Counties

Initiative to market Kenyan tourist sites goes regional

ttk

Isuzu East Africa Communications Manager Dancan Muhindi (left), Tembea Tujenge Kenya (TTK) ambassador Maina Kageni, and TTK CEO Andrew Kanyutu (right) pose for a photo during the launch of the regional edition. PHOTO | COURTESY

An initiative by Kenyan firms to popularise local tourist destinations has now gone regional after its expansion to include seven East African countries.

Dubbed Tembea Tujenge Kenya (TTK), the campaign now seeks to tap into regional domestic tourism. The new look, Tembea Tujenge Afrika Mashariki, will see the Kampala in Uganda act as the first location of the caravan on August 10, 2022.

The next location will be in the Democratic Republic of Congo followed by Kigali in Rwanda then Tanzania, Zanzibar, Burundi and finally South Sudan.

The initiative is focused on promoting and marketing known tourist destinations as well as exposing new sites to local tourists.

TTK chief executive officer Andrew Kanyutu said they have decided to go regional in order to tap into the regional local tourism with a view to replicating a similar concept across the continent.

“We have for a long time relied on too much on foreigners to build our tourism, it is now our time as locals to spur the growth of our domestic tourism to the next level by playing a major part in that growth,” said Mr Kanyutu during the launch of the third quarter of the campaign in Nairobi last week.

Launched at the height of Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, he said the initiative has led to the growth of domestic travel by breaking the reliance on seasonal tourism cycles that largely depends on foreigners.

“In the first year, we turned in 36,000 beds between October 2020 and September 2021. From October 2021 to date, the numbers have hit 68,000,” he said.

The campaign is supported by major brands including Isuzu East Africa, Shell/Vivo Energy, Sarova Hotels, Tourism Fund, Safaricom, Madison Insurance and St John’s Ambulance.

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