Thousands of beach operators and tourists can now sigh with relief after the government allowed partial access to the Jomo Kenyatta beach public beach, after it had been closed for two years.
The government closed the public beach in 2019, to allow for its renovation, which was set for Ksh.200 million.
The move to reopen the beach came after the Mvita Member of Parliament, Abdulswamad Nassir, appealed to the Mombasa County and the parliamentary committee on trade, industry, and cooperatives.
He stated that the beach had to be opened to allow hundreds of sellers, entertainers, guides and other persons who depended on the beach to continue with their business operations.
While addressing the business people after the beach was opened, Nassir insisted that all operators and tourists must adhere to the ministry of health protocols.
“I promised that I would intervene, and it has paid off after the government reopened the beach, this will allow traders to operate their businesses.
But you must be disciplined or else you will lose your customers who are our tourists. You must strictly adhere to the MoH protocols including washing hands, sanitizing, social distancing and wearing face masks. We are not off the hook,” Mr Nassir appealed.
Paul Munza, the chairman of the beach operators in Mombasa requested that the government pulls down the iron sheets which had been erected all round the beach for the two years.
He proceeded to thank the national government for lifting some of the pandemic measures, and stated that this shall be an added advantage to them.
“We are optimistic of a boom after the national government lifted restrictions including the curfew.
“The reopening has come as we head towards the high season where thousands of upcountry tourists’ throng to the Coast for the festivities,” Munza stated.
However, it was not all smiles because the locals in Mombasa felt they were being played by the government, since despite the 2-year closure, the beach had still stalled.
In 2019, the Cabinet Secretary for tourism, Najib Balala stated that they were closing the beach to transform it into an international destination, which unfortunately wasn’t the case.
“The revamping of Jomo Kenyatta Beach will begin in February, then Malindi waterfront in Kilifi county will also start. They are among the many projects we are doing across the country. They are legacy projects that the President has promised all over the country to support tourism,” Balala stated in 2019.
