KWS park earnings hit Sh2.5bn mark
Written by Solomon Mburu
Business Daily Africa
06-July-2007
Kenya Wildlife Service collected Sh2.5 billion in revenues during the 2006/7 financial year — the highest in the organisation’s history.
The result is the latest confirmation of steady growth recorded in the tourism sector over the past five years. KWS is the manager of the country’s national parks — home to game tourism that is the country’s leading tourist attraction.
Dr Julius Kipng’etich, the KWS director, said the organisation had collected Sh2.56 billion by end of June — with Tsavo National Park as the leading revenue earner at Sh538 million.
Lake Nakuru National Park was second with Sh525 million, followed by Amboseli National Park with Sh486 million. Tsavo West earned Sh319 million, the Aberdares Sh126 million, Nairobi National Park Sh94 million, while Mt Kenya National Park earned Sh63 million. Hell’s Gate National park grossed Sh32 million while Meru National park, which KWS has billed as the next Maasai Mara, earned Sh20 million.
Coast-based marine parks collected Sh95 million, while smaller parks including Shimba Hills, Saiwa Swamp and Mt Elgon earned Sh263 million.
Mr James Sambu, a management accountant at KWS, attributed the big jump in revenue collection to the sealing of loopholes through which the organisation has been losing money.
