CS Miano Takes Action After Complaints On ETA System

Tourism Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano announced a remedial action following a complaint about the timeline of Kenya's Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) system review. This is after the Cabinet sanctioned the review.

The review approval came after the government gave the green light following a Cabinet meeting at State House, Nairobi, on Tuesday, December 17, chaired by President William Ruto.

''To further enhance Kenya's competitiveness, the Cabinet sanctioned a review and strengthening of the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) System, in response to various concerns from stakeholders and to accommodate the increasing number of tourist arrivals,'' read part of the dispatch by the Cabinet. 

The Cabinet explained that the decision to sanction the approval came after various stakeholders raised key concerns about the ETA system.

''Affirming Kenya's growing appeal as a destination of choice for foreign tourists, the meeting noted that driven by the nation's groundbreaking introduction of Visa-Free entry, Kenya is on track to meet its ambitious target of welcoming 5 million tourists by 2027,'' the Cabinet added.

The dispatch pointed out that it is projected that at least 2.5 million tourists will visit in 2024, a significant increase from 2.09 million in 2023. The previous year saw a 35.4% rise in arrivals from 2022, and this surge, as Cabinet added, suggests that tourist numbers are poised to grow by a record 1 million visitors over two years.

On Wednesday, December 18, Miano announced that the government had scheduled a multi-sectoral engagement on January 7, 2025, to review the ETA system based on raised concerns.

"We have scheduled a multi-sectoral engagement on 7th January 2025 to review and discuss the ETA in detail based on the concerns raised and the results of the Africa Visa Openness Index. I will keep all stakeholders updated until we improve the visa openness index," Miano stated on X.

Miano was directly responding to CNN International Correspondent, Larry Madowo, who criticised Kenya's Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ETA), describing it as a hindrance to the country's goals.

He also cited the government's failure to offer a timeline on when the review would take place, and compared the ETA system to Nigeria's visa issuance system, which he described as extremely expensive.

"Kenya is 'reviewing and strengthening' its widely criticized Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) system after a major drop in the country’s ranking in a visa openness index. A cabinet statement does not include timelines or what exactly will change," Larry stated.

"Nigeria's visa-on-arrival system is similar to the 'visa-free' delusion of Kenya's Electronic Travel Authorization. You apply in advance, submit some documents, and wait for it to be approved."

He further alleged that to obtain faster travel approval, one had to pay at least Ksh6,000.

This came after Kenya was ranked among the worst-performing countries in Visa openness in Africa this year. This is despite President Ruto's promise to make Kenya a visa-free country for visiting tourists.

According to the Africa Visa Openness Index (AVOI) 2024, Kenya was ranked position 46 out of 54 with a score of 0.113 alongside Algeria and Cameroon, with the Index further stipulating visa requirements for visitors from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.

A visa is required when travelling from the remaining 47 African countries to Kenya. The country, despite falling behind East African neighbours Uganda and Tanzania, did beat Egypt, South Sudan, Eritrea, Equatorial Guinea, Libya and Sudan.

Comparatively, Uganda was ranked 26th with a score of 0.396 while Tanzania was ranked 20th with a score of 0.706.