AviationGhana-epaper 17Nov.2020

NOVEMBER 17-18, 2020 | AVIATIONGHANA.COM

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International airlines plan direct flights to Kumasi

BY DOMINICK ANDOH & ISAAC SETUGAH

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viationGhana sources have confirmed that two major international airlines are planning to start a direct service between their hubs and the Ashanti regional capital Kumasi when the Kumasi International Airport is completed.

The two airlines believe that the region has the numbers

to make any such future operation successful.

“We have been looking at the numbers and we think that it is something we want to do, even if it is a day or two in the week that we operate directly between our hub and Kumasi for a start,” a senior executive of one of the airlines said.

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Gov’t waives US$150 COVID-19 test for 5-12years at Kotoka Airport Children between the ages of 5-12years will now undergo mandatory COVID-19 screening upon arrival at the Kotoka International Airport free of charge, effective Monday, November 16. The new measure is designed to bring some relief to parents PAGE 02

Ethiopian Airlines is CIMG International Airline Of The Year Ethiopian Airlines has been adjudged the CIMG International Airline Of The Year 2019 at the 31st CIMG Annual National Marketing Performance Awards held over the weekend in Accra.

The airline, which played a key role in transporting thousands of visitors from around the world to Ghana for the 2019 Year of Return PAGE 03

Kumasi, the Ashanti regional capital, is the busiest domestic destination and is currently served by both PassionAir and Africa World Airlines (AWA).

PassionAir and AWA, for instance, operate 20 flights per day between Accra and Kumasi. Seats are hard to get especially during weekends when hundreds of people travel for social functions such as funerals, weddings and family meetings.

Industry data show that in 2019, a total of 16,499 people travelled by air between the two cities.

Expansion of Kumasi Int. Airport Construction of a new terminal building and other ancillary works at the Kumasi Airport, which will make the operation of direct international flights to the airport possible is nearing completion, a visit by AviationGhana to the facility has revealed.

The project, valued at about US$300 million, comprised the extension of the runway from 1,981m to 2,300m to accommodate Boeing 737-800 series aircraft, construction of a new two-story ultra-modern terminal, construction of additional aprons, restaurants, shopping and parking areas, and a ring road around the airport.

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Gov’t waives US$150 COVID-19 test for 5-12years at Kotoka Airport CONTINUED FROM COVER

BY DOMINICK ANDOH & ISAAC SETUGAH

who will be travelling back home for Christmas with their children. Mr. Yaw Kwakwa, Managing Director of Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL) told AviationGhana that the: “The new measure has been negotiated with the service provider [Frontier Health Care] to help reduce the financial burden on families, especially during the upcoming festive season where many Ghanaians come home.”

Prior to the announcement

contained in the updated COVID-19 guidelines for Kotoka International Airport published by the Ghana Airports Company Limited on Friday, only children under five years were exempted from taking the mandatory test and paying for same upon arrival at the Kotoka International Airport.

All others, including children within the 5-12years age bracket, were mandated to pay the US$150 online prior to arrival and subject themselves to the antigen test conducted at the Upper Arrival Hall of Terminal 3, KIA. Imported cases of COVID-19, detected by screening all arriving

passengers, has gone up by 87 percent, increasing from 92 to 172 between mid-October and November 6.

As at November 6, a total of 54,000 arriving international passengers had been screened with 172 positive cases recorded.

Ghana on September 1, re-opened the Kotoka International Airport for scheduled passenger operations, after six months of closure, with a stringent testing regime in place.

Upon arrival, passengers who are required to pay US$150 for the COVID-19 test online prior to arrival in Ghana, have their receipts verified

before proceeding to the sampling cubicles located at Upper Arrival of Terminal 3, KIA for their samples to be taken.

Results are transmitted electronically to Port Health in the main arrival hall.

At the arrival hall, passengers are screened at one of the Port Health stations and results of their COVID-19 tests made known to them.

Arriving passengers who test negative then proceed to immigration and then to baggage claim for their luggage and then exit the terminal.

Positive cases receive further clinical assessment and treatment.

International airlines plan direct flights to Kumasi It’s expected that the new terminal will have the capacity to handle one million passengers per annum.

The expansion project was part of the multi-modal transportation system being developed by the government to enhance tourism in the Ashanti Region.

The second phase of the project, which began in June 2018, is expected to be completed in 24 months.

Why the choice of Kumasi The capital is one of the fastestgrowing in the 16 regions of the country, with an estimated population of over 3million million.

