KENYA LEADS GLOBAL TOURISM DECLARATION AND STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS
Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Musalia Mudavadi, closed the session of the Fourth Global Tourism Resilience Day Conference and Expo by emphasizing Kenya’s commitment to building a resilient, inclusive, and future-ready tourism sector. He noted that tourism, while highly vulnerable to pandemics, climate change, geopolitical pressures, and economic shocks, has repeatedly demonstrated its capacity to adapt, recover, and drive economic growth.
“Our priority must be to create systems that can withstand disruption, respond swiftly, and recover sustainably,” Dr. Mudavadi said.
Highlighting Kenya’s strategic initiatives, he pointed to the diversification of tourism offerings beyond traditional wildlife safaris to include cultural tourism, ecotourism, sports, gastronomy, and digital innovations. Dr. Mudavadi underscored the importance of public-private partnerships, sustainability standards, and inclusive policies that empower local communities, youth, women-led enterprises, and small businesses to participate fully in tourism growth.
Dr. Mudavadi further noted Kenya’s role in regional and global collaboration, stressing that the exchange of knowledge and best practices across borders strengthens resilience in the face of crises.
“Tourism is not only a driver of national growth it is a bridge connecting people, cultures, and nations. Through partnerships, innovation, and inclusion, we ensure that tourism remains a mainstay of economic recovery and sustainable development,” he said.
Cabinet Secretary for Tourism, Rebecca Miano, highlighted Kenya’s remarkable tourism performance and the human-centered focus of the summit. She reported that tourism revenues rose from KES 268 billion in 2023 to an estimated KES 452 billion in 2024, with international arrivals reaching 2.4 million, and a target of 5.5 million by the end of 2025. The Nairobi Declaration, she said, provides a shared roadmap for embedding resilience, inclusivity, and sustainability across all tourism policies and investments.
Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, founder of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Center, emphasized the transformative role of technology, artificial intelligence, and digital innovation. He announced the launch of the book Destination Reputational Resilience, aimed at countering misinformation and safeguarding the integrity of destinations globally.
Bartlett also reaffirmed the renewed Kenya–Jamaica MoU, originally signed in 2019, which has enabled the establishment of the Global Tourism Resilience Center at Kenyatta University, a hub for regional research, training, and policy development extending to Europe and the United States.
South Sudan’s Minister of Wildlife Conservation and Tourism, Hon. Danny Jok Chagor, stressed regional cooperation and the importance of ensuring that tourism resilience delivers tangible benefits to local communities.
“Resilience is meaningful only when ordinary citizens have decent jobs, can make decisions for their families, and access the benefits of tourism,” he said, citing South Sudan’s rich wildlife resources as an opportunity for cross-border collaboration with Kenya.
The Nairobi Declaration sets a global standard for tourism resilience through six strategic pillars:
1. Institutionalizing Resilience; embedding resilience in policies, legislation, and destination management.
2. Financing Resilience ; mobilizing sustainable investments, public-private partnerships, and regional resilience funds.
3. Data, Innovation, and Technology; leveraging AI, predictive analytics, and digital systems to anticipate and manage crises.
4. Climate and Nature-Positive Tourism; advancing sustainable environmental practices.
5. Inclusive, Human-Centered Resilience; ensuring equitable opportunities for communities, youth, and women.
6. Regional and Global Cooperation; fostering knowledge exchange and coordinated crisis response.
The declaration also introduces accountability measures, including resilience indicators aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), monitoring systems, and peer reviews.
Delegates from countries including Jamaica, Saudi Arabia, Zambia, Ghana, UAE, Rwanda, Somalia, Angola, DRC, Uganda, and Kenya endorsed the declaration, recognizing it as a milestone in global tourism governance.
By embedding resilience, sustainability, and inclusivity into national and regional policies, the Nairobi Declaration positions Kenya as a global hub for tourism innovation, offering practical guidance for countries worldwide to build future-ready, adaptive, and inclusive tourism sectors. The next Global Tourism Resilience Day will be held in Málaga, Spain, on 17 February 2027.