Uganda and Kenya are lining up investment and business openings in tourism, technology and innovation, while trying to ease the snags that still slow movement across East Africa.
Those issues sit at the heart of the fifth Uganda–Kenya Coast Tourism and Innovation Summit, set for October 26 and 27 at Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort & Spa in Mombasa. Government officials, tourism operators, technology firms, investors and private-sector players from both countries are expected.
The meeting runs under the theme “Unlocking Tourism Opportunities: Resolving Policy Bottlenecks through Technology, Youth and Seamless Mobility across East Africa.” Organisers want practical answers to the policy and operational problems that still hold back tourism and cross-border trade, not another round of talk for its own sake.
Digital tools and youth-led ideas will take centre stage. Delegates will see technology being pitched beside tourism investment, smart destinations and better connectivity.
Amb. Herbert Kiguli, Consul General of the Republic of Uganda in Mombasa, said the summit shows how far the partnership with friends on the Kenya Coast has come over five years. Marking ten years of the Consulate’s presence in the city, he said the focus is shifting from conversation to work on the ground, especially by using technology and young innovators to lift tourism between the two countries.
Since 2022, more than 450 stakeholders have joined the Uganda–Kenya Coast familiarisation programme. Tourism operators have used it to build relationships and sell complementary destinations in both markets.
Movement across the region will get close attention. Participants will look at what still gets in the way of tourism and business travel under Article 104 of the East African Community Treaty, which calls for the gradual lifting of restrictions on people, labour and services.
Hon. Mohammed Osman, County Executive Committee Member for Tourism in Mombasa County, said the county is proud to host the summit and put its tourism offer on a regional platform. He pointed to real value in tightening ties with Uganda, especially through smart, tech-enabled and youth-driven tourism that helps both destinations.
Policy talks, innovation showcases and business-to-business meetings are planned. A Summit Communiqué is expected, with priorities and timelines for follow-up.
The gathering is the fifth yearly engagement between the Ugandan Consulate and Kenya Coast stakeholders, and it coincides with a decade of the Consulate’s work in Mombasa. Organisers say it should feed East African integration by treating tourism, innovation, technology and easier movement as engines of investment and regional growth.
