Airfares on domestic routes have hit rock bottom in the wake of reduced travel following the coronavirus outbreak that has seen some local carriers like Safarilink and AirKenya stop operations.

One-way fares to Kisumu and Mombasa from Nairobi have more than halved to a low of Sh3,540 on peak days — the lowest ticket prices have sunk.

Carriers such as Kenya Airways  and its budget subsidiary, Jambojet, have grounded planes and cut frequencies to save costs amid reduced passenger numbers because of travel restrictions imposed by the government Jambojet charged Sh3,800 to Kisumu from Nairobi on the peak day of Friday while Fly 540 was charging Sh3,540 including on the Mombasa route.

Fares on the routes rarely fall below Sh7,500 on peak days. The recent declines have seen Safarilink and AirKenya suspend operations until June 1.

“We have cancelled most of the flights mainly because most lodges and parks which form part of our key destinations in the country have also closed down,” Alex Avedi, CEO of Safarilink told the Business Daily in an interview.

“If we see demand, we will resume operations because we have the pilots and aircraft”.

Kenya has so far confirmed 142 cases of Covid-19 disease and its crucial tourism and farm export businesses have already been hit by the impact of the outbreak.

Social distancing, night curfew and restriction of businesses like schools, bars and restaurants as well as mass gathering have been impacting on consumer spending and travel.

This has derailed Jambojet’s plan to more than double its annual passengers to 1.5 million in the next three years by opening new routes in East Africa and flying planes more often.

The no-frills carrier, founded by Kenya Airways six years ago, is cutting back amid the slump on travel.

“Following a decline in passenger numbers due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Jambojet wishes to inform its customers and the general public that we have reduced our flight frequencies to all local destinations,” said the airline.

Like budget carriers in Europe and South Africa, Jambojet passengers only pay for seats.

The airline charges extra for services such as baggage and meals, allowing ticket prices to compete with buses and trains. Its premium parent company, Kenya Airways, is also suffering from the drop in domestic travel and has cut prices.

Kenya Airways, whose charges on Mombasa and Kisumu routes rises to Sh12,000 on Fridays and weekends, has cut fares to a low of Sh6,140 on the two routes from Nairobi.

The peak Easter season that starts this week is not offering a letup to the carriers, suggesting many travellers have postponed travel plans following the coronavirus outbreak.

Jambojet fares to Kisumu, Mombasa and Malindi on Good Friday will rise to Sh4,300 for those who booked on Sunday.

This is less than half the Sh12,500 that passengers paid on the routes during the Easter holiday last year amid full bookings.

The high demand for passengers seeking to travel for Easter holidays last year saw Kenya Airways deploy the premium high capacity Dreamliner plane on the Mombasa route and additional flights to Kisumu from Nairobi to match the demand.

Mr Avedi noted that following the outbreak of Covid-19, cancellation of flights especially by foreign tourists who use the airlines to connect to destinations such as Maasai Mara has been on the rise.

The domestic carriers lobby has urged the government to offer immediate financial support to the carriers to avoid collapse.

Source: https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/Domestic-airfares-halve-as-carriers-halt-operations/539546-5515562-nwvn2pz/index.html

The Kenya Utalii College has postponed its 24^th edition of the National Tourism Competition due to the COVID-19.

The cancellation follows a government directive issued in March 2020 that set out guidelines and conditions for the control and containment of the virus.

“The hospitality and tourism industry is among the worst hit by the crisis. Consequently, we wish to notify you that the planned National Tourism Competitions, 2020 are hereby postponed until further notice,” said the Tourism Industry Kenya Utalii College Liaison Committee Chairman Mr. Tonny Muiruri.

The annual competitions seeks winners in various fields in the travel, tourism and hospitality sector that are trained in the institution.

The objectives of the competition are to enhance the quality of service in the hotel and tourism industry, to tap ingenuity, creativity and innovation, to create motivation for industry employees and to assist in benchmarking.

The first competition was held in 1988 which only involved cooks and waiters, years later, the competition has 14 categories.

Globally, the travel and tourism industry provides a source of livelihood to millions, both directly and indirectly, supporting and enabling for the achievement of various Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The industry is one of the largest economic sectors, with an estimated revenue generation of $8.8 trillion annually, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF). It is, therefore, quite vital for various economies to ensure there are sustainable crisis mitigation strategies in the wake of pandemics as it is currently the case. These strategies should seek to preserve the current benefit of the industry, such as the 320 million jobs generated globally.

