Kenya’s Tourism Minister, The Honorable Najib Balala was brought back. After a brief time drifting to mining, Kenya’s president Kenyatta last week moved him back to where he was before. Najib again is now the minister of tourism for the Republic of Kenya.

Mining, by broad consensus, was the wrong portfolio given his vast experience in the sector and after serving already as Tourism Minister during the Kibaki presidency.

Balala took over at a time when sectoral competence was key to reviving the Kenyan tourism industry after a string of poor performers in this, for Kenya, crucial portfolio.

President Kenyatta only nominated nine Cabinet Secretaries at the time and notably dropped Balala’s predecessor Phyllis Kandie from the cabinet, as he did also with Prof. Judi Wakhungu who held the Environment and Natural Resources portfolio.

More cabinet positions will be announced over the coming days it is understood but for now it is a moment for the country’s tourism industry to look into the next years with renewed confidence now that their main ally in government has made a comeback.

Former Seychelles tourism minister Alain St. Ange, who now operates a tourism consulting company and together with this publication is a member of the TravelMarketingNetwork in New York, was one of the first to congratulate Najib Bala on his re-appointment.

The announcement of Principal Secretaries of Tourism for Kenya is expected in due course and like with Balala himself is the tourism sector rooting for Mrs. Fatuma Hirsi to serve a second term in the tourism ministry too

Najib Balala has retained his tourism portfolio in the new Cabinet announced by President Kenyatta.

Balala is also the Chair of the Regional Commission for Africa the UNWTO. He is the Tourism Minister who has the responsibility to oversee the rewriting of the Brand Africa narrative as Africa moves forward to claim a greater share of the tourism market.

Kenya also has a seat at the UNWTO Executive Council until 2019.

Alain St. Ange said: “I know Najib Balala and have always appreciated his professionalism and dedication to tourism. He has always been one to raise the Kenya flag and, in so doing, raise that of Africa as a whole. Congratulations Najib Balala, indeed a great choice by President Kenyatta.”