Tourism: Assessment of the Business Events Sector in Kenya by Nana Gecaga of KICC

Nana Gecaga, CEO of the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), shares her assessment of the business events sector in Kenya.

“These are very exciting times for Kenya. MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions) was previously packaged very specifically and was limited to meetings. It has now been repackaged as business events. Business events is a lot broader and includes anything from weddings to birthday parties to graduations. We are at 30% of where we should be right now. It sounds contradictory because 30% is a low number, but if you flip it around, it is a blank canvas. We make up about ¼ of the tourism for the country and we are only at 30% of our potential. It is a new, emerging market. If you look at 20 or 30 years ago at the beach product or safari product, you can see how well that has panned out for Kenya and all those other things that have come out of it. It is a time where we are also able to see the economy grow. When we hold business events in the city, we not only benefit as a venue, but as a city and as a country as well. I refer to it as an economic ripple effect. The business tourist is very different from the regular tourist. They come in 9 to 5 for their specific meeting or event. After 5pm, they pump dollars into the nightlife, restaurants, and entertainment. We are also a strategically positioned country. Just 30 minutes on a plane or 4 hours on a train and you can be at the beach. In 45 minutes, you can be on the safari. We are heavily packaging pre and post packages for the business delegate known as delegate experience. It is not new, but we are heavily pursuing it as a country. All the stakeholders benefit: the hoteliers, transport and taxis and Ubers, local transport, airlines. The actual brand that benefits the most is the country. We are open for business. The fact that we are getting a lot of bookings shows confidence, capability, and readiness. I am extremely honored to be right in the center of this exciting time. We have Rwanda just across the border, Tanzania, Uganda, East Africa counterparts. Three hours away we have South Africa. Three and a half hours out we have North and West Africa. We are the central focal point here in Kenya. Everybody is coming onboard. It is not only the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) or the dominant holders and players from before. Now, you have a lot of the emerging hoteliers and event organizers creating that space. People are beginning to wonder why the hotels are starting to get involved. The reason for that is because there is a change now. Before, hotels would create or build ballrooms for events. That is beginning to come back with dinners or events, but that space is now being utilized as conference facilities. You can set it up in a different way, auditorium style or conference style, and hold a meeting with 100 or 200 people. It is the utilization of dead space which is now able to be used 12 hours out of the day, not just the last few hours in the evening. The potential is huge. The fact that we are all working together is great”, says Nana Gecaga.

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