A group of more than 100 Ugandan tourism stakeholders are at the Kenyan Coast to sample the region’s tourism products in bid to strengthen the tourism relationship.
The Ugandans arrived at the Moi International Airport in Mombasa on Wednesday and will be at the Coast for a week.
“We are here to showcase to our brothers and sisters what the Kenyan Coast has to offer,” Mombasa Tourism Council chairman Sam Ikwaye said at the airport.
The Ugandans will be touring the Coast with key attraction sites in Kilifi, Kwale and Mombasa counties.
They will also be sampling the culture and cuisine of the communities.
“We will then be able to sell this destination as one,” Ikwaye said.
This is part of the collaboration between Kenya and Uganda that has been forged to boost both countries’ tourism industry.
They are collaborating to sell the destinations as one big entity where visitors to the East African region can be treated to the sites and sounds of both countries as a package.
This comes after a delegation of over 70 Kenyan tourism stakeholders visited Uganda last week for Kenya-Uganda conference and to sample the product in Uganda.
“This is a continuation of the Kenya-Uganda conference that was hosted in Uganda last week. We are here to continue the cooperation and complementarity,” Ikwaye said.
Uganda Hotel Owners Association CEO Jean Byamugisha said the collaboration will boost both countries’ tourism industries and in the process create jobs for youth and enhance foreign exchange earnings.
Last week, the association hosted the Kenya Travel Trade in Uganda for 10 days where Kenyan tour operators, hotel owners, hotel keepers and other tourism industry players attended.
“Kenya is our biggest source market, so we are trying to see how we can be able to firm up the partnership, coordination and cooperation between the two countries especially in the tourism industry,” Byamugisha said.
“We coined a phrase ‘From the Bush to the Beach’, so we want a guest who comes to East Africa to come to the Bush in Uganda to see the gorillas and then to Mombasa and go to the beach,” Byagumisha said.
“I am proud that I am Ugandan and I am in Mombasa and have not used my passport but my national ID to come here,” she said.
Ikwaye said apart from tourism stakeholders, businessmen will also be engaged during the Ugandans’ stay at the Coast to help create networks and boost their own businesses.
“We have engaged the businesspeople, the county governments and particularly key marketing agencies, including Kenya Tourism Board, to see how we can put together packages and how we can enhance cooperation between the two countries.
Ikwaye said the visit of the Ugandans is a great boost to Mombasa because the Mombasa Tourism Council has been looking at how to diversify and sustain their business offering.
“We are looking at how to grow
regional and domestic business and
this partnership and cooperation
between Kenya Coast and Uganda
serves that particular purpose. We
are hoping that the council can ride
on this partnership so we can offer
new experiences for visitors.”