The coronavirus poses the biggest challenge to the travel and tourism industry since World War II, and this could see the industry take its biggest financial hit since the 1939-1945 war period. The medical crisis poses a challenge to both developed and developing economies. Currently, the impact of the coronavirus is being felt, with most airlines grounding their fleets to help curb the spread of the virus. This has been initiated by some destinations locking down their borders as a precautionary action, a case in point being Italy, which has been hit devastatingly with the crisis. According to the head of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the virus could cost 50 million jobs worldwide, and Kenya is not immune to these ugly statistics.

Locally, the tourism industry has gone through several crisis phases, with the most recent being the post-election violence of 2007/2008. It is from this crisis that the industry was recovering and making a possible comeback to its glory days, with last year’s data indicating slight improvements in terms of revenue generated and guest arrivals. Data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reflect a 4.3% increase in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK) for airlines operating in Africa in last year’s trading period. The Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) forecasted this data to play a critical role in tourism growth in the year 2020 that would enable the industry to bounce back to its heydays. The predictions were based on current political stability and heightened security in the country.

It is at this point that we, as travelers need to evaluate the impacts of the current actions on the industry both locally and globally in the short and long term. Despite all the current pandemic, there is a silver lining, experts at Tourism Economics expect a full recovery by 2023 based on past slumps after the situation has stabilized. The question at the moment is, how can we contribute to helping the industry at this trying moment? Based on previous global crises, after the recovery process, there is usually some significant increase in travel and tourism activities. In as much as the coronavirus is continuing to spread around the world at an alarming rate, the following actions may help the tourism industry to avoid major slump than it is already facing.

Don’t panic.

According to airline industry expert Robert Mann, ‘the reaction of businesses to the threat does not necessarily match reality, but the impact is still real.’ That the impact of governments’ directories not to travel is relatively adverse to various stakeholders in the industry. Mann adds that the medical crisis is more of a behavioral economic problem where people throw probabilities out the window, react irrationally. Socially oriented businesses are left to pay the price. With the increase in victim numbers worrying is warranted, it is safe to remember that your panic actions will have an impact on the destination both in the short and long run.

Stay informed.

Staying informed to critical and credible news relating to both the crisis and its impacts on the industry is crucial, the information you receive and circulate are both held in high esteem, in an era where almost everyone is a marketer. Checking in with a trusted source like the World Health Organization (WHO) or the Centre for Disease and Control regularly enables one to be informed with the latest updates. It is also essential to understand the available options concerning your earlier planned vacation and travel. Call your travel consultant to make changes to earlier bookings. Remembering that once the crisis is over, travelling will go through the roof as people will be lusting to travel and see the world.

Consider traveling at a later date.

Other than cancelling your travel plans, your organized event, or seminar, how about you reschedule to a later date when things go back to how they were. It is vital to be considerate of the sector that ranges from transportation, food, and beverage, entertainment, among other connected industries, and the impact of a cancellation on all these players. As the travel industry is trudging on these uncharted territories, most of the industry stakeholders will surely reward those who will have stood by them during their lowest moments. Businesses in the tourism industry are witnessing evaporation in consumer demand, so cancelling at this moment proves to be detrimental to the businesses involved.

Take virtual travels.

Take virtual tours through live streaming, reading books, and articles on travel destinations that you’d love to travel to soon or the ones that you had booked earlier. Google maps and other navigation applications have made it easy for one to travel virtually and half quench their thirst to visit a destination. In this period, one should not lose their curiosity and desire to learn of other countries and cultures; learning the destinations and the primary language is a start if you are not conversant with it. Taking these activities ensures minimal contact with strangers while at the same time enjoying the pleasure that travels bring with it. Try the destination’s typical recipes at your home, of which you can go a step further by sharing the content online with your followers.

Travel remotely locally

According to the UNWTO directive by some government to citizens not to travel, will not stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The world governing agency on matters travel and tourism encourage the industry to develop adequate measures that prevent the spread of the virus and, at the same time, support the industry’s existence and sustenance. For example, one should consider a no-contact drop-off delivery from local restaurants and businesses, engaging in low social impact tourism activities such as meditation tourism and staying at a remote forest cabin. Travel to faraway destinations while at the same time follow the local government’s directives relating to the crisis, such as self-quarantining for the specified duration.

