Kenya To Host Two Major International Conferences

Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Chief Executive Officer James Mwaura welcomed the government’s initiative to position Kenya as a premier Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) destination.

Mr. Mwaura noted that hosting these major events will improve Kenya’s ranking as a preferred MICE destination.

“The MICE sector is a key contributor to Kenya’s economic growth as laid out in the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA). The sector plans to increase international MICE visitors from 110,000 in 2015 to one million by 2030, raising MICE earnings from Ksh. 17 billion (approximately USD 157 million) in 2015 to Ksh. 40 billion (approximately USD 370 million) by 2030,” noted Mwaura on Wednesday.

This comes in the backdrop Kenya’s successful hosting of significant events such as the continent’s inaugural Africa Climate Summit, the Africa Heads of State Summit in support of the Twenty-First (21st) Replenishment of the Resources of the International Development Association (IDA21), and African Development Bank (AfDB) Group Annual Meeting,

Mr. Mwaura emphasized that such summits and events are crucial for raising Kenya’s visibility and attracting more MICE business.

Kenya’s progress is evident in the ICCA report, which analyzed over 10,000 meetings. Globally, Kenya climbed to the 58th position in 2023 from 80th in 2022, while Nairobi rose to the 111th position from 292nd based on the global tally of meetings held.