Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am delighted to join you today for the official re-opening of the newly refurbished Mombasa Continental Resort.

Let me, at the outset, extend my most sincere appreciation to the Directors, shareholders and the management of Kenga Equatorial Hotels for investing 750 million shillings to refurbish this beautiful hotel and transforming it into a first-class tourist resort.

I am aware that an investment of this magnitude is an expression of the confidence that you have in the economy of this country and in Kenya as a preferred tourist destination. It is therefore appropriate that we in the Government should join hands with you, the investors, in celebrating this important achievement. Indeed, following my arrival in the city of Mombasa I held useful discussions with stakeholders in the tourism industry yesterday. I assured them of my government's commitment to develop the tourism industry which is critical to the economy of this region and the country as a whole. The sector is particularly important because of its ability to recover quickly from shocks, generate jobs for our young people, while also creating a ready market for our farmers' produce.

My government is however aware that in order to realise our desired goal of making Kenya one of the top ten long-haul tourist destinations globally, we will need to work extra hard to address current constraints hampering the growth of the sector. We will also need to work harder to re-position our country through an aggressive advertising campaign. Government agencies like the Kenya Tourist Board have been directed to redouble their marketing initiatives abroad. They have also been directed to look further than our traditional markets of Europe. For instance, the emerging economies in the Middle East and the Far East have become important tourist source markets. Further attention will also be paid to ensure that we get a bigger share of the high-end market, because Kenya has strong and competitive products.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Coast province remains the backbone of our tourism industry. Pristine beaches and the legendary hospitality of our people continues to attract thousands of visitors every year. My government remains committed to making Kenya the preferred tourist destination in Africa. We have already embarked on a vigorous campaign to boost our country's image abroad. We want to reassure all potential tourists that Kenya is a safe destination.

I also want to appeal to the press, both local and international, to avoid the temptation of focusing too much on trivialities at the expense of the greater good. The media are part of this society, and they should therefore focus more on the positive gains which our country has realised since the signing of National Accord that paved the way for formation of the grand coalition Government. For instance, sensational reporting where isolated cases of crime are portrayed as widespread insecurity, not only undermine the dignity of our society, but they also scare away potential visitors.

More importantly, let us work together to promote domestic tourism. As our economy improves, the number of Kenyans with disposable income will continue to increase. I therefore urge the local tourism promoters not to ignore this very important market segment. Domestic and regional tourism will sensitise Kenyans to appreciate the diversity of our cultures and enhance cohesion within our country and region. I encourage all players in the tourism sector to support the initiative by developing suitable and affordable packages for Kenyans.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The tourism industry is a highly sensitive sector and only the best will survive. The industry is ever changing and tourists are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their tastes. Since our desire is to attract high-end visitors as opposed to mass tourists, we must be prepared to provide them with commensurate standards that can compete even with the best internationally. In this respect, the Government has directed Kenya Utalii College to overhaul its training programmes to cater for the changing needs of the tourism sector. Additionally, we are looking at the possibility of establishing a tourism Academy at the coast to enhance our training capacity.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

My Government appreciates that tourism cannot thrive without the development of adequate infrastructure. This is the reason why my Government is continuing to allocate a substantial amount of funds every year for improvement of the road network in this province and the country as a whole. For instance, this financial year, the government has allocated over 3.7 billion shillings for implementation of various roads projects in the Coast province. I am pleased to see a significant improvement in the state of roads in the city of Mombasa following the urgent interventions by the government over the last few years. As a result of these efforts, the Mombasa-Kilifi-Malindi road has been surfaced by the government at a cost of more than one billion shillings. Furthermore, over 340 million shillings was used to improve Likoni-Ukunda road. In addition, the Mariakani-Kilifi road is currently being tarmacked at a cost of about 2.5 billion shillings. We have truly scored major strides in the roads sector over the past five years. Nevertheless, I am aware that we must do much more to bring the condition of some of our roads to an acceptable condition.

Indeed, some districts with considerable economic potential continue to lag behind because of the poor state of roads. For instance, Voi-Mwatate-Taveta road forms an important link between this region and Arusha in Tanzania. I would like the ongoing design review for this important regional link-road to be speeded up so that construction of this important road can commence.

With regard to security, the tourism sector has in the past suffered serious damage from both real and perceived insecurity emanating from negative publicity. To further improve on security along the tourist circuits, we will strengthen and boost the capacity of the Tourist Police Unit.

In conclusion, Ladies and Gentlemen, I want to appeal to all actors in the tourism industry to ensure that their premises are not used for illegal purposes. Let us promote the preservation of moral norms embedded in our cultural traditions and values.

With these remarks, it is my pleasure to declare the Mombasa Continental Resort officially re-opened.

Thank you and God bless you.