I think it is fair to say that not only have the recent media stories about the terrible drought situation in the Horn of Africa wrenched at peoples heart strings, they have also had been of concern to holiday makers who are possibly considering going to Kenya for their safari holiday, and many people are now considering alternative holiday destinations.
During the whole of 2010, the prolonged drought in the countries to the north of Kenya and in the north-eastern part of the country have resulted in the drought being declared a national disaster, and efforts over the past few weeks have intensified to provide relief to those affected.
However, although the drought is tearing apart some of the country, it is ONLY in certain areas – and conversely, there are many other regions of the country – including the main areas where the tourist activitiy takes place – that have still enjoyed adequate rainfall and as a result, are not experiencing such dire problems. As a result, there is still fantastic game viewing in the Parks, Reserves and Conservancies.
I would stress that people who were considering Kenya as their holiday destination this year, or next year, to consider the knock on impact of not going here. It is very fair to say that there is a large proportion of Kenyans who wholly depend on the money that tourism brings in, either directly and or indirectly, as a means to live. This includes the people live in the communities around Parks and Reserves, and those who operate community owned conservancies as an alternative to farming.
Therefore, please be assured that anyone who was or is still thinking of going to Kenya can be confident that not only will they be able to enjoy their holidays as planned; they will also help to generate income and benefits to the local communities.