Over the past two decades there has been rapid growth in commercial activities in the city, chiefly because of its ideal location in the middle-belt of the country. After Accra, Kumasi is the second-largest city in Ghana in terms of size and population.

A lot of traders from the region also

travel to China and other countries in the East to bring in goods for retail locally.

Traders, farmers and cattle owners from Brong Ahafo and the northern parts of Ghana bring their wares to large markets in Kumasi to sell every day.

What is needed to make direct flights possible Aside the regulatory approval by the aviation sector regulator, the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), various security agencies--the Ghana Immigration Service, National Security, the Narcotics Control Board and others-would need to be present on-ground with their systems fully installed and functional.

Additionally, the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority ( GRA) would have to set up their system at the terminal building to ensure the right taxes on imported goods are paid.

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Ethiopian Airlines is CIMG International Airline of the Year CONTINUED FROM COVER

year-long programme, was recognised for its dynamic marketing that puts the passenger at the heart of everything they do.

Area Manager of Ethiopian Airlines, Yemesrach Alemayehu, thanked the organisers of the award, the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG), for the recognition and stressed that the airline will continue to offer the best of on-ground and on-board service to the travelling public.

“We will continue to do more to delight our customers. The new Accra-LoméNew York service launched in October, presents another fine opportunity for us to do this,” she said.

Asky and Ethiopian Airlines, on October 15, 2020 started its Accra to New York via Lomé flights. The service offers the travelling public more options between Accra and the USA.

The new service is operated 3x per week on Saturdays, Mondays and Wednesdays. This compliments the Asky/Ethiopian existing 4x weekly flights between Accra and Newark via Lomé.

Ethiopian has also taken delivery of two Airbus A350, one of the new planes from French aircraft manufacturer Airbus, to better serve its passengers in its home region and abroad. This brings to 16 the number of A350 planes in Ethiopian’s fleet.

The planes are all configured to accommodate 30 business class passengers and 318 economy class passengers.

Ethiopian’s commitment to Ghana was evident in its excellent display of courage and determination in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the role the Prime Minister of Ethiopia played in the coordination and distribution of COVID-19 materials across the African continent.

Qatar Airways to operate one weekly flight to luanda, Dec. 1 Qatar Airways, State of Qatar’s national carrier; named ‘World’s Best Airline’ by the 2019 World Airline Awards, aims to launch two new destinations in December with one weekly flight to Luanda, Angola starting from 14 December and four weekly flights to San Francisco from 15 December 2020.

Although the carrier has had its fair share of the Covid-19 challenges, operation has not being at a halt and continues to sustainably rebuild its network, hence maintaining its position as the leading international carrier providing global connectivity. This may be attributed to its possession of a fleet of modern fuel- efficient aircraft.

According to Qatar Airways, its passengers should expect flights to resume and an increase in its services to several destinations in the coming weeks, including: • Algiers (two weekly flights starting 13 November) • Chicago (increasing to nine weekly flights from 15 November) • Kiev (three weekly flights starting 18 December) • Miami (two weekly flights

starting 14 November) • New York (increasing to 14 weekly flights from 14 November) • Phuket (two weekly flights starting 4 December) • Seychelles (three weekly flights starting 15 December) • Tbilisi (one weekly flight started 5 November) • Warsaw (three weekly flights starting 16 December) Speaking, His Excellency Mr Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, said: “We are delighted to continue rebuilding our network, resuming routes and adding new destinations.

We have made it our priority to not only restart most of our existing destinations as soon as possible but also to launch new routes. Our fleet of technologically advanced, sustainable aircraft has enabled us to lead the industry, operating more frequencies to provide our passengers increased connectivity and the flexibility to travel when they want.

With more than 700 weekly flights currently to just over 100 destinations, and plans to increase

our network to more than 125 destinations by the end of the IATA Winter Season, our passengers will enjoy more options to travel when they want across the globe, safely and reliably.”

The carrier, with the largest fleet of Airbus A350 aircraft to its belt, recently took delivery of three new state-of-the-art Airbus A350-1000 aircraft, increasing its total A350 fleet to 52 with an average age of just 2 years 6 months Due to COVID-19’s impact on travel demand, the airline has grounded its fleet of Airbus A380s as it is not environmentally justifiable to operate such a large aircraft in the

current market. Qatar Airways has also recently launched a new programme that enables passengers to voluntarily offset the carbon emissions associated with their journey at the point of booking.

