Industry stakeholders are calling on Kenya and Uganda to deepen their long-standing economic relationship by expanding bilateral tourism exchanges and developing integrated travel products designed to encourage regional exploration across East Africa.
The appeal was issued during the media launch of the 5th Uganda–Kenya Coast Tourism and Innovation Summit 2026, held at the Speke Resort Munyonyo in Kampala. Travel agents, tour operators, and tourism executives were challenged to move beyond marketing individual destinations in isolation and instead collaborate on complementary cross-border itineraries.
“Uganda has products that Kenya can sell. Kenya has products that Uganda can sell. Together, we can sell East Africa,” became the defining message of the launch event, underscoring a growing industry push for robust regional tourism partnerships.
The upcoming summit, officially unveiled on August 25, is scheduled to bring together key travel trade stakeholders at the Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort in Mombasa on October 26–27.
Representing the Kenya Association of Travel Agents (KATA), Coast Liaison Patrick Maina Kamanga emphasized that the primary objective for Kenyan travel agents is not merely to sell the Kenyan Coast as a traditional beach getaway, but to reposition Mombasa as a versatile, multi-faceted leisure destination tailored to the Ugandan market. He stressed the importance of promoting the coastal region as a comprehensive family holiday destination that combines white-sand beaches, wildlife sanctuaries, adventure sports, and rich historical heritage.
This strategic push builds upon an already substantial baseline of travel and economic exchange between the two neighboring nations. In 2024, Kenya welcomed a record 2.4 million international visitors. Uganda accounted for 9.4 per cent of those arrivals, translating to roughly 226,000 visitors and positioning Uganda as Kenya’s second-largest source market globally, surpassed only by the United States.
The strong tourism ties run parallel to an even deeper commercial relationship. Uganda stands as Kenya’s largest export market, claiming 11.3 per cent of total Kenyan exports in 2024. Kenyan exports to Uganda reached approximately KSh125 billion during the year, against imports valued at KSh36 billion. This robust economic foundation provides a wide commercial framework for current initiatives designed to increase people-to-people mobility.
Bilateral cooperation has received high-level political backing in recent years. In July 2025, Presidents William Ruto and Yoweri Museveni witnessed the formal signing of eight bilateral agreements spanning tourism, transport, agriculture, fisheries, investment, and regulatory standards. These pacts brought the total number of bilateral cooperation instruments between the two countries to 25, aimed at accelerating economic integration.
Furthermore, both governments have moved decisively to eliminate operational barriers to cross-border commerce. In August 2025, Nairobi and Kampala agreed to strip away remaining tariff and non-tariff hurdles, directing border agencies to treat products originating from either country as internal transfers rather than conventional imports. Concurrently, targeted interventions were deployed to alleviate chronic congestion at the Malaba and Busia border crossing points, significantly easing the movement of goods, services, and travelers.
For the travel trade, smoother border transit opens lucrative avenues to merge corporate travel with extended leisure stays, family vacations, and multi-destination regional itineraries. KATA maintains that travel agents hold a pivotal role in converting this latent potential into active travel by forging robust business-to-business networks and crafting joint packages.
Under this cooperative model, the Kenyan Coast offers Ugandan vacationers an expanded menu of marine activities, wildlife excursions, and cultural tours. Conversely, Kenyan travelers gain deeper access to Uganda’s unique ecological, cultural, and business attractions, fostering a balanced, two-way tourism flow rather than a one-directional market.
Ultimately, stakeholders argue that the initiative directly supports the broader East African Community objective of creating a seamless regional market. By packaging their respective strengths, Kenya and Uganda can transform existing trade connections into sustained visitor growth and shared economic prosperity.
