The Tourism Trust Fund, (TTF) today officially handed over an accommodation site at Masinga Dam for the development of water sports tourism in Kenya.

Present at the ceremony were the Permanent Secretaries for Tourism and Wildlife, Ms Rebecca Nabutola, the PS Gender, Sports, Culture and Social Services, Mrs. Rachel Dzombo and Engineer David Stower, the PS Ministry of Regional Development Authorities.

The refurbishment of the Masinga Dam Resort and the development of the tented camp at a cost of Ksh 43 Million will accommodate up to 200 people. The Tourism Trust Fund funded KShs. 22 Million towards the construction of the tented camp. The first group to stay in the new accommodation will be a group of athletes from 15 countries that arrived in Kenya this week for the upcoming African Olympic Qualifiers Tournament for Rowing and Canoeing. The tournament is scheduled to start on 24 January 2008.

The new facilities will now ensure that Masinga Dam can be developed and marketed as world-class water sports training facility.

Commenting on the opening of the accommodation, the TTF CEO, Dr Dan Kagagi said that TTF had funded the construction of the facility to help develop niche areas such as sports tourism in Kenya.

“I am very pleased that the Africa Canoe and Kayak Championships African is going ahead this week despite the political unrest that has rocked Kenya these past few weeks. We are delighted that athletes from fifteen countries, including the USA. South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria, Ivory Coast & Senegal will be participating in the qualifying tournaments. We know that Kenya’s tourism faces a long road to recovery, but by developing and marketing areas for sports tourism we can help assist in the sector’s recovery”, said Dr Kagagi.

The TTF funded accommodation will provide Kenya with a marketable water sports facility that will appeal to both professional water sports athletes and leisure seekers. By creating the up market accommodation, athletes can now train on Masinga dam all year around making Kenya a leading water sports training destination in Africa.