Getting the coast on board for tourism

This brings us to the Uganda Festival which was held in the coastal region of Mombasa, Kenya.

The festival and celebration was an initiative of the Consulate of the Republic of Uganda in Mombasa.

Of course, that was with the help of the government of the coast in Mombasa.
The two governments have in the past built a relationship that goes beyond diplomacy but touches on how they could help each other improve their tourism.

The background
According to ambassador Paul Mukumbya, the dream was born when a contingent from Kenya ended up in Uganda without a clear itinerary. 

With the team in Uganda confused, they somehow managed to find ways of putting together an itinerary, and that is when it hit them that it would have been nice if they had access to information before planning the trip.

They noticed the need to sensitise people about tourism and destinations in both countries; for Ugandans to know what the coast has to offer and what Uganda is all about.

The partnership between the Kenyan coast and Uganda has been around since 2022 when the Uganda/Kenya Coast Tourism Conference, in Mombasa. Another one was held in Diani in 2022 and the third edition will be held in November this year in Kampala.

“The purpose is complementarity not competition. We realised that the Kenyan coast has some features such as the history sites and the hospitality such as the beaches. Uganda on the other hand has wildlife and those things are not here on the coast. So, we thought of encouraging Kenyans who have grown up at the coast and have experienced much of it to visit Uganda and also encourage Ugandans to visit the coast,”  Mukumbya says.

The Uganda Festival
The Uganda festival is among the other efforts to achieve this; through entertainment, culinary arts, and sports. Thus, for four days of the festival, they toured through the coastal regions of Malindi, Diani, Vipingo, and Mombasa.

Among the main activities were entertainment, which was a big part of the three days, and sports through an annual golf tournament that was launched during that weekend.
Mukumbya says golfers have some disposable income, thus bringing them on board would be great for the Ugandan tourism sector. 

Hot sellers
During the festival, one of the selling points was Uganda’s unique cuisine that comprised foods such as malakwang, matooke, groundnut stew and above all, the rolex.

“This is my first time trying out Ugandan food and I like it. I think I will visit Uganda later this year for the Nyege Nyege Festival,” said one of the revellers in Malindi.

The head chef of the catering team, Rita Makumbi, noted that she looked out for foods mainly identified with different Ugandan regions such as millet bread (kalo), posho (which had Kenyans drawing comparisons with ugali), balugu(arrowroot yam), ground nut stew and mashed matooke.

“The intention was to carry the Ugandan kitchen to the coast, so we carried many things from Uganda to them,” she says.

Among the foods Kenyans liked the most according to Makumbi was balugu and kalo. 
“In Vipingo and Diani, people kept coming back for balugu which was surprising because we are sure they had never eaten this food,” she said.

Many had heard about matooke and were curious, while some were just catching up with the delicacy since they had been to Uganda before.

“I have eaten matooke before when I was studying at Kampala International University in Kampala. Today, I came here because Uganda is still a special place for me,” says Emma Nwoya.

Why it was special
The coastal region is a tourist hub with white sand beaches and historical structures, Mukumbya believes if Ugandans are given the right information about such places, both the coast and Uganda could benefit from each other.

The festival had special entertainment by Ann Kansiime, Ndere Troupe and a special appearance by Eric Omondi in Mombasa. According to the ambassador, future editions of the festival will be held in more counties of the coastal region.