Kenya’s Masai Mara is an animal paradise almost without an equal. Famous for its exceptional population of big cats and, of course, the thrill of the incredible annual Great Migration. It has long been one of Africa’s greatest attractions and the desire to visit Kenya’s national parks is as strong as ever. There are, however, growing safety concerns that have resulted in travel warnings for Kenya’s coast and border with Somalia which, of late, have had terrible socio-economic repercussions for Kenya.
In the past few years, there have been a series of terrorist attacks in Kenya with the most recent one earlier this year in Garissa. The threat comes from extremists linked to Al-Shabaab, a militant group that has carried out attacks in response to Kenya’s military intervention in Somalia. Their presence, however, is concentrated around the big cities and the Somali border – well away from anywhere the vast majority of tourists visit.
The Foreign Offices of the UK, France, Australia, Sweden and other countries have advised against all but essential travel to areas within 60km of the Kenya-Somali border, Garissa County, and large swathes of the coastline.
These travel warnings have had a crippling effect on the tourism reliant economy of Kenya’s coastal towns. Kenya’s coast has the white sandy beaches and warm turquoise waters associated with most island paradises. In past years, these areas were crawling with holidaymakers – now, there are hardly any. The New York Times recently reported that these terrorism alerts and subsequent travel bans may be fueling the very terrorism they wish to combat, and ultimately becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. “By contributing to the collapse of the coastal tourism industry, the travel warnings may simply be increasing the joblessness, idleness, poverty, drug use and overall desperation — all well-known kindling for terrorist activity — in an already depressed slice of Kenya.”
In a similar article, Richard Branson, who owns a Kenyan lodge, wrote on his blog that, “travel advisories urging people not to visit countries are exactly what terrorists want. Such advisories destroy economies, causing dire circumstances and resentment, from which environments are created where extremism is more likely to thrive.”
These travel warnings are suffocating the tourism industry on the coastline and it is only once these warnings are lifted that the coastline will have any chance of economic rejuvenation. Meanwhile, tourism is an essential chunk of Kenya’s GDP and it is vital that travelers continue their patronage of Kenya’s wildlife reserves and national parks. Luckily, these areas remain unaffected by the terrorist activity. Although thousands of tourists visit Kenya each year without incident, caution and an awareness of one’s personal security situation is always important.
Remember to follow these guidelines when visiting Kenya;
- Take care in public places where people gather, and exercise a heightened level of vigilance.
- Please check your local embassy websites for the latest updates regarding travelling to Kenya.
- Travel with a respected and experienced travel authority such as Rhino Africa that will be able to assist you throughout your journey.
- The Somali border is the most vulnerable area. As a visitor to Kenya, there is no need to go near the border. Steer clear of this area.
- Spend as little time as possible in Nairobi. Consider bypassing the city and flying straight to your camp.
It is essential that this surge in terrorist activity does not deter tourists to continue their support of the national parks and wildlife reserves of Kenya. If the drop in tourism spreads to the national parks, then some of the world’s greatest wildlife sanctuaries will suffer. Let’s work together to avoid the destruction of Kenya’s tourism industry by visiting the beautiful and magnificent Kenya. We’ll see you there.
