Flight landings in Kenya’s airports increased by 38% to 62,000 in 2022 which was only 13% shy of the pre-Covid-19 performance according to the Tourism Research Institute Kenya. Of Kenya’s busiest airports Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi registered a flight landings growth of 44%, Moi International Airport (MIA) Mombasa registered growth of 33%, and Kisumu International Airport saw a 31% growth.
This was as a result of growth in tourist numbers with the 2022 sector performance indicating that international visitor arrivals in the year closed at 1,483,752 which represents a 70.45% increase as
compared to the previous year’s arrivals of 870,465. A 72% recovery level was recorded in 2022 compared to 2019.
According to the report: “This growth can be attributed to many countries lessening their
Covid-19 restrictions, opening up for travel and many initiatives as implemented by the sector and the Government.”
The growth in flight frequencies was generated, to a large extent, by increased frequencies by the existing scheduled and charter operators, in response to the growing demand for air travel.
Arrival numbers would have been higher were it not for the 2022 general elections which affected the high season month of August leading to a decline in arrivals. However, since the elections were peaceful,
the subsequent months performed well and growth was sustained with an impressive performance in December.
In line with flight landings, the other three domestic airports (Malindi, Ukunda, and Manda) also
performed well in 2022, growing their passenger arrivals by 30%, 15%, and 14% respectively, again supported mainly by increased domestic movements.
Top countries by visitor numbers included USA, Uganda, UK, Tanzania, India, Germany, Rwanda , Somalia, Ethiopia and South Sudan.
Topping the list were visitors on holiday at 36.6%. This was followed by visitors for friends and family
rendezvous at 27.8% of the total. Arrivals on business and MICE came at a close third with 27.2% of the total visitation. market also recorded commendable growth from 136,981 in the year 2021 to 209,360 for the year under review (53%). Australia and Canada have performed well in spite of minimal marketing efforts. “There is need to enhance marketing and magical Kenya brand presence in those markets.”
There was also a good number of visitors for other purposes such as education, medical and sporting activities. Additionally, 5% were visitors who entered the country while on transit to their final destinations. It is estimated that over half (58%) of all international tourists travel by air.
The number of passenger arrivals associated with flight landings cited above also increased, registering a growth of 65% to about 4.5 million when compared to the 2.9 million served in 2021. The performance for 2022 was only 13.0% below the pre-Covid-19 levels, indicating a fast-recovering industry.
In line with the performance of the associated flight landings, the domestic sector provided much of this growth impetus.
In 2022, there was major growth, particularly in terms of international charter flight landings which at 530, were close to the numbers achieved in 2019. The number of charters operators also increased by two (2) to seven (7) in 2022 compared to the five (5) that were operational in 2021. Most of these charters were occasioned by strong demand from source markets in Europe, particularly Germany, Romania, Poland, and Italy.
“Promotion of regional tourism to enhance performance of the African markets. This report indicates that 641,975 tourists were from within Africa mainly coming for business and visiting family and friends. To increase this number, we will need to target Africans to come for holiday. Kenya is one of the countries piloting for the Single Africa Air Transport Market (SAATM), and it will be a big boost to our efforts towards this focus,” Peninah Malonza – Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Wildlife and Heritage.