- The Travel and Hospitality Sector in Kenya is recognized for driving exports, providing foreign exchange, and creating employment to thousands of Kenyans; supporting 1.1 million jobs (9% of total employment) in 2017. By the end of 2018, the employment rate is expected to rise by 3.1%; and by 2.6% pa by 2028 to provide 1.5 million jobs (8.5% of total employment). Globally in 2017, the sector accounted for 313 million jobs, or 9.9% of total employment.
- Kenya’s GDP growth declined to 4.9% in 2017 from 5.8% in 2016. The country is set to become among the top five fastest-growing economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a projected rebound of 6% in 2018 and 7% by 2019.
- The 2017 economic drivers include: Enhanced security in the country, infrastructural developments like The Standard Gauge Railway, a steady macroeconomic environment, improved budgetary allocations by the government, the resilience of the tourism sector, and increased air connectivity within Africa.
- International arrivals to Kenya reached 1.4 million as compared to 1.3 million in the previous year, representing an increase of 9.8 percent despite a bumpy electioneering period.
- The travel and tourism industry directly contributed 3.7% of the GDP in 2017. Total contribution stood at 9.7% of GDP in the same year, and is forecast to rise by 5.5% in 2018.
- The Agriculture sector comes second with 25%, although its 2018 performance is currently whirled by uncertainties following the devastating floods that have ravaged the country since the beginning of the year.
- In 2017, Kenya earned 1.2 billion US Dollars from tourism expenditures, up from approximately 989 million US Dollars in 2016; a 20% increase.
- Europe (36%) topped the list of tourists who thronged Kenya in 2017, followed by Africa (29%) and the Americas (15%).
- Domestic expenditure grew with 16% with Kenyans taking up approximately 4 million bed nights in 2017 from 3.5 million in 2016.
- The resilient performance of the travel and hospitality sector has been impactfully felt on the Kenyan economy, directly contributing Ksh. 294.6 billion (USD 2.9 billion), which is approximately 3.7% of the GDP in 2017. By the end of 2018, the contribution is expected to rise by 5.2% to Ksh. 310.1 billion and to Ksh. 515 billion by 2028.
- Kenya is ranked top in Africa, in share of mobile internet traffic at 83% as of 2017; while 86% of the country’s population has access to the internet (43 million Kenyans).
- This high connectivity has allowed more Kenyans to go online to look for travel information such as deals and discounts on hotels and airlines, new destinations as well as travel packages.
- Kenya generated Ksh.195 billion in visitor exports, an amount expected to grow by 5.2%.
- Moreover, domestic travel spending still remains king generating 62% of direct Travel & Tourism GDP in 2017 as foreign spending contributed 38%.
- Hotel bed-nights occupancy rose by 11% to 7.2 million in 2017 from 6.4 million in 2016.
Read More: https://travel.jumia.com/en-gb/hospitality-report-kenya
