Kenya, Tanzania and Rwanda are funding a campaign to promote the use of the Single Tourist Visa and identity cards for regional travel.  
The campaign, to be launched by the three countries’ tourism boards, targets immigration officers, travel agencies, airlines and tour operators.
The uptake of the Single Tourist Visa and use of IDs for regional travel remain low, blamed on lack of awareness and poor information among travel and tourism, trade and hospitality providers.
Uganda is in the process of issuing IDs; its citizens currently use voters’ cards to travel to Kenya and Rwanda.
“We expect 10,000 visitors to have taken up the Single Tourist Visa offer,” said Susan Ongaro, the acting CEO of the Kenya Tourism Federation.
Launched in February 2014, about 1,560 Single Tourist Visas were issued by end of that year.
The Single Tourist Visa costs $100 for all three countries, instead of $50 for each.
The findings of a baseline survey on the awareness of the Single Tourist Visa and IDs to facilitate travel, commissioned by KTF, revealed low levels of awareness among travellers.
The June 2015 report indicates that 58.1 per cent of travellers to Kenya  had neither used nor interacted with someone who had used Single Tourist Visa; and 47 per cent of the travellers showed a lack of familiarity with the existence of the Single Tourist Visa.
Immigration officials showed high levels of awareness on Single Tourist Visa use with up to 70.8 per cent having used or interacted with someone who had used Single Tourist Visa. However, 29.2 per cent showed no knowledge on the use.
According to the KTF, vigorous and joint marketing of the Single Tourist Visa initiative will attract more users.
“This will improve the level of awareness on the existence, cost, countries involved, application process and benefits to travellers,” KTF announced last week while launching the campaign in Kenya.
The East Africa Tourism Platform (EATP) will commission similar studies for the three countries by the end of this year, according to regional co-ordinator Carmen Nabigira.
The organisation is establishing a portal that will enable the three member states to post destinations of choice for travellers on the Single Tourist Visa.
“We are encouraging Burundi and Tanzania to embrace the Single Tourist Visa, and Tanzania and Uganda to fast-track the ID process,”said Ms Nabigira.

Source: The East African

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