2008 Speeches
The Great Migration Remarks by U.S. Ambassador Michael Ranneberger Masai Mara (Photo Gallery)
August 16, 2008
Minister of Tourism Balala,
Minister of Forests and Wildlife Wekesa,
Director Kenya Wildlife Service Kipng’etich,
Director Kenya Tourism Board, area members of Parliament, local authorities, members of the press, community leaders, ladies and gentlemen:
I am awed and honored to be standing here in Masai Mara to witness one of the wonders of the world! Witnessing one of the most magnificent phenomenon on earth is an immense pleasure – yet another gift of Kenya to the people of the world – but in doing so I am also highlighting Tourism Promotion Week in Kenya. Majestic Mt. Kenya on the Equator, white sandy beaches on the Indian Ocean coastline, sweeping savannas, and an abundant and varied wildlife all make Kenya an irresistible destination for people from all over the world. Equally attractive are the warmth, dynamism, and rich and diverse cultures of the Kenyan people.
The Government of Kenya and the Government United States share a profound friendship and partnership based on shared democratic values and based on the rich exchanges between the Kenyan and American people going back many decades. As the Maasai say, kegil enyorrata oldonyo (love or friendship breaks mountains).
We have support Kenyan tourism and wildlife preservation through our assistance to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), to non-governmental groups, and to Kenyan communities involved in the conservation and sustainable development of priceless land, water, and wildlife resources. I want to take this opportunity to particularly to applaud the work of KWS, which is a model of professionalism and efficiency. This year the U.S. Government is providing, through USAID, $6 million to support a wide range of projects, including with KWS.
Since 2001, U.S. efforts have helped put over 970,000 hectares of land under improved natural resource management, directly and indirectly benefited over 250,000 Kenyans, and facilitated the development and growth of 30 conservation enterprises. Thousands of local jobs have been created and about $1,500,000 generated by community businesses through shareholder dividends, wages, and direct income.
We’re helping tourism and trade in other ways as well. Under our Safe Skies for Africa Program, we are working closely with Kenya civil aviation and airport authorities to improve safety and security at airports and over the skies. Indeed, under Safe Skies, we have on staff at the Embassy a senior U.S. Transportation Security Administration Advisor. He is working closely with his Kenyan counterparts with the goal of helping Kenya attain Category One status, which would allow direct flights between the United States and Kenya.
Around the Masai Mara, the USG is currently supporting the Transboundary Water Resource Management project aimed at supporting management of Mara River Basin in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. We are designing a new project, the ProMara, that will improve forestry and farming practices within the Mau watershed. By improving the land management practices in the watershed of one of the principal tributaries to the Mara River, the project will also contribute to maintaining the water quality and quantity in the Mara River, thus benefiting the Mara-Serengeti landscape as a whole, and the biodiversity that it supports.
These areas of collaboration are extremely important, because tourism is dependant on a healthy and vibrant environment and natural resources. Over the past two years, tourism has become Kenya’s number one foreign exchange earner – surpassing tea, cut flowers, and coffee. In 2003 tourism earned Kenya $365 million and by 2006 that figure leaped to $800 million. Clearly, the magic billion dollar figure is well within reach.
But tourism is more than foreign exchange. It also means jobs. Tourism today directly, and indirectly employs over 500,000 Kenyans. And as more visitors come to tour Kenya – including more Americans – more jobs will be created, helping to reduce poverty and generate prosperity.
This, my second visit to witness the Great Migration, comes at a time when Kenya’s tourism sector is grappling with a significant drop in revenue: from KSh21 billion in the first quarter of 2007, to KSh8 billion in 2008. The crisis following the disputed electoral results earlier this year had a major negative impact on tourism and the economy more broadly. The impact of this converges with the fact that Kenya’s forest resources and major water catchment areas are under continued assault from illegal settlement, agricultural encroachment, charcoal burning, and timber poaching. Obstacles such as poor infrastructure, especially with respect to roads, insufficient upscale accommodations, security concerns, and unreliable energy impact the sector. A further longer-term threat, which could seriously damage Kenya's tourism, has been the dramatic loss of 60-70% of its wildlife, one of its main attractions, over the past 30 years.
While these negative forces have had an impact, we are nevertheless witnessing a remarkably quick revival of the tourist sector and the broader economy. This testifies to the underlying strength of Kenyan institutions, and the fact that Kenyans resolved their electoral dispute without ever having departed from the democratic path. Today Kenyans stand proud and determined to ensure that their country emerges from the crisis with stronger democratic institutions and greater prosperity for all citizens. The United States played an important role in encouraging Kenyans to resolve the crisis through a political solution. I am here today to highlight the determination of the United States to support the coalition government to achieve results for the benefit of all Kenyans. One important step is supporting revival of the tourist industry, and that is why I am here today.
The way in which Kenyans successfully resolved the profound crisis they faced serves as a positive example for the world. As Kenya emerges stronger, now is the time to market the country as a tourist destination, to attract more investment to expand capacity, and to urgently put in place policies to ensure that growth doesn't damage the very resources - namely wildlife - that underpin the industry's success. I am encouraged that, under its "Vision 2030,” the Kenyan government has identified tourism as one of the six economic drivers that will transform the economy to middle income status by 2030.
Like the Government of Kenya, we see tourism as pivotal to Kenya’s economic development and future prosperity. Indeed, our support for tourism is an integral part of the broader U.S.-Kenya partnership, which like Kenya itself, is vibrant and growing.
I am seeing during this visit how American tourists are continuing to flock to Kenya. The U.S. is currently the second largest source country for tourists to Kenya, and I want us to be the first largest source of tourism to Kenya within the next year. American tourists are also reputedly the biggest per capita spenders. The recent special television show by ABC TV and USA Today on the Great Migration across Serengeti / Maasai Mara ecosystem – and the description of it as one of the living wonders of the world --came as no surprise to those of us who have had the pleasure of spending time in the Maasai Mara. As a result of this publicity, Americans have intensified their own migrations to see the animal and cultural wonders of the Serengeti and Masai Mara, as well as the old coastal Swahili cities of Lamu and Mombasa, and the beaches that embrace the warm Indian Ocean waters. And in doing so Americans have discovered what I already know: that Kenyans are an extremely warm and hospitable people who like Americans. Kenya is an extraordinarily welcoming environment in every respect.
In closing, I want to applaud the Minister of Tourism, Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, Director of Kenya Wildlife Service, and Chairman of the Kenya Tourist Board for inviting me to help support Tourism Promotion Week. I am confident about Kenya’s future, and that is why I recently sent a letter to thousands of American tour operators urging them to send Americans to Kenya. I will continue to encourage my fellow Americans to visit this magnificent country! The Maasai say enk-ai incoo iyrook il-tiil omunyak (give us your lucky rays of blessing) and meishoo iyiok osotua (give us peace). Standing here amidst the wonders of the Mara, we can understand how they came to say that and we can all pause to reflect upon the blessings and peace that Kenya enjoys today.
Thank you.