Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala and Sarova Hotels Managing Director Jaideep Vohra at a past function. [Photo/businessdailyafrica.com]
Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala has conveyed his condolences to the family of Sarova Hotels Managing Director Jaideep Vohra.Vohra, who has been at the helm of the hotel chain since 2006, died in a road accident near Emali in Makueni County on Friday.Speaking in Mombasa on Saturday, Balala said Vohra has been instrumental in the growth of the hospitality industry in the country."We mourn the demise of a tourism icon. Vohra was steadfast in his work and one of my key advisers on matters tourism," said the CS.He spoke while receiving a cruise ship, MS Nautica, which had1,024 passengers and crew members on board.The ship arrived at the Kenyan Coast from the Marshall Islands in North Pacific Ocean, between Hawaii and Australia.Balala said international arrivals of tourists between January and September this year by sea and air clocked 723,174 compared to 657,438 last year."The global cruise ship industry is growing at a fast pace and Kenya is keen to tap by investing in the sub-sector," he said.