Kenya to inject 26mln USD into economy from WTO conference

The World Trade Organization (WTO) tenth Ministerial Conference slated for Nairobi next week is expected to inject about 26 million U.S. dollars to the economy, a government official said on Wednesday.

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the preparations were 98 percent complete, noting that the government expects more than 7,000 delegates from all over the world to attend the Dec. 15-18 global conference.

"We expect an average delegate spend of 3,750 dollars. This should inject approximately 26 million dollars to the Kenyan economy through the multiplier effect," Balala said after inspecting the preparations of the conference in Nairobi.

"This is the biggest conference ever to be hosted in Sub-Saharan Africa and we are not taking chances in ensuring that we meet the international standards," he added.

The December conference will also showcase the dynamic development that is taking place in Africa. The biennial event was last held in Indonesia in 2013 where ten agreements were concluded.

Balala termed the conference as an eye-opener of other upcoming conference and added that Kenya has what it takes to host huge conferences.

Balala termed the conference as one of the showcase of Kenya's preparedness on conference tourism.

He said his ministry has identified conferencing as one of the niche tourism products that will generate revenues to the economy besides other tourism products.

The ministry, he pointed out, positions Kenya as the preferred destination for global meetings through bidding to host world conferences in Kenya.

Balala expressed his optimism that Kenya's brand equity continues to improve with the country hosting key international events.

"They have also contributed to profiling of Kenya as a safe destination and have endorsed Nairobi as a regional business hub," he noted. Endit