- Mohammed Hersi, a veteran hotelier at the coast, said the cost of fuel has increased by over 70 per cent in the past two years.
- Hersi said the tourism players are now being forced to look for ways to cut down the cost of doing business.
Image: LABAN WALLOGA
Stakeholders in the tourism industry have warned they might be forced to increase their rates due to the skyrocketing cost of doing business.
The hoteliers in the region said the high cost of fuel, increased taxes, and the high cost of products will have a trickle-down effect on the clients.
Speaking on Wednesday during the first day of the four-day Mombasa Tourism Week, the hoteliers said they will have to adjust their prices.
Mohammed Hersi, a veteran hotelier, said the cost of fuel has increased by over 70 per cent in the past two years.
He said the hotels and tour operators have not been able to increase their prices because of the contracts that had already been signed.
“In tourism, we usually sign contracts that go up to 18 months, this therefore means, we cannot increase the prices now and have to bear the cost,” he said.
Hersi said the tourism players are now being forced to look for ways to cut down the cost of doing business.
He said that the taxation element is also affecting them making a number of stakeholders operate outside the law.
The hotelier said the law states that an employee should take home more than two-thirds of his or her salary.
“Suddenly, we are finding ourselves in situations where an employee is taking less than two-thirds which means we are going against the law. We have to increase their salaries to operate within the law,” said Hersi.
“This is putting us as employers in a catch-22 situation, but hopefully, we should be able to overcome.”
Hersi however expressed optimism that 2023 is going to be a good year for the sector. Going by the projections they have, the numbers might surpass those of 2019.
He said they have currently surpassed more than 600,000 international arrivals, which was also realised in 2019 pre-Covid.
Hersi has urged the national government and the 47 county governments to support and invest in tourism as he lashed out at those saying that the sector has had minimal contribution to the country’s GDP.
“Looking at the GDP, there are some areas of concern where some policymakers are actually saying that Kenya’s tourism contribution to the GDP could be less than two per cent. This is not true and is ill-informed,” he said.
“As per the last figures in 2022, which were released by the Tourism Research Institute that is also backed up by the Central Bank of Kenya, tourism has contributed 10.39 per cent to the GDP and we have no doubt that this year we will be hitting 12.5 per cent on the minimum and even go higher than that.”
He said that tourism is the second highest income earner for the country behind remittances from the diaspora.
“All we want is an enabling environment for the industry to continue thriving. The national government and counties should support tourism because it is the easiest vehicle to help our young men and women get employment,” said Hersi.
“Today, if tourism is kicking in Mombasa or at the coast, the effect will be far reached across the county. But if tourism sneezes then the country catches a cold. So, it is in our best interest as a country that we support tourism.”
Mombasa Governor Abdullswamad Sherif Nassir promised to support the sector as he assured the stakeholders that his administration was open to engagements on how to better the sector.
Nassir said that working with the stakeholders, his government was going to embark on a massive campaign to sell Mombasa as the number one tourism destination both locally and internationally.
“We do not want to do this just when our hotels are full to capacity but we want to sell Mombasa even during the so-called dry days. We will sell Mombasa both locally and internationally,” said Nassir.
The governor added that his administration was working closely with hoteliers to ensure that the shores are clean and secure for visitors to come enjoy.
Nassir further called for the open skies policy to be fully implemented saying that this will open up Mombasa and the region at large for more tourists.
“Open skies will unleash Mombasa’s potential and other counties in the country. We are also asking the government to remove the visa requirement for visitors aboard cruise ships that dock in Mombasa,” said Nassir.
According to county statistics, 39 per cent of those visiting Mombasa come as tourists, 26.8 per cent come for conferences, 25.2 per cent are visiting relatives and only 5 per cent are passing by.
Kenya Hotel Keepers and Caterers Association coast executive Dr Sam Ikwaye called for increased investments to realize the Green Initiative in the tourism sector.
“Climate change is affecting tourism so there is need for green initiatives in the sector, and we are still behind in this so more effort is needed. We need more training in this area for our students so that as they graduate from college they have skills to attain the greening initiative in the tourism industry,” said Ikwaye.
Ikwaye expressed optimism that the sector will fully bounce back after the coronavirus pandemic.
He lauded increased investments in the sector across the region saying that this is a clear point that the sector is in the right trajectory.
“We have a lot to celebrate given that some two years back we were grappling with the coronavirus pandemic that adversely affected the tourism sector globally. We are happy because we can now report that we have had an increase in visitors in Mombasa and the region since last year and the numbers are growing,” he said.