sector are integral in our goals to improve tourism arrivals into Kenya.”
“The Roadshows will provide an opportunity for the Kenyan trade to engage with about 400 West African travel agents and tour operators, showcase t products and service offering, and forge new partnerships that will drive growth.”
The roadshows to West Africa come as KTB intensifies marketing efforts across the continent, which is emerging as an important source market for Kenya’s tourism.
According to statistics from the Tourism Research Institute (TRI), arrivals from Africa accounted for 651,152 visitors, or 40.7 percent of total arrivals, in the ten months to October 2023.