Qatar Airways have previously bagged ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, ‘World’s Best Business Class’, and ‘Best Business Class Seat’, in recognition of its groundbreaking Business Class experience, Qsuite.

The Qsuite seat layout is a 1-2-1 configuration, providing passengers with the most spacious, fully private, comfortable and social distanced Business Class product in the sky.

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Star Alliance lounge Los Angeles airport recognized as best in North America The Star Alliance Lounge Los Angeles received accolade as North America’s Leading Airport Lounge in this year’s World Travel Awards.

shows that the appetite for travel and tourism has never been stronger and bodes well for the industry’s future as the global recovery begins.”

The annual distinction is based on a worldwide poll of qualified executives working within travel and tourism and the consumer travel buyer.

Mr. Draeger added: “As the demand of air travel returns, we can assure customers that when our branded lounges re-open they will ascribe to the highest health and hygiene safety standards. Customers will be able to enjoy premium services in a safe and exclusive environment.”

Recognition of the Star Alliance branded lounge at Los Angeles’ Tom Bradley International Terminal is becoming a regular occurrence, with the Air New Zealand operated facility having won continuous awards as World’s Best Airline Alliance Lounge as well.

“We are honoured to receive this award,” says Star Alliance Vice President Customer Experience Christian Draeger. “It is a recognition of the very high design and customer service standards that we deliver with our eight branded lounges around the world, and I would like to extend my thanks to our customers and industry partners for their continued trust in our product.”

Graham Cooke, Founder, World Travel Awards, said: “the World Travel Awards 2020 programme received a record number of votes cast by the public. This

Besides Los Angeles (LAX), Star Alliance offered branded lounges in Amsterdam (AMS), Buenos Aires (EZE), Nagoya (NGO), Paris (CDG), Rio de Janeiro (GIG), Rome (FCO) and São Paulo (GRU).

About Star Alliance The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller. Its acceptance by the market has been recognised by numerous awards, including the Air Transport World Market Leadership Award and Best Airline Alliance by both Business Traveller Magazine and Skytrax.

The member airlines are: Adria Airways, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air India, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca, Avianca Brasil, Brussels Airlines, Copa Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore

Airlines, South African Airways, SWISS, TAP Air Portugal, THAI, Turkish Airlines, and United. Overall, the Star Alliance network currently offers more than 19,000 daily flights to more than 1,300 airports in 194 countries. Further connecting flights are offered by Star Alliance Connecting Partner, Juneyao Airlines.

Emirates and FlySafair partner to boost travel in South Africa Emirates and FlySafair on November 15 announced an interline agreement which opens up connections for customers to selected routes in South Africa.

The agreement now makes it possible to offer a single-ticket travel and through tagging of baggage for travellers transferring from Emirates’ three gateways – Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban to FlySafair domestic points in South Africa, such as Port Elizabeth, East London and George.

Emirates’ Senior Vice President for Commercial Operations in Africa, Badr Abbas said: “We are pleased to begin our interline partnership with FlySafair.

Their network complements our South African presence, providing an array of connections for our customers, which makes this a natural partnership. Together, we will open up new travel opportunities, and more choice for customers wishing to travel domestically. We look forward to working together and strengthening

our relationship into the future.”

Kirby Gordon, Chief Marketing Officer at FlySafair said: “We are excited to announce the launch of our interline agreement with Emirates Airline. The superb service and vast route network that Emirates offers is world-renowned, and we are proud to have partnered with them in providing customers greater connectivity when travelling.”

He added: “We are in a very fortunate position whereby we were able to restart operations in June this year. As of November, we will be operating at our full capacity again, which will see us operating just over 75% of the available domestic seat capacity in South Africa.

International traffic is still very limited given the various restrictions in place, but we are happy to report that there has been a slow and steady uptick in the volumes of flights we are selling through our connection agreements like that with Emirates.”

Emirates currently operates 17 flights a week in South Africa and has put

in place enhanced safety measures across all of its onboard and on ground touchpoints.

The airline continues to stimulate passenger demand through connecting customers via Dubai from close to

100 destinations, as well as building more connection opportunities in South Africa through partnerships like FlySafair that provide customers more convenience and flexibility.

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Etihad Airways closing its office in South Africa Etihad Airways is closing its office in South Africa and has confirmed that it will not operate to or from South Africa during the winter 2020/21 season.

