Coast Tourism Stakeholders want Special Security for Tourists.

By Harrison Kivisu & Mwakwaya Raymond

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmail.com

Tourism players have raised concerns on the deteriorating security situation in Mombasa and its environs saying it was threatening positive prospects in the growth of the multi-million industry.

The industry contributes 10 per cent to the national gross domestic product (GDP) according to recent reports from Ministry of Tourism, thus, indicating the importance of giving special security to tourists visiting the country.   

The stakeholders, drawn from Kenya coast tourism association (KCTA) and Kenya Association of Hotel keepers and caterers (KAHC) all under Kenya tourism federation, say insecurity in Mombasa is negatively affecting the foreign exchange earner.

KCTA chairman Victor Shitakha, responding to an incident where a tourist who had arrived aboard a Cruise-Ship vessel was attacked and robbed of his mobile phone while on a site visit of Ivory Tusks in Mombasa on Monday 31, 2025, said the incident painted a bad picture of the hospitality industry.

 “To all our cruise ship visitors, we hope the magical experience will attract you back in the coming season. As we head to Easter we reassure our visitors that Mombasa and the wider Kenyan coast remain safe, welcoming and open for tourists,” he said.

“If there is no security, tourism will be affected, it’s true we have insecurity incidences in Mombasa, but we should see security solutions being reached at, what we are asking is them to be vigilant, because if a tourist is attacked, it’s a security problem.”

Addressing a media briefing in Mombasa on Thursday April 3, 2025, KAHC executive director Sam Ikwaye demanded for heightened security to avert damaging livelihoods and the country’s reputation as a safe and attractive tourist destination.

“We don’t want to welcome tourism advisories, if such incidences of insecurity happens it threatens the sector very much, we know there are security measures put in place, but we ask for more efforts to be done, especially as we head to Easter holiday,” he said.

The tourism sector, currently on an upward trajectory, is banking on the Easter Holiday celebrations to boost their earnings when both local and international tourists flock to the coastal region for the festivities.

“Regrettably from January, we are witnessing a slight decrease of tourists at the coast, we believe it’s attributed to the bad economy, many tourist hotels are recording between 18-30 bookings, but we are hoping for a positive response, with continued marketing by Kenya tourism board,” Shitakha said.

But while responding to the insecurity concerns, Mombasa County Commissioner Mahmoud Noor promised to establish a new police booth at the famous

 Ivory Tusks site along Mombasa’s Moi Avenue, as a measure to protect tourists who flock there for photographing.

Confirming the incident of a cruise ship tourist attack and robbery at the site, the commissioner termed it as an isolated case and currently under police investigation.

“What happened is that one of the visitor’s from the last cruise ship was robbed of his phone, this happens globally, I don’t know why the media is blowing it out of proportion, but that is a matter being investigated by police.”

According to him the incident was perpetrated by street boys and not panga boys as reported in a section of the media saying a number of them have been arrested and police are pursuing others who were involved.

“Police went and recorded statements with the victim, so that they can investigate, our DCI officers are investigating to ensure that phone is recovered and returned to the owner,” he noted adding that Kenya has received 6,500 passengers this season alone.

Flanked by acting Mombasa County police commandant Maxwell Agoro, Commissioner Noor said: “The next season will begin in September, We will establish a police booth at the Ivory Tusks area, permanent with police officers, normally we have permanent officers, but that day there was a lapse, but now we will have visible police officers manning the place.”

Last year, tourism earnings surged by 20% to 452.2 billion shillings, reinforcing the sector’s position as Kenya’s third-largest source of foreign exchange after diaspora remittances and agricultural exports.

The United States remained Kenya’s largest source of international visitors accounting for 12.8% of total arrivals, followed by Uganda (9.4%) and Tanzania (8.4%).

The growth spike has been fueled by strategic initiatives including the diversification of tourism products, the introduction of new scheduled flights, and the leveraging of digital platforms to enhance global outreach.

The tourism industry in Kenya is headed to increased revenue of 24% with earnings projected to hit Ksh560 billion ($4.33 billion) for this year (2025).

The government expects visitors to grow by 600,000 from 2.4 million in 2024 to 3 million visitors this year.