Divorce Discussions

Kenya currently stands at two pivotal moments: devising means to industrialise for competition at a global scale; reclaiming its coastal sovereignty and transforming the riviera from a playground dominated by exploitative foreign elements into a powerhouse of genuine economic progress for its people. The latter being an inevitable corollary to the former.

The presence of certain notorious Europeans, often linked to entrenched patterns of promiscuous tourism, drug-related activities, and predatory behaviours, has long plagued towns like Malindi, Watamu, Diani, Kilifi, and other parts of the coast. Elements of this kind fuel child exploitation, abandoned babies, cycles of desperation that trap the victims in degrading, skill-impeding, informal hustles rather than productive work, heroin issues, and other drug-related atrocities.

Discussion should be around using the combined: un-overreaching immigration impeders like deportation and blacklisting; layered un-democratizing of tourism at the coast, which may include privatisation of beaches—as is currently being executed by the government—tax increments for coastal tourism enterprises, incentivising the transformation of the coast into a premium destination generating more revenue per visitor—akin to premium safaris, a sector dominated by Kenya in Africa—while maintaining lax citizen access through differential pricing; further incentivising industry Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flow to the coast for the co-existence of premium tourism with manufacturing, which shrinks poverty-driven vulnerabilities.

Considerate deportation, and resettlement, of the notorious characters—a murky topic usually approached with a ten-foot pole—is not a topic that should be out of bounds or shied away from. Such measures align with Kenya’s sovereign right to regulate immigration and protect national interests, similar to how any country manages threats to its social fabric. This is not about blanket exclusion but targeted enforcement against those whose interests don’t align with Kenya’s. By doing so, Kenya creates a more stable, secure, and attractive environment for serious Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), particularly from the United States, and China—which has already shown commitment through partnering on major infrastructure like the construction of Lamu port, the expansion of Mombasa port, and other initiatives linking ports to broader economic zones.

The coast is a strategic economic region—with proximity to Mombasa, East Africa’s busiest port, and Lamu an emerging transhipment hub—and it’s beyond ludicrous for it to be used this way. Further discussion should be about strategically establishing dedicated industrial zones within (or adjacent to) the coastal towns, while retaining the beaches and resorts. The zones could host factories in feasible coastal sectors: aquaculture, renewable energy components, construction materials, textiles, among others. The unmatched logistics efficiency would aid competitive manufacturing for the domestic, regional (through AfCFTA), and global markets.

This shift would also decisively tackle unemployment, poverty, tourism’s volatility, beach hustling, provide stable income, and pave pathways out of desperation.