But Travel News understands that the employment contracts of local staff have already been terminated, which makes it seem unlikely that Etihad will indeed return to SA skies after the winter 2020/21 season, or at any time in the near future. The closure of the South African office looks as if it will bring to an end the route of 11 years’ standing when the doors close at the end of December 2020.

When Travel News contacted the carrier for more information about the local office closure and termination of staff, an Etihad spokesperson replied by issuing a statement saying: “Due to the continued impact of COVID-19 on global travel, a number of Etihad routes to and from Abu Dhabi remain suspended throughout the winter 2020/2021 season. Etihad is working closely with impacted guests to notify them of the change to their itineraries and to reaccommodate them on alternative flights. Refunds are permitted for all future bookings with an original trade date on or after October 1, 2020 where any of the flights on the booking have been cancelled by Etihad. The airline is also providing flexible options for

existing bookings.”

“Guests who wish to reach Etihad directly may contact an Etihad Airways contact centre for more information.

Contact details are available at www. etihad.com/contacts. Guests who have purchased their tickets through a travel agent are advised to contact the agency from which they purchased their ticket

for assistance. Etihad regrets any inconvenience caused by the continued suspension of the affected routes,” added the spokesperson.

A release distributed to the trade added that the airline had a rebooking agreement in place with EgyptAir via Cairo.

“This option should be offered to

the guest only if there are suitable connections available. This does not apply to groups, redemption or Free of Charge (FOC) tickets,” said the airline.

It added that agents were to get in touch with the airline through the etihadhub.co.za channel.

All Seychelles visitors to test on day six All travellers to Seychelles will have to take a COVID-19 PCR test on the sixth day after they arrive.

The Seychelles public health commissioner, Jude Gedeon, announced the testing at a press conference yesterday, November 12, as part of the island nation’s response to the acceleration of the outbreak in several parts of the world. The decision was taken in a review done by a task force that oversees all issues relating to the reopening of the destination during the pandemic.

The cost of the test, to be conducted on both foreigners and Seychellois citizens travelling to Seychelles, will be covered by the government.

Before Thursday’s announcement, only visitors from the Category 2 countries were required to take a PCR test after their fifth day in the country.

Now it includes both category 1 and 2 visitors. South Africans are currently Category 1 visitors.

The task force has also put in place stricter measures for establishments hosting weddings and for wedding service providers, including the civil status personnel officiating, beauty and hairdressing service suppliers. (travelnews.co.za)

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Emirates tops global ranking in safe travel Emirates has been rated the safest airline in the world in its response to the COVID-19 Pandemic according to the Safe Travel Barometer.

The airline, which has set industryleading safety standards since the resumption of its operations back in May, has topped the ranks with a ‘Safe Travel Score’ of 4.4 out of 5.0 among 230+ airlines evaluated worldwide. The score is based on an independent audit of 26 health and safety parameters evaluating safety protocols, traveller convenience and service excellence announced by airlines.

Safe Travel Barometer is the world’s most comprehensive solution to monitor and benchmark supplier initiatives in the travel, tourism and hospitality industry for the postCOVID world. Its rating mechanism considers safety measures and hygiene standards across all touchpoints of a traveller’s journey which Emirates has consistently delivered on. At every step of the journey, Emirates has spared no effort to prioritise the care, health and safety of its customers, employees and communities.

Enhanced biosafety measures taken by the airline include the distribution of complimentary hygiene kits, protective barriers at check-in desks and immigration counters, personal protective equipment and new safety protocols for cabin crew and airport employees in customer facing roles, and elevated aircraft cleaning procedures including the frequent cleaning and disinfecting of aircraft lavatories every 45 minutes during flights, amongst many other measures.

Emirates has also led the way in traveller convenience which was another sub-category considered by the Safe Travel Barometer. The airline was first in the industry to offer its customers free Covid-19 cover to help them travel with more confidence, knowing that medical expenses of up to EUR 150,000 and quarantine costs of EUR 100 per day for 14 days will be covered if they are diagnosed with COVID-19 during their travel, while they are away from home. Emirates’ booking policies also offer customers great flexibility and confidence to plan their travel. Customers have options to change their travel dates, or extend their ticket validity for 2 years. In addition, the airline launched initiatives to help its loyal Emirates Skywards members retain their tier status and introduce new ways for them to earn and spend their Miles.

The Safe Travel Barometer was launched in 2020 to monitor global traveller health and safety measures, traveler convenience initiatives and overall traveler experience which influences traveler’s decision-making

and the actual journey in the new normal. The Safe Travel Score is an industry-first COVID-19 rating initiative, created in the wake of recovery from the pandemic.

