East African Community member States have renewed the push for a single tourist visa and marketing the region as a bloc, even as they ponder on convincing Tanzania to join.
In a fresh bid, Kenya and Rwanda are leading other member countries including Uganda, South Sudan, Burundi and DR Congo in the push to fully adopt the single travel document for the region, and the creation of a regional tourist circuit.
This is mainly targeted at the international markets, which are the biggest drivers of receipts for the East African countries.
Within the EAC, Uganda, Rwanda and Kenya allow cross border travel without passports with Rwanda this month announcing visa-free travel for all African visitors.
President William Ruto had earlier in October also announced the country would abolish visa requirements for Africans intending to travel to Kenya in 2024.
"By the end of this year, no African will need a visa to enter Kenya. The time has come to understand the importance of doing trade between us," he said at the Three Basins Climate Change Conference in Brazzaville, Congo.
Speaking in Nairobi yesterday, Kenya’s Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua led his peers from the region in the call for a more integrated EAC.
This was at this year’s East Africa Regional Tourism Expo (EARTE) and the Magical Kenya Tourism Expo.
“I will be writing to my fellow ministers from the region to meet and discuss the free visa,” Mutua said at the Nairobi meeting where he also launched the EAC marketing brand dubbed “visit East Africa; feel the vibe.”
He said Kenya would also be putting up new circuits on climate change, food and sports tourism among others, as part of diversification from the traditional Safari and beach products.
“Our strength is in marketing EAC as a region. We can create a circuit for EAC,”Mutua said, further calling on the region to improve connectivity.
EAC deputy secretary general - Customs, Trade and Monetary Affairs. Annette Ssemuwemba said gaps in infrastructure and product diversification was limiting the region’s potential to tap more earnings from tourism.
“We are working towards developing regional tourism standards,” Ssemuwemba said.
Partner States shall establish a common code of private and public tour and travel operators, standardise hotel classifications and harmonise the professional standards of agents in the tourism and travel industry within the Community.
The Partner States are also obligated to develop a regional strategy for tourism promotion, whereby individual efforts are reinforced by regional action.
Since the single visa idea was mooted in 2014, only Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya have been keen on easing movement mainly for member states, with Tanzania being reluctant.
Tanzania is a huge rival to Kenya on tourism as the two countries offer both beach and Safari, the top sourced products by the international markets.
Tanzania has continued to dilly-dally on the adoption of the East African single tourist visa, with Dodoma citing insecurity and financial implications of the scheme.
During an EAC Council meeting in June this year, Tanzanian officials raised issues on security, revenue sharing, the efficiency of the single visa regime and visitor screening.
While it insists on being positive on the initiative, Tanzania says its concerns must be addressed first, according to Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Stephen Byabato.
Among proposals by Tanzania includes visa application to be managed by immigration departments as opposed to the tourism dockets.
It wants a fresh study on the region’s preparedness for a single visa.
Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda have however said they are satisfied with the initiative with Burundi, DR Congo and South Sudan expressing willingness to join the initiative.
In 2022, the EAC recorded 5.8 million international tourist arrivals, which accounts for 13.5 percent of the total international tourist arrivals in Africa.
It is projected that this year, EAC will receive more than seven million tourists with the sector accounting for about 10 per cent the region’s GDP and 7.2 per cent of all jobs.
It targets at least 14 million arrivals in the medium-term.
Last year, Kenya and Tanzania received an average 1.4 million international tourists each, with Uganda’s numbers closing at about 815,000.
Kenya's Tourism Research Institute has projected international arrivals to the country will hit a record 2.3 million this year, with an estimated revenue of Sh425.4 billion, up from Sh268.1 billion.
The highest number of arrivals Kenya has ever received was 2,048,834 in 2019.
Kenya Tourism Board is seeking to grow arrivals into the country to 5.5 million by 2028, in an ambitious plan that involves the private sector.