The Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife is packaging and digitising Kenya’s tourism products to make them more accessible to travellers increasingly using digital platforms to discover, plan and book their travel.
Tourism and Wildlife Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano says the shift in how travellers make decisions made digital technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) critical to Kenya’s competitiveness as a tourism destination.
Miano spoke in Uasin Gishu County today during Kenya’s celebrations to mark the World Tourism Day 2026, held under the theme “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism.”
“Today’s traveller is increasingly using a smartphone, digital platforms and online tools to discover destinations, compare experiences and make travel decisions. This means that we must redesign how we showcase Kenya and ensure that our destinations, experiences and tourism products are visible, accessible and relevant in the digital spaces where travellers are making those decisions,” said Miano.
She said the Ministry was leveraging technology to expand the visibility of Kenya’s tourism offering, citing Safari Live, developed in partnership with Wildlife Earth, as one of the initiatives showcasing Kenya’s wildlife and destinations to global audiences.
She also highlighted Tembea Kenya as an important platform for showcasing destinations and experiences across the country and encouraging domestic travel. Miano added that the youth would play an increasingly important role in promoting the destination through digital platforms, noting that their creativity, reach and understanding of online audiences were valuable assets for tourism promotion.
“Our young people are an important part of this transformation, their digital skills, creativity and understanding of online platforms are an asset that we must continue to harness. We are already working with young people, including influencers and digital content creators, as part of the wider effort to promote Kenya and make our tourism experiences more visible,” she added.
The Cabinet Secretary said the Government would continue strengthening the Kenyan brand internationally, noting that the President’s efforts to promote Kenya globally had contributed to the country’s growing visibility as a destination.
Tourism Principal Secretary Amb. Prof. Julius Bitok said the World Tourism Day celebrations provided an opportunity to position Uasin Gishu and the wider North Rift as an emerging tourism circuit.
He said Eldoret’s city status, improving road infrastructure and the region’s strong sporting heritage presented opportunities to develop new tourism experiences and attract more domestic and international visitors.
“It is time we full opened up this tourism circuit, there is huge potential in this region, with Eldoret’s city status and improving road infrastructure making it increasingly accessible to visitors. We also need to profile the region for sports tourism I urge investors and tourism operators to continue improving and diversify the region’s tourism products to make them more competitive and attractive to visitors” said Bitok.
He added the planned 2029 World Athletics Championships would further raise the profile of the North Rift and provide an opportunity to connect international sporting events with tourism experiences across the region.
The World Tourism Day celebrations followed a week-long programme that profiled Uasin Gishu sports tourism potential alongside its cultural, natural and other tourism attractions.
World Tourism Day is observed globally on September 27 each year to highlight tourism’s contribution to economic, social and cultural development.