Stay at home

We love to travel; we love to meet and interact with new faces that offer us that warm, welcoming smile to that new destination we’ve never been to before or keep going to over and over again. Well, given the nature of the current crisis, those are quite some problematic moves at the moment. It is would only be prudent to shelve those immediate travel plans that you had made this week and the few weeks to follow. Staying at home will also help in keeping you and all your loved ones safe from contracting the virus.

Remembering that there are people’s lives and future at stake during this time is very paramount and taking your part in helping fight the pandemic. During this time, the Sustainable Development Goal number 17 will be significantly tested on how the world can come together to solve a common problem through partnership and collaboration. Throughout history, humans have been identified as social beings; our strengths as humans is through our cooperation and coming together. The coronavirus is testing the ability to come together and solve the common problem. Remember to take care; keep safe. Wash your hands!

Source: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/ureport/article/2001365605/how-you-can-contribute-in-saving-the-tourism-industry

Did you have plans to travel upcountry for Easter or to greet your relatives?

Well, there is a change of plans as Health CS Mutahi Kagwe has banned upcountry travel to curb the spread of Covid-19.

“Those who planned to travel for Easter… don’t. Even when you are in Nairobi, unless there is something that you are doing, stay at home. It is important for us to start training ourselves to do so,” he said.

Kagwe spoke on Thursday during the daily briefing on Covid-19.

The CS also announced 29 new Covid-19 cases, bringing the the total past the 100 mark to 110 patients.

Out of the new Covid-19 cases, 28 are Kenyans, while one is Congolese.

In the last 24 hours, the government tested 662 samples, out of which the 29 people tested positive.

 Kagwe said mass testing for the 2,050 quarantined individuals is ongoing.

The CS also announced the death of two more Covid-19 patients.

This brings the total number of deaths to three.

 The first patient to die last Thursday was a businessman. Morris Namiinda, 66, had a pre-existing condition – diabetes.

One of the new deaths reported on Thursday was of a Kenya Ports Authority employee.

The woman, 58, was buried at Mbaraki Cemetery on Thursday.

CS Kagwe on Thursday banned travel upcountry to contain spread of the disease.

Source: https://www.the-star.co.ke/covid-19/2020-04-02-upcountry-travel-banned-in-new-measures-to-curb-covid-19-spread/

Domestic air travel operators are seeking a Sh3billion government bailout to cushion the carriers from reduced bookings in the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
The operators have been recording a drop in revenues after the State banned the entry of travellers from coronavirus-hit countries, closed schools indefinitely and encouraged working from home, a move which has seen few passengers book flights.
Kenya Association of Air Operators (KAAO) executive secretary Eutychus Waithaka Tuesday said they had sent a request for the bailout through the Ministry of Transport.
The associations represents the interest of all licensed commercial air operators such Fly 540, Safarilink, East African Safari Air Express (formerly Fly-SAX), Jetways among others.
They are seeking the funds to settle staff salaries as well as navigation and landing charges at airports.
“We have formally sent a memorandum to the state through the Ministry of Transport requesting that they set a side Sh3billion to help keep domestic airlines in the country stay afloat during this difficult moment,” said Mr Waithaka in a phone interview with the Business Daily yesterday.
“It is the State which will decide the form in which the money will come. It could be in form of tax concessions or release from banks,” he said.
Mr Waithaka clarified that the Sh3 billion is not a grant or a loan but a “relief fund” to help cushion the sector from collapsing during this difficult time.
Apart from the Sh3 billion relief fund, KAAO also wants the government to reduce air passenger service charges, a move that will encourage more travelers to continue booking tickets.
They also want the State to partner with development financial institutions such as the World Bank to reduce the burden of debt to help stabilise the aviation industry before normal operations resume.
The association further noted that they were in talks with the Labour Ministry to look at a possibility of workers in the sector taking pay cuts rather than sending them home.
“We are sending them on leave. We are trying hard not to knock them off,” he said.
Kenya has so far confirmed 59 cases of the Covid-19 and its critical tourism and farm export businesses have been feeling the pinch from the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The State has imposed restrictions, including cancellation all flights save for cargo planes, ordered shutdown of bars and nightclubs, restaurants to operate as takeaway units, and put a freeze to church services and weddings and capped funeral gatherings to 15 people.
Domestic carriers in the country are among the hardest hit industry amid the coronavirus outbreak, a move which has seen operators such as Jambojet combine some of its flights to western Kenya.
Source: https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/corporate/companies/Local-airlines-seek-Sh3bn-bailout-as-coronavirus-bites/4003102-5510096-w4fk17/index.html

What happens if you or a relative is stranded abroad scrambling to return home after countries closed their borders? Millions of people who had travelled for work, tourism, business or to study are marooned in different countries amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Gladys Mogaka, a Kenyan-American immigration and corporate law attorney licensed to practice law in New York and in Kenya spoke to BDLife on what to do if trapped abroad.

