@ppcheti
The Lamu council of elders has rejected a bid by Tourism CS Najib Balala to rename the Manda airport.
During the relaunch of Jambojet flights back to Lamu on September 15, the CS had called for the renaming of the Manda and Ukunda airports in Lamu and Kwale counties.
He proposed the two be named Lamu airport and Diani airport.
Balala said the current names have been confusing tourists and visitors flying to these destinations as they are not clearly and precisely defined to suit the intended destinations.
He said renaming will not only aid tourists flying to Lamu or Diani to easily identify their destinations but will also market the two counties as unique tourist destinations in the Coast region.
The CS said the depiction of names in any business is crucial to winning clients’ loyalty and curbing confusion and thus the need for the name change.
“It has been confusing for tourists coming to Lamu via Manda airport. They know they are coming to Lamu but then they hear it's Manda airport,” Balala said.
“Tourists ask themselves if they are in Lamu or are lost. They wonder how far Lamu island is from Manda. We, therefore, need to end the confusion.”
However, the elders feel the name change will work against promoting the county’s culture and heritage.
The chairperson Salim Kambaa said the airport was named Manda due to its location in ancient Manda Island in the region.
He said changing the name to Lamu is misleading as it doesn’t specify the exact location of the facility and is equal to lying to the visitors coming to Lamu.
“We want the name Manda to stay because it has not affected in any way the way visitors perceive the airport,” Kambaa said.
The council secretary general Mohamed Mbwana said the name Manda has never affected the airport operations and neither has it hindered visitors from locating any part of Lamu.
Established between 1962-1963 as a landing strip for the colonial administrators, Manda airport is situated on Manda Island in the Lamu Archipelago in Lamu on the western shore of the Indian Ocean.
The airstrip later developed around the early seventies and as more airlines came in, it developed to its present state with expansion in size and other amenities.
It’s a small civilian airport, serving the Lamu Archipelago in Kenya and boost of two runways.
Currently, the airport has at least six major national airlines plying with the major destinations being Malindi, Mombasa and Nairobi.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris