Policy Brief on Impact of Covid-19 on Tourism in Kenya, The Measures Taken and the Recovery Pathways: Domestic Tourism Recovery Strategies for Kenya

Abstract

The Travel and Tourism industry is a significant contributor to the economic development of most economies in the world. The tourism sector is one of the key economic drivers in Kenya generating 8.8% of the country’s GDP, worth USD 7.9 billion in 2018 (Standard Media Group, 2019). This represents a growth of 5.6%, which was greater than the global average of 3.9% and the Sub-Saharan Africa average of 3.3%. The industry further contributes about 8.3% of the total employment, which is equivalent to 1.1 million jobs (Ministry of Tourism & Wildlife, 2018). While countries often tend to focus on international tourism due to the revenue earned through exports, domestic tourism remains the leading form of tourism, representing an important tool for regional economic growth and development (WTTC, 2018). Kenya is the third largest tourism economy in Sub-Saharan Africa after South Africa and Nigeria both of which grew substantially less than Kenya in 2018 (Standard Media Group, 2019). This impressive performance is threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic that has impacted heavily on travel and tourism worldwide.