What are the benefits and disadvantages of tourism in Kenya?

Total tourist arrivals have increased dramatically from 65,400 in 1965 to an amazing 830,000 in 1993. The sector provides direct employment to about 170,000 people and indirectly to another 340,000. Continental Europe is the major tourist-generating region with a market share of 60 per cent of tourist arrivals to Kenya.  From this clear evidence we can see how vital tourism is for a less economically developed country like Kenya.

For most visitors, Kenya means, above all, a safari across the Savannah to view the elephants, lions, leopards, rhinoceros, cheetah, giraffe, hippopotamus, wildebeest, antelope, monkey, hyena, baboon, waterbuck, and many others in their natural habitat.

Kenya is also habitat to most of the 1,500 or so species listed for the eastern half of tropical Africa. The Great Rift Valley, one of the wonders of the world, contains the planet's largest concentration of flamingoes in Lakes Nakuru and Bogoria.
Kenya's coastline is famous for its hundreds of miles of clean, sandy, palm fringed coral beaches, lapped by the clear, blue waters of the Indian Ocean. The coast is well served by first class holiday hotels and resorts with facilities for tennis, scuba diving, golfing and a variety of water sports.
There are two main types of holidays when you visit Kenya, there’s a safari holiday and a costal holiday. The two are both extremely different, which gives the tourist even more of a reason to want to visit Kenya.

The safari holiday holds many advantages and disadvantages. You can witness all the amazing wildlife and the local people, also known as the Maassai. It gives you an insight on the Maassai tribes and how they live.

 One of the disadvantages is that the Maassai are traditionally semi-nomads, moving from place to place in search of water and grass for their herds of cattle and sheep. They were driven from Kenya’s better farming land and more reliable rain areas when Kenya’s National Parks, especially Amboseli and the Maasai Mara were created and took over that land. Now they can enter the park for water but they cannot use it for grazing or settling.

The environment is being ruined because of the traffic, especially in Amboseli. It has caused soil erosions and dust has worn huge tracks in the landscape. This is taking away the natural beauty that attracted tourists to a Kenyan safari in the first place.

Yet another disadvantage is that the wildlife are being forced to give up their search for food when they are disturbed by safari mini-buses observing the animals. Because of the protection of animals by national parks and game reserves the land is overgrazed and becomes vulnerable to desertification.

On the other hand, there are many advantages to a Safari holiday. One of them being the amount of money it brings to the local people. It earns a lot of money from the safaris provided for the tourists; also the tourists pay to watch the local people in their natural habitat and learn about their cultures. This includes them coming into the parks and performing to the tourists by singing and dancing before returning to their tribes for the night. The money can be used to build more needed animal sanctuaries, nature trails and planting trees on old quarries.

Following on from that point about money, it provides jobs for local people. Our research shows that tourism provides direct employment to about 170,000 people and indirectly to another 340,000. Without tourism there would be so many unemployed people living in Kenya so this shows exactly how vital tourism is to these people to survive.

The other type of holiday, the costal holiday, also contains many advantages and disadvantages. Kenya’s coastline is famous for its luxurious sandy beaches and its exotic blue waters of the Indian Ocean.

Tourists polluting the area and disturbing the sand are unfortunately ruining all the beautiful scenery. The coral also is being extremely damaged when trampled on by humans or hit by anchors from ships. On the other hand there is now an ‘eco- tourism’ policy by which visitors can appreciate the wonders of the reef without damaging it. This is the sort of action that is needed to ensure the coast is not totally ruined.

Water shortage is a serious problem throughout the whole of the land. Currently, students, families, livestock and wildlife are often sharing a water facility approximately seven miles away from where they live. The only people able to afford water are the big businesses and hotels catering for tourists.

The coast has its advantages as well, local businesses can cater for tourists earning themselves some money by supplying boat trips, scuba diving lessons, sailing and other water activities. This again goes back to our point about money and jobs and how important they are to the industry.