Kenya Tourism Board Chairman, Jimi Kariuki, has proposed a review of the $10.2 million charter incentive programme in a bid to attract more international airlines to fly to Mombasa.

Kariuki says although the Kenyan government announced the incentive programme last year, there has been slow progress in wooing international charter airlines to ferry tourists to the coastal city.

The incentive programme allows for charter airlines with 80% of their passengers terminating at Moi Airport, Mombas, to get a $30 subsidy per passenger.

But Kariuki said charter airlines with 60% of their passengers disembarking at Moi Airport should also benefit. He suggested these airlines receive a $20 subsidy per passenger.

 “My suggestion is that the government should lower the ceiling of charter incentive programme so that we can attract more airlines to help revive tourism at the Kenya coast,” He said.

Kariuki also said the failure by the Kenyan government to allow more international airlines to operate scheduled flights to Mombasa was a major hurdle to reviving tourist at the Coast.

“We can spend billions of shillings in marketing the Coast, but without international airlines flying to Mombasa, it will be difficult to fill up the empty hotel beds,” he said.

Kenya Coast Tourism Association (KCTA) chairman Mohamed Hersi, says it would be hard for the sector to recover, if the Kenyan government would not allow more international airlines to operate scheduled flights to Mombasa.

He explained that so far, Turkish Airlines was the only airline from Europe operating scheduled flights to Moi Airport after other international airlines were denied licenses by the Ministry of Transport.

Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers (KAHC) Malindi and Watamu Branch Vice-Chairman Philemon Mwavala, said tourism in Kilifi County had slumped due to overdependence on charter flights from Italy.

In March, the Ministry of Tourism announced that the government had signed a contract with Meridiana Fly to fly tourists to Mombasa and the charter incentives for passengers terminating at Moi International Airport, Mombasa.

Last month, the Ministry also announced that the government had entered into a deal with Tui Poland to operate flights to Mombasa during the European summer season.

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