Kenya has a cabinet, finally

Last Sunday  President Kibaki announced the composition of the new power-sharing cabinet, finally ending the political uncertainty and tensions of recent weeks. The ministers in the new coalition government have been sworn in yesterday and the cabinet positions have been shared equally between the two sides. Hon. Raila Odinga has been confirmed in the position of Prime Minister. Supporters of both sides of the political divide have expressed relief that the power-sharing arrangement is now finally in place and there is a new sense of unity and calm throughout the country. It is now considered most unlikely that we will see any more ethnic clashes or political demonstrations linked to post-election disputes since we have a political settlement that is acceptable to all sides. The business community and Kenyans as a whole are eager to work together to ensure that the country gets back to normal and that the economy recovers from the effects of the post-election crisis. The new Minister of Tourism is Hon Najib Balala, who hails from the coast and has close connections with the tourism industry. He immediately confirmed that he will be recommending to the government as a priority that funds should be committed to undertaking a marketing campaign in the overseas markets to promote tourism to Kenya.

As we informed you earlier, when the troubles were at its height, early January, Kenya had 40.000 tourists in the country. None have been harmed in anyway. The Travel advisories have been toned down and Kenya is safe for tourists.

Please also find below an e-mail from guests who were here during those trying times and which I would like to share with you:

Dear Tob,

First of all we like to thank you again for the wonderful trip we had in Kenya by the end of December/early January.  Everything was perfectly arranged, and we enjoyed very much the hospitality of the hotels and lodges, the golf and especially the contacts with the local people: all very friendly, open and helpful.

We therefore feel very sorry for all the people in Kenya of what is going on after the elections. We hardly can believe what we see on the TV, it is so different from what we have experienced ourselves!

As you know is it our intention to come back by the end of the year, as for us Kenya is an excellent country to go to and leave the winter of Holland. Only a 7-8 flight to get there, 2 hours time difference, fantastic climate, great hospitality, beautiful golf, safari and whatever you can think of.

As soon as the tension has settled down, we like to come over by the end of the year and will ask you to arrange another trip of safari and golf!

Thanks again and best regards,

Cathrien & Wytze Zuidema