The 4th Uganda-Kenya Coast Tourism Conference and Exhibition, held from October 27–28, 2025, at Ocean Beach Resort & Spa in Kilifi County, marked a defining moment in regional tourism diplomacy.
The event, themed “Leveraging Youth, Innovation & Technology for Responsive and Inclusive Tourism,” showcased Uganda’s leadership through its Mombasa Consulate and Kenya’s strategic pivot to expand its coast-focused tourism campaign inland.
Since its inception in 2022, the Uganda-Kenya partnership has grown steadily, built on complementarity rather than competition.
Data shows that in 2024, 466,000 Kenyans visited Uganda—making Kenya Uganda’s largest African source market—while 225,559 Ugandans travelled to Kenya, reinforcing the interdependence between the two destinations.
The conference served as a launchpad for Uganda’s long-term tourism vision under its 2040 ten-fold growth strategy, driven by digital transformation, youth inclusion, and cross-border investment.
In her keynote address, Uganda Tourism Board CEO Juliana Kaggwa emphasized a digitally integrated tourism ecosystem between the two countries.
She called for linking tourism products through technology and urged longer inland stays to boost revenue.
“Unity should come from tourism. What we’ve seen the EU become, we can achieve through shared destination branding,” Kaggwa said.
State Minister for Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities, Martin Mugarra Bahinduka, highlighted the forum’s role in strengthening regional cooperation.
“This platform remains pivotal for expanding opportunities between our two sister nations, Uganda and Kenya,” he said, adding that aligning Uganda’s adventure and wildlife with Kenya’s beaches would create a powerful multi-destination circuit.
A joint declaration issued at the end of the conference outlined commitments by both countries to:
- Adopt digital branding, artificial intelligence, and data tools for marketing
- Develop memoranda of understanding linking Uganda’s inland safaris with Kenya’s coast stays
- Leverage the youth population—80% in both nations—as innovators and tourism service providers
- Build inclusive, tech-driven tourism accessible to persons with disabilities
- Establish an East African online tourism marketplace and expand the event’s scope into a full “Uganda-Kenya Tourism Conference.”
Kenya’s Ministry of Tourism used the Malindi forum to signal a significant shift—expanding its “Coast campaign” beyond the beaches of Mombasa and Kilifi into inland tourism, in recognition that its future competitiveness depends on integrated regional circuits that combine coastal, cultural, and wildlife experiences.
Uganda’s Consul General in Mombasa, Paul Mukumbya, credited the conference’s growing success to sustained collaboration and diplomacy.
He noted the increase in participation from 200 delegates in 2022 to a projected 750 this year, reflecting confidence in Uganda’s tourism leadership.
The Consulate has been instrumental in organizing joint marketing initiatives such as familiarization trips, golf tournaments, and “bush-to-beach” packages.
“The Consulate has created the architecture and momentum that now allows Kenya to broaden its campaign beyond the coast,” Mukumbya said.
The next edition of the conference, slated for Kampala in 2026, will further solidify Uganda’s leading role in East Africa’s tourism integration agenda.
The focus will be on infrastructure investment—including improved air connectivity, SGR and road networks—and the participation of youth, technology providers, and social-media influencers to strengthen the digital tourism economy.
The Malindi declaration concluded with a reaffirmation that East Africa’s tourism growth depends on collaboration, innovation, and inclusivity.
Uganda’s foresight and leadership through its Mombasa Consulate and Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities have set a new standard for regional cooperation.
Kenya’s decision to expand its coastal tourism strategy inland stands as clear evidence of the success of this Uganda-driven partnership and a shared vision for a unified East African tourism future.