Nyamira County tourism sites will soon be included in the country’s tourism circuit database.
This comes after cordial and close collaboration between the County Government of Nyamira and the State Department of Tourism and the Kenya Tourism Board in mapping and collecting information on tourism sites in the entire county.
Nyamira County Government Chief Officer for Trade, Tourism and Cooperatives Development Mr. Wilson Moenga affirmed that by identifying and documenting these diverse attraction sites and hospitality facilities, the county will be better positioned to attract investment, improve infrastructure, and market itself as a leading destination for rich unexploited sites within the western tourism circuit.
“Using GIS (Geographic Information System) survey tools, officials from the Department of Tourism and Kenya Tourism Board have embarked on an exercise of meticulously mapping out tourist sites which will be showcased in the national circuit database to attract tourists to Nyamira,” Chief Officer Moenga said.
He clarified that key areas which will be given special consideration for detailed coverage included Keera and Nyaigesa waterfalls, Manga ridge and caves, Kiabonyoru hills, Ikonge-Chepilat ambience by the vast tea estates and other nature conservation areas.
Data from the 21 registered hospitality enterprises indicating their bed capacity, standards, service portfolio and their distribution will also be included in that database.
The lead person from the State Department of Tourism Mr. Augustine Oundo, said his department is carrying out a massive exercise of mapping of tourism sites countrywide to enable tourists to identify places they are interested in visiting and confirmed that their department, in collaboration with the Kenya Tourism Board, has already mapped out tourism and destination sites in 24 Counties and captured them in the national database.
The meeting for all the involved departments was to strengthen bilateral collaboration, align regional development strategies and enhance stakeholder coordination for the smooth running of the Nyamira County mapping exercise.
Mr. Oundo pointed out that various tourism sports and training academies can be started in Nyamira County because of its high altitude and climatology, stating that tourist guides with readily accessible sites were key components for any County to succeed in the tourism industry.
He urged area residents to exhibit Gusii rich culture and heritage in some of the identified sites and plant various varieties of nutritious traditional foods and vegetables to enable tourists to sample some of the best local cherished delicacies.
By Deborah Bochere
