The government on Thursday, April 23, shut down the Utalii College and Hotel and its satellite campuses located in Kisumu and Mombasa counties over what was termed as economic non-viability.
The hotel will remain closed until the Kenya Utalii College Board and the Ministry of Tourism come up with a plan that will make it operational.
A memo from the Tourism and Wildlife Principal Secretary Safina Kwekwe directed the hotel's chief executive Hashim Mohammed to shut down the hotel and ensure that guests were evacuated.
“The college has been closed until such a time that its board, management and the ministry develop a sustainable and profitable operational plan,” the memo reads.
The PS made the decision after a meeting by the top ministry leadership and the Utalii College governance body.
“Following the submissions made by your office, it was noted that it is not viable for the institution to operate the Kenya Utalii hotel as it does not generate revenue and yet depletes the institution’s resource in covering overhead costs,” Kwekwe stated in a letter seen by the People Daily.
Further, the ministry also stated that the satellite campuses in Kisumu and Mombasa were expensive because there were not enough students to sustain their operations.
The students who had been taken in for the September intake will now be expected to complete the pending programmes through an online platform.
The coronavirus pandemic in the country has had adverse effects on the economy including the tourism sector.
Tourism has taken a huge hit with hotels experiencing reduced occupancy due to the restrictions like the International travel ban and the curfew.
International conferences that would see an influx of visitors to the host countries have been postponed indefinitely.
Currently, a number of hotels are being used as self-quarantine centres offering accommodation at a reduced price.
