By Abdi Ali
Published March 19, 2019
Kenya‘s travel and tourism sector contributed US$7.9 Billion (Sh790 Billion) to the economy of the East African country and employed 1.1 million people in 2018.
Data by World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), a body which represents the Travel & Tourism private sector globally, shows that the Kenya’s travel and tourism industry grew 5.6%, a rate that exceeded the global average of 3.9% and sub-Saharan Africa’s average of 3.3%.
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Speaking from a press conference in Nairobi, Kenya, Gloria Guevara Manzo, President and Chief Executive Officer of WTTC, said, “Africa is one of the great success stories of global travel as the second fastest growing region in the world – and Kenya lies at the heart of the region, a popular and renowned destination that has seen huge growth in tourism activity and value over the past year.”
International tourists spent more than Sh157 Billion in Kenya, sub-Saharan Africa’s third largest tourism economy after South Africa and Nigeria, in 2018.
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A review of the WTTC report by Erik Grimaldi in worldtourismwire.com says that the largest inbound international markets were the USA (11%); UK (9%); India (6%); China (4%); and Germany (4%).
The report shows that:
- Travel & Tourism in Kenya grew at 5.6%
- Travel & Tourism contributed 8.8% to Kenya’s GDP
- Travel & Tourism is responsible for 8.3% of all Kenya’s employment, or 1.1 million jobs
- GDP contribution is projected to grow by 5.9% in 2019
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“The gains of the sector are as a result of coordinated efforts between various arms of government … as well as the concerted efforts in marketing Kenya as a destination of choice,” said Najib Balala, Kenya’s Minister for Tourism and Wildlife.
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