The government in collaboration with the Kenya Tourism Board and Magical Kenya have launched the 2024 Magical Kenya Travel Expo in a bid to showcase diverse tourism services, ignite new opportunities and promote collaborations within the tourism sector.
Speaking during the opening ceremony held on Wednesday at Uhuru Gardens in Nairobi, the Cabinet Secretary for Tourism Rebecca Miano stated that the exposition is meant to create discussions on how to promote Kenya as a tourism destination.
“We intend to double our numbers and we have formulated a strategy that was presented to President William Ruto,” she added.
She announced that the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife is working on diversifying tourism services, increasing security and digitization within the tourism sector.
Miano assured the guests that the ministry would not tire until they have a thriving tourism sector.
Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) Chief Executive Officer June Chepkemei stated that the exposition, an initiative KTB, targets to market various destinations locally and globally.
“This exposition is a platform for engagement between our travelers outside the country and locally to meet and have discussions that could support our marketing efforts,” she said.
Chepkemei revealed that over the years, the exposition has hosted over 25,000 delegates and that in 2024 they had registered 4,000 delegates.
“Among the delegates, there are traders from outside the country that KTB brings and recently we started exposing them to our products in the recently launched Nine Circuit for them to experience and understand the product they are promoting,” she said.
She commended the role that the government, private sectors and non-state actors play in the tourism sector which is meant not only to create jobs but also to transform the economy of Kenya.
The Magical Kenya Travel Expo is a premier trade show that brings together buyers and a diverse audience of tourism stakeholders for collaborations through seminars, matchmaking and side events just to showcase the diversity of Kenya.
By Manu Mumba and Mwendwa Mwenda