If flights have been cancelled, borders closed, what should a Kenyan who is stranded in the US do?

Such a person should apply for a visa extension. USCIS provides special support for individuals who may be affected by natural or extreme circumstances. Covid-19 being a global pandemic, USCIS will take into consideration how it affected your departure and will definitely allow one to either extend or change their status.

How much will it cost to extend the visa and what is the procedure of extension?

The filing fee for change of status or extension is $370 (Sh37,000). Do you need to involve an immigration lawyer? Yes you do. I will always recommend getting a professional especially when it is at the discretion of the immigration officer to provide a benefit. This is not just a simple form that needs to be filled. You need to provide a legal argument to prove how the special circumstances prevented your departure. This may vary since visa categories vary, and you want to know how the extension or change of status might affect your future applications.

Is there any legal challenges if someone does not seek an extension of the visa?

Overstaying your visa can lead to accruing unlawful presence. If you leave the country, depending on how long one overstays, you will be banned from returning to the US. You are also susceptible to deportation when caught.

Can visitors get sponsors like family members to apply for the new visa if he or she is still in the country?

Yes. Visitors who came in for the sole purpose of visiting and have immediate relatives (father, mother, spouse, child) may change their status even though their initial visit was meant to be temporary.

Can someone who has not changed their status on the expiry of their visa be subjected to fines?

No.

What if the person is in Kenya on a green card that is about to expire?

They should apply for an SB-1 returning resident visa and argue Covid-19 as a reason for not returning to the US on time. They must prove how it was beyond their control with evidence.

Source: https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/lifestyle/travel/If-stranded-abroad-amid-borders-closure/3815716-5512430-qr7pll/index.html

The Kenya Association of Travel Agents (KATA) has called upon the International Air Travel Association (IATA) to act urgently in compelling the IATA accredited airlines to fast-track refunds processing for the customers who booked flights through travel agents during the Covid-19 crisis period.

KATA Chief Executive Officer Ms. Agnes Mucuha stated through a brief update on the ongoing devastating impact of the Coronavirus on the travel industry in Kenya, that airlines are taking a longer time to process refunds owed to customers of travel agents, and this has created unnecessary anxiety and distress.

“The travel industry grounded to a halt in March 2020 following the government directive suspending all international flights into Kenya. Consequently, passengers who were holding bookings with airlines through their travel agents opted to cancel their itineraries and sought for full refunds.” She said.

“Several airlines have been responding to the refund requests by issuing vouchers under the name of the booked passenger, instead of issuing a “cash” refund through the travel agent. This has caused conflict for the agents, as customers are demanding for full refunds in “cash” claiming that they have no immediate travel plans in the foreseeable future. Similarly, the travel agents cannot assign this voucher on other bookings owing to the issuing restrictions. This has also led to a bad stalemate between the customers and travel agents owing to the inflexibility demonstrated by the airlines issuing the refund vouchers”, the CEO noted.

Ms. Mucuha further reported that “In our engagement with IATA, they have sighted that airlines are facing an unprecedented high volume of global refunds requests, and this has been the the main cause for the processing delays. IATA emphasized that the refunds shall be guided by the airline’s commercial policy guideline while determining the “valid” refund value on the tickets. On the other hand, customers are also facing cash constraints under the current Covid-19 pandemic and they cannot afford further delay.”

She further pointed out that the Travel Industry has grounded to a complete halt, and most travel agents have temporarily closed shop as they don’t have any travel related business to conduct during this time. Unfortunately, their debtors have also deferred payments sighting Covid-19 for the delays. This is exacerbating the situation, and the outlook is very bleak for travel agents and their customers. In Kenya, we have over 1000 registered travel agents distributed countrywide, a majority of whom are SMEs and MMEs with over 300,000 employees.

Travel agents submit refund applications through the airline booking portals or in this case through the IATA regulated portal, and upon assessment of the “valid” refund request, the airline authorizes the “valid” refund through the same portal and remits it to the travel agent. In turn, the agent processes the refund back to their customers, which is in line with the IATA policy guidelines.

