Long drought and bird flu threatens Kenyan tourism
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Your support makes all the difference.The prolonged drought and threat of bird flu could destroy east Africa's tourist industry just as it recovers from a series of terrorist attacks that scared visitors away from the region.
Severe water shortages in coastal areas have made it difficult for many luxury hotels to supply their guests with unlimited hot showers and clean water for swimming pools. The hotels which have managed to maintain supplies have caused resentment among local communities which have been forced to buy water to compensate for erratic mains supplies.
As the rains failed across east Africa, tourists on safari have been dismayed to find that many water-holes with a reputation for attracting large numbers of wildlife have dried up.
Tourist chiefs also fear that if bird flu is detected in east Africa, many bird enthusiasts, who come to watch one of most diverse bird populations in the world, will stay away. Experts fear that bird flu may arrive in east Africa with migratory birds which land in Rift Valley lakes such as Lake Nakuru and Lake Baringo, that usually attract 300,000 visitors a year.
"Tourism is a sensitive business that largely depends on the impression source markets have of what is going on in the country," said Dr Dan Kagagi, chief executive of the Tourism Trust Fund.
Kenya is particularly anxious about the effects of the drought. The country's tourism industry suffered devastating blows in 1998 when the US embassy was blown up by an al-Qa'ida bomb and in 2002 when an Israeli-owned hotel on the Mombasa coast was attacked. In the aftermath of the second attack, several coastal hotels went out of business as tourists heeded their governments' advice to stay away.
Last year, the recovering tourist industry attracted more than 1.5 million visitors, who contributed to 12.7 per cent of the country's GDP. The Kenya tourism board had hoped to host two million visitors this year, but government appeals for international aid to feed four million of its people are unlikely to go down well with potential tourists.
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