Ronald Ngala Utalii College in Kilifi County is set to officially open its doors on September 1, 2026, with an initial intake of 1,000 students.
Tourism Principal Secretary Julius Bitok said ongoing construction and other preparatory works at the college are being fast-tracked to ensure the institution is ready to admit its first cohort.
Speaking during a site visit, Bitok said the college is about 95 per cent ready and has put in place the necessary arrangements to welcome the students.
“I can confirm that we are 95% ready to welcome the first cohort of 1000 students on the 1st of September. We have the necessary arrangements in place to make this a reality,” Bitok said.
The Kilifi-based college will offer diploma and short-term courses in areas including catering, hotel keeping and seafaring, as well as refresher courses in management and other fields.
Bitok said the opening of the institution will strengthen skills development and improve the quality of training in Kenya’s tourism and hospitality sector.
The college, which sits on a 40-acre piece of land, will progressively expand its facilities to accommodate up to 4,000 students.
The PS regretted that the institution, which has taken more than 12 years to operationalise, also has facilities designed to host a tourist-class hotel.
The hotel is expected to provide students with practical training while serving as a key facility for the institution.
Bitok said the government is considering engaging an investor through a public-private partnership (PPP) to fast-track the completion and operationalisation of the hotel.
The opening of the college is expected to create at least 1,000 direct and indirect jobs and boost economic activity in the surrounding communities.
The institution is also expected to support the government’s efforts to expand Kenya’s tourism sector and increase the number of international visitors.
“We are committed to ensuring that we build capacity for tourism and hospitality. The opening will go a long way in ensuring that we meet our target of five million tourists by 2028,” Bitok said.
Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro welcomed the planned opening, saying the college would create new opportunities for young people seeking employment in the blue economy and other sectors that require specialised skills and certification.
Mung’aro said the county has previously experienced challenges when companies sought to recruit seafarers due to a shortage of qualified and certified workers.
“We have had the issues as agents come here to recruit seafarers. The last time I had a big team who wanted 600 people but they went with only 59 due lack of certification,” the governor said.
The governor and the PS also urged leaders to be cautious about their public statements on the tourism sector, warning that negative remarks could undermine Kenya’s tourism industry.
“We urge leaders to weigh their words when they are talking about tourism as it is a very delicate product. What we’ve built in 10 years can be destroyed in a single day by a reckless statement,” Mung’aro said.
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