Business Daily (Nairobi)
Wangui Maina
19 May 2008
Nairobi — British magnate Sir Richard Branson may soon be investing in a new lodge outside the Maasai Mara Game Reserve.
The billionaire plans to lease land from communities outside the Mara where he will put up a high end lodge. Though he could not confirm the exact worth of the investment, he estimated it to be over a million pounds.
By leasing the land, the community will continue earning from it as opposed to a buy out, he said.
His airline, Virgin Atlantic, is currently spending about Sh30 million (£250,000) to market its operations in the Nairobi-London route following a slump due to the post-poll violence.
Flight cancellations following the turmoil heavily affected the airline, leading to reduced revenues, though daily flights have now resumed.
The airline also unveiled a new advertising campaign in the UK to attract tourists to Kenya and help rebuild the Nairobi-London route, which was one of the worst hit as a result of the violence that rocked the country.
"It was disastrous for all businesses and we stayed faithful to Kenya and decided to continue though we could have used the planes on another route," he said last weekend while on a visit to the Mara.
The campaign started on May 19 and appears on London's railway stations as well as in the media.
The airline has been charging competitive fares on the route to encourage passengers. It also flew in journalists from Europe to witness the situation in the country as part of its marketing campaigns. "One of the reasons I am here is to say business is back to normal in the country and it's a safe place to come," he added.
He was in the country to open a community school that his airline has sponsored. Situated 100 metres from the main Maasai Mara Game Reserve gate, Sekenani School was the beneficiary of a collaboration between Virgin Atlantic, Sarova Hotels and Water For Life.
A total of Sh 7.5 million (£60,000) was invested in dormitories, lavatories and solar operated water pumps that will also operate the bore hole.
The project brought in ten Virgin frequent flyer programme volunteers who spent their time putting final touches to the school. Virgin became involved in the project last year when Sir Richard came to Kenya during the airline's inaugural flight last June.
Mr J.S Vohra, the Managing Director of Sarova Group, said the initiative would benefit from renewable energy and enable residents to access clean water.
The solar powered pump will be collecting 24,000 litres of water in a tank. This will be used by children and the surrounding community.
Water For All, a South African non-profit organisation, also donated 'LifeStraw' to the students. This is a portable water purifier that will enable them to have clean drinking water even when at home.
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