Kenya and Uganda have registered more than a 37 per cent increase in tourism in the past three years through cross-selling of tourism products and simplified travel using IDs.
Different initiatives adopted since 2022, such as the use of national identification cards, joint marketing of Kenya and Uganda strategy dubbed “from the bush to the beach’ have yielded fruits promoting cross-border tourism.
Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers (KAHC) Executive Director Sam Ikwaye said the campaign has opened up tourism for many other economic activities, promoting free movement of goods and people between Kenya and Uganda.
"The conferences and tourism trips between the two countries, which are attended by people from different spheres, built confidence levels among tourism stakeholders, enabling Kenyan and Ugandan operators to develop and exchange tourism packages effectively, thus raising numbers," he said.
Data by the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife in Kenya showed that the number of Kenyans visiting Uganda grew from 376,294 in 2022 to 490,000 in 2023, while the number of Ugandans visiting Kenya grew from 150,000 in 2022 to 201,620 in 2023.
The Uganda Consul General at the Kenyan Coast, Paul Mukumbya, said the partnership between the two countries has borne fruit.
Tourists disembark from MV Crystal Symphony which docked at the Port of Mombasa from Mahe in Seychelles on March 31, 2025.
Photo credit: Wachira Mwangi | Nation Media Group
He said Kenya is Uganda’s number one source market for tourists, and Uganda is Kenya’s second biggest tourism source market, and the partnership intends to promote regional growth.
“The concept of this partnership has been complementary rather than competitive. In Kenya, we have the Dolphins, the beaches in Uganda, we have beaches, and I always encourage people to look at our beaches, but you cannot find them like the ones in Kenya. For Uganda, even if we combine all our beaches in Entebbe, we would not get even half of what we have in Kenya,” Ambassador Mukumbya said.
“On the contrary, Uganda has the Mountain gorillas that are not found in Kenya. We can complement these products so that when International tourists who come to Kenya to enjoy these beaches can, on the same itinerary, go to Uganda and do the Gorilla tour,” he added.
He said that the number of tourists visiting Kenya and Uganda has been steadily growing, mainly driven by the initiatives undertaken by the two countries.
Since 2022, the Consulate General of Uganda in Mombasa, with tourism investors in Uganda and the Kenya Coast, has been promoting cooperation and complementarity in destination marketing between Uganda and Kenya through the Uganda-Kenya Coast partnership.
Ambassador Mukumbya, the farm trips between the two countries are organised to enable tourism players, especially tour operators, travel agents, and hoteliers, to have first-hand experiences of the products in both destinations for a competitive service delivery.
“I am happy to report that it is working and they can sell the products from a point of knowledge and experience,” Amb Mukumbya said.
During this year's conference, to be held on October 27 and 28 in Malindi, more than 700 delegates are expected to attend, up from 600 last year and 250 in 2023.
