Deputy President Prof Kithure Kindiki on Thursday October 2, 2025 presided over official opening of the 15th Edition of the Magical Kenya Travel Expo at the historic Uhuru Gardens in Nairobi.
Speaking during the event, Kindiki stated that Kenya considers tourism a fundamental enabler and stimulus for investment, foreign exchange earnings and employment creation.
“Every tourist who comes to Kenya supports our agricultural sector through the food they consume; supports our transport sector by traveling on our roads, railways and airspace; supports our cottage industries by buying crafts; and supports the hospitality sector through the hotels, conference and entertainment facilities they patronize,” he said.
The DP revealed that last year, Kenya’s tourism numbers grew by 15% to hit 2.4 million, while revenue rose 20% to 452 billion shillings (3.5 billion dollars) and industry employment grew to 1.7 million jobs.
Despite the upward trend, the Government is upping investments in hospitality infrastructure, improving our marketing, and building greater capacity for conservation of our heritage and other attractions for tourists.
The Government and stakeholders are also diversifying offerings to go beyond the traditional budget game and beach attractions to include astra- tourism, desert tourism and the high end tourist packages, picking lessons from regional destinations that do better than us in Africa and around the globe.
A total 6500 delegates from 40 nations across Africa and parts of the Caribbean are in attendance.
