Kisumu County is planning to establish a tourist police unit as part of efforts to improve security and attract more visitors to the region.
County Minister for Trade, Tourism, Cooperatives, Industry and Marketing Farida Salim said discussions were under way with the Tourism Regulatory Authority on the proposed unit.
She was speaking on Friday at a tourism awareness breakfast hosted by Fairways Hotel, which brought together hoteliers, county officials, tourism stakeholders and the media.
Salim said the county wanted to improve communication about tourism facilities and developments in Kisumu and the wider region.
“We are creating awareness on the existing facilities in this region and the accurate stories on the milestone Kisumu and this region has recorded,” she said.
Salim also called on hotels to hold quarterly security meetings, saying the industry needed to focus on preventing security incidents rather than responding to them after they occurred.
She made the comments after touring Fairways Hotel, whose management said it had overcome security-related challenges earlier in the year.
The county government also announced plans for the Kisumu Tourism Fiesta, scheduled to take place from 22 to 26 September.
The programme will include a street carnival celebrating local culture, a youth symposium focusing on digital technology and artificial intelligence in tourism, and the second Kisumu City Drift Takeover.
Fairways Hotel’s incoming general manager, Raphael Onyango, said the breakfast was intended to reconnect the hotel with the local community and tourism industry.
“Our level as Fairways Hotel is very high, the standards we sell are very high against even our competitors,” he said.
Onyango said the hotel was working to overcome challenges it had faced earlier in the year and appealed to the media and other stakeholders to support its efforts.
“Walk with us, help us achieve our goals,” he said. Onyango added that the hotel was working with local security agencies to maintain safety for guests.
Lake Victoria Tourism Association secretary-general Robert Ayoko welcomed the initiative and encouraged other tourism businesses to engage more closely with stakeholders.
He said tourism facilities in western Kenya were equipped to receive visitors and that security remained a priority.
Ayoko also announced other events planned in the region, including World Tourism Day celebrations featuring a cultural event and World Talent Conference at Talent University next month.
He said members of the association across western Kenya had undergone customer-care training, including tour guides and transport operators.
The events and initiatives are part of wider efforts by tourism stakeholders to promote Kisumu and the western Kenya circuit as a destination for domestic and international visitors.
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