The Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) earlier this morning announced the dates for the 7th edition of the Magical Kenya Travel Expo, to be held once again at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre in Nairobi.
October 3-5 have been set for Eastern Africa’s most important tourism trade exhibition. It is understood that the event website www.mkte.co.ke will be updated shortly following which companies intending to exhibit can begin to register and book their stand space.
KTB and the Ministry of Tourism will once again host scores of international buyers for the event, as well as international travel media, registration for which will also be possible when the website registration links have been updated.
Present at the launch was KTB CEO Betty Radier, KTB’s Director of Marketing Jacinta Nzioka and other officials from the tourism board and the company selected to organize the event.
KTB CEO Radier said: “MKTE is not just another tourism expo, but serves as a key element of our strategies implemented to grow tourism business in Kenya. The business of KTB is to market Kenya, but the business of business is in business.”
As part of raising the bar for the MKTE Expo, KTB unveiled their new event management partners, On Show Solutions which possesses vast knowledge and understanding of the global tourism trade and boasts of having over two decades worth of experience in organizing tourism exhibitions. The partnership seeks to reap maximum benefit from their expertise and bring in more partners and exhibitors globally, as well as raise the bar in conference events in Kenya.
The 2017 MKTE expo will be staged during the first week of October, coinciding with the World Tourism Day celebrations in Kenya and bring together hosted buyers from across the globe including travel agents, tour operators, hoteliers and travel trade media from Kenya’s key tourism source markets; including Europe, Africa, Asia, and Americas among others.
Speaking at the launch Betty Radier also reported that the tourism sector had experienced growth during the past year.
Total international arrivals for January to December 2016 by air and sea closed at 877,602 compared to 752,073 in 2015, illustrating an increase of 16.7%. Arrivals through the JKIA arrivals grew by 16.2% to record 782,013 compared to 672,789 in 2015, while Moi International Airport Mombasa (MIAM), on the other hand, received 92,872 visitors, compared to 75,983 in 2015, a 22.2% growth. The total consolidated arrivals for 2016, therefore, are 1,307,351, a 10.4% growth over 2015 that recorded 1,183,847. The domestic segment continued to grow posting a total of 3.6 million bed nights taken up by Kenyans in 2016 compared to 3.1 million in 2015, a 14.6% growth.
As 2017 gets underway, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) reported a continued confidence in tourism for the year 2017, projecting international arrivals worldwide to grow at the rate of 3% to 4%. Africa is also expected to grow ahead of that curve at the rate of between 5% and 6%.
In conclusion, KTB CEO Raddier encouraged local participants register for MKTE as new international entrants would be coming in and reinforced KTB’s assurance for the tourism sector. “As KTB we strive to create a conducive environment for domestic and international buyers to engage,” concluded Betty Radier.
KTB responded to the question why an Exhibitions Management company was chosen to organize the event, stating that MKTE 2017 will be different as the expo is handed over to a professional and international Exhibitions Management Company; On Show Solutions to run East Africa’s leading tourism trade show on behalf of KTB.
The company was tasked to meet a range of measurable deliverables:
– Elevate the MKTE brand and position it as Africa’s Tourism Trade Show of Choice.
– Register MKTE growth as one of the KTB’s flagship event and earn destination Kenya global recognition.
– Wholesomely streamline the exhibition management strategy for efficiency and bring it to break even.
– Position Kenya as the leading destination in East Africa.
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