Other notable findings in the refunds delay include:

• A majority of Airlines are seeking for government bail outs and relief owing to the negative cashflow impact caused by Covid-19.
• Airlines are opting to issue vouchers instead of “cash” in order to preserve their already constrained cashflow position.
• Kenya has over fifteen international airlines who were on scheduled operations into Nairobi and/ or Mombasa.

The Kenya Association of Travel Agents has pushed for immediate intervention saying that it is imperative that the IATA steps in to provide immediate solutions for the industry.

“There are countless stories of travel businesses working hard to serve their customers transparently and professionally. The truth is that travel agents are not withholding refunds owed to their customers, and they are pursuing the refunds aggressively from the airlines and with the help of the Kenya Association of Travel Agents association.” Ms. Mucuha emphasized.

Travelers can visit the Coronavirus Updates page on the KATA website on https://katakenya.org/corona-virus-updates/ for more information

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has called upon all governments to take immediate action in ensuring the survival of the sector.

WTTC President and Chief Executive Ms. Gloria Guevara emphasised on the need for the governments to act immediately stating that any further delay will lead to loss of millions of jobs and an incalculable damage globally.

She pointed out to three crucial measures that governments should adopt, in addition to the recovery of funds, which will protect the survival of millions of people who heavily rely on the sector for their livelihood.

“First, financial help must be granted to protect the incomes of the millions of workers in the sector facing severe economic difficulties. Secondly, governments must extend vital, unlimited interest-free loans to global Travel & Tourism companies as well as the millions of small and medium sized businesses as a stimulus to prevent them from collapse. Thirdly, all government taxes, dues and financial demands on the travel sector need to be waived with immediate effect at least for the next 12 months,” Ms Guevara said.

She urged governments to take drastic and decisive action in order to protect and preserve the contribution of the sector to the world.

“No one can doubt that we are in uncharted territory. The coronavirus pandemic means the world is facing a threat on multiple fronts not seen in peacetime. The Travel & Tourism sector is uniquely exposed, and we estimate 50 million jobs globally are at risk. To put it bluntly, Travel & Tourism is in a fight for survival,” Ms. Guevara further said.

She averred that, “travel is the backbone of economies around the world. It brings in essential currency and inward investment, creates jobs and stimulates every sector. WTTC figures show Travel & Tourism contributes to 10.4% of Global GDP and 320 million jobs. It is responsible of creating one in five new jobs and, for eight successive years, has outpaced the growth of the global economy”.

WTTC sentiments were echoed by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) who held a virtual teleconference on Friday to discuss COVID-19.

They concurred that calls would need to be made urgently to governments to take immediate actions, including through financial aid packages and incentives, to help the aviation and tourism sectors withstand current COVID-19 risks and impacts.

According to WHO, the pandemic is accelerating. There has been over 424, 000 reported cases as at March 25, 18, 947 deaths and 109, 145 recoveries.

Kenya’s national carrier on midnight Thursday 25^th March, 2020 suspended all international flights following a government directive on the Coronavirus pandemic. However, cargo flights remain operational to provide supplies and emergency services.

President Uhuru Kenyatta issued the directive on 22^nd March, 2020 following a rise in cases of COVID-19 infections in the country.

“We have been forced to reduce our network by over 70% and it had become increasingly difficult to continue offering international passenger services. Today March 22, 2020 the Government of Kenya has issued a directive that requires all incoming and outgoing international passenger traffic to and from Kenya to cease from midnight on 25th March 2020,” Kenya Airways (KQ) Chief Executive Officer Mr. Allan Kilavuka said in a statement.

He added, “We will continue to operate cargo flights particularly so that we are available to offer emergency services or much needed supplies. In the meantime, our domestic flights to Mombasa and Kisumu remain operational”.

KQ further informed the public of their revised policy on zero change fee and cancellation where travellers will get a waiver on change fees on all fares excluding for domestic travel.

The airline stated that the waiver applies to All fare types, including groups and conferences, All Kenya Airways destinations excluding domestic locations, all points-of-sale and all travel up to 30th June 2020. The tickets changes and refunds should be completed by April 31, 2020.

As at 26^th March, 2020, 31 positive cases have been reported. The cases are spread out in Nairobi, Kajiado, Mombasa, Kilifi and Kwale.