BALALA DEMANDS NEW CRUISE TERMINAL FOR THE PORT OF MOMBASA
(Posted 04th January 2016)
(Kenya’s Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala and Kenya Coast Tourism Association Chairman Mohammed Hersi seen here at the port of Mombasa as the Seven Seas Voyager comes into port in Mombasa)
Kenya’s Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala once again showed why the country’s tourism private sector for the better part of the past three years wanted him back in this portfolio. Where his predecessor in office often failed to grasp the specific needs of the sector, the urgency attached to acting decisively and immediately and remained rooted to the spot did Balala hit the ground running.
He had already successfully served in the portfolio between 2008 and 2012, when his then party boss, one Raila Odinga, axed him from cabinet when Balala bruised his ego, sacrificing someone who by general consensus was Kenya’s best tourism minister ever over political expediency. Balala has since then of course left that party and after joining the winning team ahead of the last elections, returned to cabinet but initially in the mining docket.
The action list which is now emerging from a re-vitalized tourism portfolio just grew again over the weekend when Balala demanded that the Kenya Ports Authority finally begin the long overdue construction of a dedicated passenger cruise terminal to attract more business.
Already in November and December did several cruise liners dock in Mombasa with over 3.000 passengers on board and the Seven Seas Voyager, back for a repeat visit, again brought 700 more tourists into Kenya.
The passenger cruise terminal has, as other major infrastructure projects for the Kenya coast, long been mooted and equally long not been implemented, one reason why much of the coast during the last election supported the political opposition. Balala’s return to the tourism docket is seen for the current government as a double bonus, first once again speaking competently on behalf of an industry which was hard hit over the past years and secondly, for addressing crucial issues on coast infrastructure development which could swing the votes back toward the current government in 2017.
During his first term as tourism minister did Mombasa receive substantially more cruise traffic before Somali ocean terrorists brought the lucrative trade to a standstill, not just for Kenya but also for the Indian Ocean islands like Seychelles, Mauritius, Reunion and Madagascar. With this menace finally stopped in its tracks, when Kenyan and other allied forces took over the ports along the Somalia coast and began to restore some sense of order to Somalia while also making the sea lanes safe again, did in particular the Indian Ocean Vanilla Island organization re-engage the cruise lines As a result have a number or ships returned to these waters with multiple visits already signed up for Port Victoria and Port Louis but also benefitting Mombasa with port calls.
Apart from the cruise terminal, a demand which immediately received strong support from the tourism industry at the coast, has Balala also supported the Mombasa County government’s demand for the building of a bridge across the Likoni Channel, the entrance into the port of Mombasa. It is here that the lack of investments shows itself from the ugliest side when ferries, in almost serial succession, develop technical faults causing endless queues on both sides of the channel and often making tourists miss their outbound flights.
It is understood that Balala is also taking a fresh look at a potential public private partnership for a second national convention centre at the coast, in addition to which he has thrown his support also behind the construction of a second bridge from the island of Mombasa to the north coast mainland and complementing road projects.
For now though are the renewed port calls by some of the world’s leading cruise companies a most welcome shot in the arm of Mombasa’s tourism industry, also benefitting curio and souvenir sales and helping to raise occupancies in the safari camps and lodges to where passengers take one and two day safaris.
For more details on Destination Kenya visit www.magicalkenya.com or check out the national parks and game reserves via www.kws.go.ke
