The cancellation of international flights into the tourist town of Malindi has affected tourism activities in the area causing continued decline in the local economy.
Several direct flights from Italy to Malindi have been halted following government orders as the global fears of the spreading the dreaded coronavirus continues to haunt the world.
According to Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi, Malindi town has for ages been depending entirely on the tourism industry for its economic growth but over the past five years, the sector has been declining.
Speaking during the launch of the second phase of the Sustainable Urban Economic Development (SUED) for Malindi town outside his Kilifi office on Monday, Kingi said Italy has been investing in the town and has greatly enhanced economic growth for the area and the country at large.
“Experts came to Malindi to study the activities in the town and found it fit to be selected for SUED so that faster development can be achieved. Despite the challenges, there are still hopes that development can be achieved in the town in other sectors apart from tourism,” he said.
He said if exploited fully, the blue economy, especially the fishing sector could create thousands of jobs for the unemployed youths who have been a thorn for the government.
By Harrison Yeri
