Jomo Kenyatta airport grows arrivals by a fifth

The number of tourists entering Kenya through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) grew faster than those using Mombasa International Airport (MIA), cementing the former’s standing as a major transport hub.

Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) show that tourist arrivals via JKIA grew by a fifth to 763,819 in the nine months to September last year compared to 635,953 a year earlier.

Tourist arrivals at MIA grew 4.3 per cent to 167,788 in a similar period compared to 160,811 the year before.

This means that investors in the hospitality industry will continue to rely heavily on arrivals from Nairobi, with the near stagnation in MIA arrivals linked to fewer charter flights. The country is however benefitting from a general increase in tourist arrivals.

Earnings

In the period under review, total tourist arrivals jumped 16.9 per cent to 931,607 from 796,764 recorded in the same period in 2010.

The coastal region, which accounts for about 60 per cent of total tourism earnings, also got a boost from the recent arrival of 500 tourists travelling on a cruise ship.

Cruise ships had virtually died since 2010 when Somali pirates stepped up hijacking of ships and abductions of sailors in regional waters.

Kenya’s invasion of Somalia to wipe out the Al-Shabaab militia that has been behind a spate of piracy in the region is expected to boost the lucrative cruise ship tourism.

The Kenya Ports Authority is planning to improve two berths at Mombasa port at cost of Sh100 million to allow the docking of large cruise ships.