Tourism is one of the key sectors in Kenya’s economy and its resilience is critical for socio-economic development and sustenance of livelihoods in the Country. Despite its remarkable growth over the years, the sector has however witnessed unprecedented reversals, not only in Kenya but globally, occasioned by the Corona Virus pandemic. COVID – 19 was reportedly first detected in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and rapidly spread around the world, shutting down the global economy.
Tourism Growth in the World
The last six decades have seen an extraordinary growth of travel and tourism industry. In 2019, the tourism
industry contributed 10.4% of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) or a value of over US$8.8 trillion. The
industry directly created 1 in every 10 jobs globally, an equivalent of 319 million jobs. Despite occasional
shocks, international tourist arrivals have shown impressive uninterrupted growth—from 25 million in 1950, to
278 million in 1980, 528 million in 1995, 952 million in 2010, 997 million 2011, 1,044 million in 2012, to 1.5 billion
in 2019. Year 2019 was the tenth consecutive year of sustained growth since 2009, at 3.9%, although slower
compared to the exceptional rates of 2017 (+6%) and 2018 (+6%) (UNWTO, 2020a; WTTC, 2020a).
