- The meeting brought together Nairobi hoteliers, tour operators, travel agents, and airline representatives.
- Kenya has also been selected as the hub for CDC Africa which ensures that the country is at the centre of eliminating the disease.
Ministry of Tourism has set aside Sh500 million to cushion the industry against effects of coronavirus,
In a statement on Thursday, CS Najib Balala said the decision was arrived at after meeting sector stake holders in Nairobi on Wednesday.
The meeting brought together Nairobi hoteliers, tour operators, travel agents, and airline representatives.
“Part of this money will be used to restore destination confidence to ensure that Kenya remains as a preferred travel destination globally while the rest will be used for the post coronavirus recovery strategy in all our key source market” Balala said.
He added that the government is prepared and committed to ensure that COVID-19 does not get into the country.
The tourism sector is one of the most affected by the novel coronavirus with global movement limited.
Most of Kenya's tourist source countries including US, Italy, Germany and France are worst hit by the virus that has since claimed almost 5000 lives and infected more than 100000 people across 100 countries.
Apart from the isolation centre at Mbagathi Hospital, every county will have an isolation ward for COVID-19.
Currently, the Ministry of Health is overseeing the training of 5000 doctors and nurses to ensure that the country is well prepared in case the pandemic strikes.
Kenya has also been selected as the hub for CDC Africa which ensures that the country is at the centre of eliminating the disease.
During the meeting, the stakeholders through the Kenya Tourism Federation chairman Mohamed Hersi said they are ready to work collaboratively with the government to ensure that Kenya’s tourism remains at the top.
He also urged the public to desist from spreading fear and creating perceptions that the conditions were bad while also remained confident that the government was working to ensure that coronavirus does not get into the country