Safe Travel Barometer is a B2B solution by Safe Travel Technologies, an independent subsidiary of VIDEC, a travel industry advisory and consulting firm. The coverage includes more than

2,000 companies across 10 industry categories, 50 parameters, and traveller arrival information on more than 80 destinations.

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South Africa welcomes all international leisure and business travellers South African Tourism (SA Tourism) is delighted by government’s recent announcement that South Africa is now open to all international leisure and business travellers from all over the globe.

The opening of all international travel follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement on Wednesday that South Africa would be moving to augmented alert level 1, thus opening up international borders for all countries from 11 November 2020.

“We are excited by the full opening of our international borders because this is a strong testament of the fact that we are open for both business and leisure travel. This opening brings certainty

for South Africa, as a travel destination putting us back on the map and on the radar for many travellers who want to come explore our beautiful country,” says SA Tourism Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Sisa Ntshona.

All travellers coming into the country will need to supply a negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) COVID test not older than 72 hours from the date of departure from their country.

All requirements for entering South African can be found here.

“We know that now more than ever, traveller behaviour is influenced by trust and confidence so our country has put in place globally-benchmarked health and safety protocols. We thank all partners

from here in South Africa and across the world for their ongoing support and patience. As we gradually welcome tourists and business travellers from all over the world, we look forward to engaging with our partners once again as we work together to package South Africa for various tourists’ needs,” adds Ntshona.

“While we know that there won’t an immediate influx of tourists as other countries are now experiencing second waves of the pandemic and have imposed travel restrictions for their citizens, we look forward to welcoming those tourists that are able to come.

They can finally get to enjoy the wide open spaces, scenic landscape, unique

and authentic cultural experiences that South Africa has to offer,” concludes Mr Ntshona.

South Africa recently won big at this year’s World Travel Market including Sun City voted as Africa’s leading casino resort, Plettenberg Bay as Africa’s leading beach destination and Durban voted as Africa’s leading city destination.

Earlier this year South Africa took top spot when booking company Tourlane asked its community where their perfect post-coronavirus trip destination would be. The survey saw South Africa as the go-to safari destination, packed with outdoor adventures, applauded for pristine and well-kept beaches. (Source: SA Tourism)

Tanzania dethrones US as Kenya’s tourism top source market Tanzania edged out the US as Kenya’s leading tourism top source market in September buoyed by its lesser Covid-19 lockdown measures, new data shows.

Rising virus cases have hampered arrivals from the world’s biggest economy after many countries, including Kenya, categorised US travellers as Covid-19 high-risk. This has forced many of them to either cancel or postpone their trips indefinitely.

This comes at a time when the US total infection, which is the highest globally, stands at more than 10 million with over 200,000 deaths.

Unlike the US, Tanzania imposed little restraints amid an economic impact caution on its citizens as well as the just concluded presidential elections that saw President John Magufuli re-elected for the second term.

Significant Jump Latest data from the Tourism Research Institute (TRI) shows the US trailing Tanzania at number three.

This is a significant jump from August when the country could not even appear among the top 30 source market of visitors to Kenya.

“Tanzania leads with 4,309 followed

by Uganda (3,812) and US (3,458),” the data shows.

Uganda too jumped from position three it occupied in August to the second position in September.

South Africa (68), Philippines (70), Ghana (83), Spain (95), Swaziland (110), Turkey (155), Norway (167) and Pakistan (176) are countries where a few tourists visited Kenya.

As a sign of a recovery path following the resumption of both local and international flights in August, September arrivals rose to 85.2 per cent

from 14,049 in August to 26,018.

In March, Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta imposed a dusk-to-dawn (7am to 5am) curfew, and banned international and local passenger flights.

The President also restricted movement in Mombasa, Nairobi, Kilifi and Kwale counties to contain the spread of the virus.

Job Losses The directive impacted Kenya’s travel, tourism and hospitality industries.

Consequently, many businesses shut down, rendering hundreds jobless.

The data put the purpose of visits as meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions at 44.96 per cent, visiting families and friends 29.90 per cent, holiday 16.50 per cent and in-transit at 5.40 per cent.

“Others are medical (1.61 per cent), education (0.97 per cent), religion (0.53 per cent) and sports (0.13 per cent),” the data shows.

