Tourism and Wildlife cabinet secretary Najib Balala has dispelled rumors that the annual International Tourism Bourse (ITB) may be canceled due to coronavirus that continues to ravage the world.
Briefing media on the country's preparation for the four day tourism and travel fair scheduled for March 4-8 in Berlin, Germany, Balala said that while coronavirus is a threat to movement globally, adequate measures have been put in place to ensure the event goes on as planned.
''Ignore rumors about the cancellation of ITB. Kenya has secured 265 square meters and we expect local 45 travel trade exhibitors to take part in the event. The event is still on,'' Balala said.
ITB is touted to be one of the largest tourism trade fair in the world, presenting countries with opportunities to showcase their diversity in tourism product offerings.
Kenya's delegation to the tourism fair will be led by the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) and is expected to interact with 10,000 exhibitors from over 180 countries.
Balala said Kenya will use the opportunity to assure international source markets including Germany that the country is safe for holiday.
''The government is making efforts to improve the business environment and encourage foreign investors to set up their businesses in the country,'' Balala said.
KTB CEO Betty Radier said the agency will continue to leverage on global platforms like ITB that present an opportunity for the destination, hoteliers and tourists product sellers to exhibit and promote destination Kenya and our offerings to the world.
Radier said thee platform will be used to promote Kenya’s tourism trends such as that of Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) which is now a key part of the tourism .
The Germany market is Kenya's fifth most important international tourism source with a market share of 3.87 per cent. It is the second largest source market in Europe after UK, contributing to the region's market share by 13 per cent.
Tourist arrivals grew from 49,247 in 2017, to 78,388 in 2018 and closed with a slight drop to 73,150 in 2019.
Germany remains in the top travelling destinations globally with 72 per cent of travels made by Germans in 2019 being abroad, spending almost Sh7.8 trillion on travelling and holidays.
The US, Uganda, Tanzania, UK and India continues to be Kenya's leading market sources according to 2019 Tourism report.
Kenya recently participated in the Outbound Travel Mart in Mumbai India, which is an important outbound market for Kenya.
