www.eTurbonews.com The US State Department lifted the ban on non-essential travel to Kenya and instead urges Americans to exercise careful consideration before travelling.
The Kenya Tourist Federation (KTF) has welcomed this decision of the US State Department to revise its travel warning with regard to Kenya.
The new travel advisory, announced at the weekend, effectively lifts the “ban” on non-essential travel to Kenya and instead advises Americans to give careful consideration before traveling.
Dr. Ongong’a Achieng, Kenya Tourist Board’s managing director, reaffirmed that Kenya is implementing measures to safeguard its citizens and visitors, and points to the damage travel advisories have created to Kenya’s economy.
"Whereas we welcome the tone in the revised advisory, we cannot overlook the fact that it still hurts Kenya’s economy. The ordinary traveler does not have time to decipher the meaning of the tone," he told the East African Standard.
The KTF Travel Advisory committee has been working to have the travel advisories lifted. Mr. Glen, the advisory committee’s chairman, said: “This is a significant step in the right direction. Previously the State Department told American citizens not to travel to Kenya. This has been replaced by a warning to tourists to carefully weigh the risks before traveling. This is a caveat which, in the present global situation, the US applies to practically every country in the world, including the United States!”
“Obviously we shall continue to press for the complete lifting on the warning, but in the present circumstances this is a considerable step forward.”
Travel warnings are of paramount concern, as Kenya depends on tourism as its second largest foreign exchange earner.
Mr. Glen stated that he understood the initial reaction to the announcement that the warning not been lifted completely was one of disappointment, but added: “The main impact is the lifting of the warning against non-essential travel. In addition the language of the advisory has been softened and toned down.”
He said it was having an immediate impact with confirmations of bookings from leading US agents. |