In mid this year, Kenya’s Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the ministry would, for the first time, be releasing the data on travel and tourist arrivals every month as the sector slowly reopens after a five-month shutdown.

“The data released is invaluable to the country as it helps us to keep track of international tourist numbers to determine whether tourism and travel are improving since the easing of travel restrictions and the resumption of international flights into the country,” he said.

Scheduled weekly international flights into Kenya for the Qatar Airways and Ethiopian Airlines stood at 14 each, RwandAir (12), Emirates (seven) and British Airways (four).

Others are Swiss (four), EgyptAir

(four), Turkish Airlines (five), Air Arabia (two) and Uganda Airlines (seven), according to the data.

Kenya Airways weekly flight to Dubai leading at nine, Johannesburg (six), London (three), both Paris and Amsterdam (two), and Lagos (two).

“Others include Kigali (seven weekly), Dar es Salaam (seven weekly), Juba (seven weekly) and Addis Ababa (five weekly),” it shows.

Wreaks Havoc This comes when at least 92.4 per cent of Kenyan tour operators have lost 75 per cent of bookings that they normally get during this time of the year as the Covid-19 pandemic wreaks havoc on the global tourism industry.

According to African Safari Company, SafariBooking.com, only 1.2 per cent of them did not record a three-quarter drop in bookings.

According to the report, “71.5 per cent of operators who responded to our survey said that cancellations had increased by at least 75 per cent on existing bookings. Less than four per

cent said it was business as usual”.

The survey, which was done in August, involved 344 tour operators in Kenya, Botswana, Tanzania, South Africa and Uganda.

In June, Mr Balala said the tourism industry lost Ksh80 billion ($800 million) in the first six months of the year amid the adverse effects of Covid-19.

The Cabinet secretary said the sector, which contributed about 10 per cent of the GDP, was on its knees mainly due to ban on international flights and movement restrictions that have affected domestic tourism.

“Coronavirus started in December 2019, and we have lost almost ksh80 billion in revenue. This is equivalent to almost half of the revenues we had in the last financial year,” said Mr Balala.

Kenya’s tourism earnings grew by 3.9 per cent to Ksh163.6 billion ($1.6 billion) last year as arrivals defied terror threats and global geopolitics to remain above the two-million-mark last year.

The earnings improved from Ksh157.4 billion ($1.5 billion) in 2018 but were slower than the previous year.

To revive the sector, Mr. Balala called upon investors to embrace the domestic market while adding that international tourism would only bounce back towards the end of 2021.

He challenged players in the domestic market to fix the right prices for their products, noting that poor pricing was discouraging Kenyans from taking up the products in the sector.

“Domestic tourism is sensitive to pricing. Why charge a local tourist $300 (Ksh30,000) to visit Maasai Mara yet he can use the same amount to go to Dubai?” he posed.

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Beyond the Return events’ calendar unveiled for Nov. and Dec. in Ghana The ‘Beyond the Return’ Secretariat has released the official events schedule for November and December 2020. The events have been chosen after a careful review to include cultural events, festivals, performances, entertainment, business, and educational activities that amplify the pillars of ‘Beyond the Return’.

DecemberInGH will be an exciting time filled with events and festivals that will create memorable experiences for Ghanaians and diasporans to See Ghana, Eat Ghana, Wear Ghana, and Feel Ghana.

The Ghana Tourism Authority, coordinators of the ten- year project and the ‘Beyond The Return’ Secretariat will work closely with event organizers to ensure that COVID-19 protocols are followed.

“It’s been a challenging year for everyone so it’s great to have something to look forward to,” said Annabelle McKenzie, Manager of the ‘Beyond The Return’ Secretariat. “We’re pleased to announce the schedule of events because many Ghanaians and Diasporans have already been asking about the DecemberInGH activities.”

The Calendar of Events Proposals for November and December events are still being accepted.

Event organizers are encouraged to submit proposals for events in all regions and not only focus on the Greater Accra Region. Proposals can be submitted on the website at www.beyondthereturngh.com.

‘Beyond the Return’ is a ten-year project with a theme of ‘A Decade of African Renaissance.’ The project is the follow up to last year’s successful ‘Year of Return, Ghana 2019’ campaign.

During the ‘Year of Return,’ Ghanaians and Diasporans attended cultural & entertainment events, participated in community service projects, and contributed to the economic advancement of Ghana.

More information about ‘Beyond The Return’ and the official calendar can be viewed on the web at www. beyondthereturngh.com and www. visitghana.com.

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