Tourism

In a significant investment in the aviation sector, Jambojet Limited has introduced a new direct flight route from Zanzibar to Mombasa, Kenya, aiming to enhance socio-economic growth in tourism, trade, and culture, in line with the East Africa Vision 2050.

The inaugural flight, which departed from Mombasa’s Moi International Airport and arrived at Zanzibar’s Abeid Amani Karume International Airport, was marked by a celebratory event attended by dignitaries from the Embassy of Kenya to Tanzania, government representatives from both countries, and Jambojet executives.

The new route will operate four times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, with flights departing Mombasa at 5:10 PM and arriving in Zanzibar at 6:05 PM, covering a distance of 55 minutes.

The round-trip fare starts at KES 24,420 (TZS 495,000), making air travel more accessible to the masses.

“We are committed to providing outstanding service at competitive rates, enabling more people to travel across East Africa,” said Jambojet CEO, Mr. Karanja Ndegwa. “Our goal is to make air travel accessible to everyone, and this new route reflects our efforts to achieve that.”

The airline will operate De Havilland Dash 8 400 aircraft, capable of carrying 78 to 82 passengers, completing the Zanzibar-Mombasa journey in under an hour and facilitating convenient connections to other destinations, including Nairobi, Dubai, Frankfurt, and Milan.

“This new route is crucial not only in facilitating quick and affordable air travel but also in strengthening commercial, tourist, and cultural ties between Tanzania and Kenya,” said Issac Njenga, Kenya’s Ambassador to Tanzania.

The Zanzibar Minister of Tourism and Heritage, Mudrik Ramadhan Soragha, welcomed the new route, stating that it will significantly contribute to boosting tourism on the islands, which are largely dependent on the sector.

Mombasa Governor, Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir, also expressed optimism, saying, “Jambojet is opening up many socio-economic opportunities for Zanzibar and Mombasa. We expect more tourists and traders to benefit from this affordable and fast direct flight.”

With this new route, Jambojet is expanding its reach in the East African region, building on its success since its establishment in 2014 as a part of Kenya Airways. The airline has served over 7.5 million passengers, attracting 44% of first-time flyers and holding more than 54% of the domestic air travel market share in Kenya.

Jambojet also operates flights to Nairobi, Kisumu, Eldoret, Lamu, Malindi, Diani, and Goma in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and partners Tuesday celebrated the successful translocation of 21 eastern black rhinos to Loisaba Conservancy.

The move seeks to establish a new viable breeding population in a country that now has 17 sanctuaries where the species has recovered since being on the brink of extinction decades ago.

Loisaba, located in Laikipia County, received the 21 rhinos from Nairobi National Park, Ol Pejeta and Lewa conservancies in an 18-day exercise executed by highly trained capture and veterinary experts drawn from KWS and its partners.

The translocation was made possible by the support of various partners, including: The Nature Conservancy, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, Space for Giants, Elewana Collection, Ol Pejeta Conservancy, Lewa Conservancy and the goodwill of our communities that support conservation efforts.

Kenya had 20,000 black rhinos in the 1970s before poachers decimated them for their horns, which were sold as decorative dagger handles in Arabia and medicines in the Far East. By the time the KWS was established in 1989, rhino numbers had declined to below 400. Since then, Kenya’s eastern black rhinos have made a remarkable comeback and today there are an estimated 1,004 individuals.

In terms of black rhinoceros numbers, Kenya now ranks third after South Africa and Namibia. Kenya is a stronghold of the eastern sub species, hosting approximately 80 per cent of the entire world’s surviving population.

Meanwhile, southern white rhinos continue to thrive in Kenya, having increased from 50 individuals that were imported from South Africa in the eighties and nineties to reach the current population of 971 individuals.

Kenya is playing a critical role in efforts to save the northern white rhino from extinction, as it is host to the only remaining two females of the species left in the world. Kenya is partnering with the global community on this project, through the BioRescue project which is a consortium of local and international experts. Thirty embryos have so far been developed awaiting implantation into southern white rhino surrogate females.

Long before Loisaba became a conservancy, the last rhinos were poached out of the area 50 years ago. The reintroduction of these 21 animals is a great milestone in Kenya’s rhino recovery action plan and safeguarding this keystone species depends on creating more space and collaborating with communities and likeminded partners to help numbers recover.

“It’s incredibly exciting to be part of the resettlement of rhinos to a landscape where they’ve been absent for 50 years,” said Tom Silvester, CEO of Loisaba Conservancy.

I recognize the splendid role the KWS vet and entire translocation team played to oversee the successful return of this iconic species to this landscape and we are committed to partnering with like-minded conservationists to raise rhino numbers in Kenya.

Dr. Erustus Kanga Director General, Kenya Wildlife Service, said “I am elated to be associated with this momentous effort to secure more space for this cornerstone species. In the recent past, one of the main causes of mortality of rhinos has been territorial fights due to limited space in sanctuaries which has also led to suppressed growth rates due to competition for space and resources, leading to prolonged age at first calving, prolonged inter-calving intervals and more births of male calves, among other density-dependent factors.”

Today’s celebration of the successful translocation exercise brings together top Kenyan government officials, led by Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Dr. Alfred Mutua, Principal Secretaries in the Ministry, Governor of the County of Laikipia, Laikipia community members and wildlife enthusiasts from across the world.

PrideInn Hotels, Resorts and Camps together with 40 local tourism companies attended the just concluded ITB exhibition in Messe Berlin, Germany to market Kenya.

This year’s exhibition running under the theme of ‘Open for Change’, was the first physical event held since 2019.

Led by Kenya Tourism Board, the business-to-business exhibition drew 45 players including hotels, tour operators, and government agencies. It saw more than 5,500 exhibitors from 161 countries, with 90,127 attendees from over 180 countries.

PrideInn Managing Director Hasnain Noorani said that the ITB Berlin served as a gateway for the tourism sector and gave Kenyan companies a chance to capitalize and re-position their product offering to international travelers.

“ITB Berlin was a fantastic opportunity for Kenyan companies as it focuses on leisure tourism and holiday travel, both of which Kenya offers. As PrideInn, we came to market our properties, which include beach resorts, safari camps and even city hotels,” he said.

According to Jackton Amutala, PrideInn’s Group Director of Operations and Business Development said the exhibition offered attendees an opportunity to network with other exhibitors and visitors from around the world.

“The event provided an excellent platform for us to interact with players in the industry and share our knowledge and expertise. It was also an opportunity to learn from other stakeholders,” said Amutala.

“We also came to push awareness for our new units. In 2022, we opened two hotels; a city hotel named PrideInn Plaza and a safari camp named PrideInn Mara Camp,” he added.

Kenya’s participation at the exhibition comes when the tourism sector has recorded improved performance with international arrivals reaching 1.4 million in 2022, a 70% increase from figures posted in 2021.

In the Tourism Sector Performance Report 2022, by the Ministry of Tourism, the sector earned KSh 268.09 billion compared to KSh 146.51 billion in 2021, marking a growth of 83%.

The performance was also on account of intensive marketing of Kenya’s tourism market through platforms such as Magical Kenya, Kenya Tourism Board, and implementation of key government initiatives such as the New Tourism Strategic for Kenya 2021-2025.