The Kenya Tourism Federation (KTF) has cautioned political leaders against making public utterances that could deter tourists and investors, warning that such remarks risk damaging the country\u2019s reputation, livelihoods, and long-term economic growth.<\/p>\n
In a statement, KTF Chairman Fred Odek expressed concern over recent remarks attributed to former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, which advised tourists and investors to stay away from Kenya due to the current political climate.<\/p>\n
While acknowledging that every Kenyan has a constitutional right to political expression, the KTF emphasised that statements undermining confidence in Kenya as a tourism and investment destination have repercussions far beyond political debate.<\/p>\n
\u201cTourists who visit Kenya are not participants in Kenya\u2019s domestic political contests. They are neither involved in nor targeted by the political rivalries that occasionally play out within our country,\u201d the statement clarified.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey come to experience Magical Kenya\u2019s wildlife, beaches, culture, hospitality, conferences, and sporting events.\u201d<\/p>\n
Odek noted that destination confidence is cultivated over many years through sustained marketing, quality visitor experiences, and robust international partnerships. However, it can be easily eroded by negative public messaging.<\/p>\n
\u201cTourism is not a tap that can be switched off today and turned back on at will. Destination confidence is built painstakingly over many years through sustained marketing, positive visitor experiences, and strong international partnerships,\u201d Odek asserted, even as he warned that \u201conce confidence is damaged, rebuilding it can take years, sometimes even longer, regardless of how quickly political circumstances change.\u201d<\/p>\n
The federation further noted that hundreds of thousands of Kenyans depend directly and indirectly on tourism for their livelihoods, including hotel workers, tour guides, transport operators, artisans, farmers, entertainers, airlines, travel agencies, and numerous small businesses that rely on a steady flow of visitors to support their families and communities.<\/p>\n
The KTF cautioned that allowing political disagreements to undermine Kenya\u2019s tourism brand would ultimately harm ordinary citizens whose incomes are tied to the sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolitical competition is an essential feature of democracy. However, Kenya\u2019s tourism brand should never become collateral damage in political disagreements. Our country\u2019s reputation belongs to all Kenyans and has been built through decades of investment, sacrifice, and hard work by both the public and private sectors,\u201d the statement explained.<\/p>\n
The federation called on political leaders from all sides of the divide to pursue their agendas responsibly, without inflicting unnecessary economic harm.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe urge all political leaders, regardless of affiliation, to find better ways of advancing their political agendas without inviting economic harm to millions of their fellow citizens,\u201d KTF said.<\/p>\n
Reaffirming confidence in Kenya\u2019s tourism industry, the KTF stated that the country remains one of Africa\u2019s premier travel destinations, globally renowned for its warm hospitality, diverse attractions, and memorable visitor experiences.<\/p>\n
The federation expressed confidence in Kenya\u2019s enduring appeal as a leading tourism and investment destination, affirming the sector\u2019s resilience and commitment to maintaining high standards while continuing to welcome visitors worldwide.<\/p>\n
The post Tourism body warns against politics that undermine Kenya\u2019s economy<\/a> appeared first on KBC Digital<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Kenya Tourism Federation (KTF) has cautioned political leaders against making public utterances that could deter tourists and investors, warning that such remarks risk damaging the country\u2019s reputation, livelihoods, and long-term economic growth. In a statement, KTF Chairman Fred Odek expressed concern over recent remarks attributed to former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, which advised tourists […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-147363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147363","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=147363"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/147363\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=147363"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=147363"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=147363"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}