The opening up of the Mombasa International Airport to foreign airlines by the government has boosted hopes of an increase in tourism numbers in the Coast region.
The move, known in civil aviation as “an open skies policy” and announced by President William Ruto last weekend, promises good tidings for the tourism sector, which is the region’s economic mainstay.
Dr Ruto revealed that the government has given the green light to Ethiopian Airlines to fly twice directly to Mombasa.
Also approved for direct landing in Mombasa is Fly Dubai, which will make its trips four times a week.
“[Fly Dubai] had been denied a licence to fly to Mombasa, but I have approved it because we want tourists to throng this tourism hub,” said the President.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the state is assessing others, including the Turkish Airlines, to ferry tourists directly to Mombasa.
The move comes as the bed capacity increased to 60 per cent with positive projections for visitors as schools are expected to close for the August holidays.
Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers (KAHC) Coast Executive Sam Ikwaye and Diani Hospitality Owners Association Chairman Mohammed Hersi lauded the move, saying, it will help boost tourist numbers.
“It is a very good development for the tourism fraternity particularly the Coast tourism hub considering tourism has been the mainstay for the region and the government has pumped billions in terms of infrastructure. The missing link has been accessibility due to lack of connectivity to major tourism hubs,” said Dr Ikwaye.
Direct flights, Dr Ikwaye noted, will help spur tourism investment in the region.
“We are hoping that this move and those that are yet to be facilitated like Turkish Airlines, KLM among others will help us recover faster in terms of international occupancies,” he said.
Dr Ikwaye, however, urged the State to prioritise the extension of the Diani Airport runway, a project he said was long overdue.
“It should be fast-tracked for the infrastructure upgrade in Dongo Kundu to make economic sense for investors. We need to ramp up accessibility through the expansion of the runway so that bigger aircraft can land in Diani with ease,” he said.
He urged the Kenya Tourism Board to vigorously market the country abroad to attract international tourists.
“We need to revive direct chartered flights from Italy to Malindi, it will boost the sector because the circuit is a dominantly Italian market,” he added.
His sentiments were echoed by Mr Hersi, who described the new policy as “a very good move that was long overdue.”
“This is something that we have been lobbying and fighting for a very long time. We are glad that the government has heard our pleas,” said Mr Hersi.
He urged the State to continue licensing other airlines, saying, the region needs more scheduled flights after chartered airlines reduced their visits to the coast. He urged hotels to upgrade their facilities in preparation for more tourists.
Governors Abdulswamad Nassir (Mombasa), Gideon Mung’aro (Kilifi), Andrew Mwadime (Taita Taveta) and Issa Timmamy (Lamu) also lauded the move, saying, it will help fill the over 40,000 beds in the region and create jobs.
