Tourism as a Tool for Reducing Poverty Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Tourism as a Tool for Reducing Poverty - Essay Example Mkangi and Mbindyo, Kenya is an extremely fertile country, which stretches from the sea level in the eastern part to the snow-covered mountains to the north. Mountains that can be found in Kenya include Mt. Kenya, Mt. Elgon and Mt. Kilimanjaro, which also borders Tanzania. Its greatest feature includes the Great Rift Valley, found in the central and western part of the country. Also, there are a number of lakes and rivers found in Kenya, which include Lake Turkana, Lake Nakuru, Lake Naivasha, and Lake Bogoria among others while rivers include River Nzoia, Gori, Ewaso Ngiro, and Yala among others, which form part of Kenya’s Geography. Kenya does not perform quite well, but it is the largest economy in East Africa. The economy, based on the market with a few infrastructure enterprises owned by the state, also maintains an external liberal trade system. Adholla, Mkangi, and Mbindyo (2008) state that 70% of people in Kenya is employed in the agricultural sector in which half of th e sector focuses on subsistence farming. The growth rate of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Kenya has decreased over the last decade from 6.5% every year to 4% every year since independent and then to only 1.5% per year during the 1990s. Politically, Kenya has always been considered a stable country despite all the changes in its political system and conflicts in the neighboring countries. Tourism is the second largest export earner in Kenya after agriculture, which forms a crucial foundation for its economy.... A  unique  tourism features in Kenya include wildlife and beaches, which have enabled it to  out  space  all its neighbors in East Africa due to  excellent  planning  and  leadership. In addition, solid infrastructure and  devotion  to conservation of wildlife has driven Kenya to the forefront of the  regional  tourism industry. In Kenya, tourism dates back in the pre-independence time i.e. as early as 1930s, when explorers from abroad started visiting Kenya. The explorers and visitors mainly visited Kenya for  solitude, as well as big-game hunting expeditions, which the Swahili people started referring to as safaris. Some of the  early  visitors included Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Earnest Hemingway, and Theodore Roosevelt among other celebrities. About 10% of Kenya  has been set  aside for wildlife conservation and biodiversity. Since most visitors to the  country  are  mainly  interested  in seeing animals especially the  big   five (rhino, elephant, lion, buffalo and leopard), game viewing is a  popular  practice. Also, there are other small and  unique  animals present in the country, which attract tourist too. Moreover, there has been a  remarkable  rise in the number of tourist since the beginning of tourism in Kenya. For instance, in 2003, Kenya received over one million tourists, which lead to rise in  bed  capacity, in classified hotels to over 73,000. Tourism in Kenya has employed over 219,000 people, which is approximately 11% of the total workforce in the country. Currently, Kenya is still in a state of  growth  i.e.it is still a developing country. However, there are many factors that are inhibiting