This photo take on April 27, 2024 shows the scenery of Mount Kilimanjaro at Amboseli National Park in Kajiado County, Kenya (Xinhua/Han Xu)

 
Kenya Tourism Board (KTB), the country's marketing body, said Friday it has launched a strategic marketing campaign to boost tourism within the East African Community (EAC) market.

The KTB is partnering with renowned social media influencers and key media outlets from EAC member countries to promote destination visibility, ignite travel interests, and unearth new growth prospects, June Chepkemei, the KTB chief executive officer, said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.

Popular social media personalities and content creators from target EAC markets will highlight key attractions across various tourism hotspots spanning from Nairobi, Mt. Kenya, the Maasai Mara, Amboseli, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru as well as the Coast, Chepkemei said.

Ostriches forage on Crescent Island at Lake Naivasha in Nakuru County, Kenya, July 8, 2023. (Xinhua/Han Xu)

 
"Influencers play a critical role in destination marketing by delivering authentic, engaging content that sparks desire and travel aspirations among their followers," she said.

The EAC market has great potential for growth, especially through regional integration, Chepkemei said.

She said tourist arrivals from EAC source markets have been rising in recent years.

"The media play a key role in shaping consumer preferences and travel decisions. We aim to provide them with an impactful experience that translates to compelling storytelling," Chepkemei said.

The marketing strategy builds on the 2023 East African Regional Tourism Expo and the Magical Kenya Tourism Expo, where EAC member states agreed to enhance collaboration and adopt an integrated tourism marketing strategy to boost competitiveness, attract more tourists and increase earnings, she said.

The EAC region has set a goal to attract over 14 million international tourists annually by 2025, up from 7.2 million in 2019, the KTB said.

Member states of the EAC are Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

Kenya, on its part, aims to achieve 5.5 million arrivals and 6.3 billion U.S. dollars in tourism earnings by 2028, the KTB said.