"We have lost about 100 million shillings (1.3 million dollars / 1.2 million euros) over three months because of last November's terrorism attacks in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa and the ongoing war in Iraq," Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) spokesman Ngugi Gechage told AFP by telephone.

Eighteen people died after suicide bombers struck a hotel near Mombasa on November 28 last year, while an Israeli passenger jet narrowly missed being downed by a shoulder-fired missile.

Gechage also attributed the revenue loss to security advisories relating to east Africa and Kenya issued by Britain and the United States.

These warnings have "kept many tourists from visiting our country," he said.

Gechage noted that the percentage of all tourists who visit game parks during their stay in Kenya had dropped from an average of 80 to about 50 and that KWS had been forced to cut funding to several community projects as a result.

"We are not able to support the projects because we depended on gate entry fees to parks, which is not enough now. The loss was a substantial amount, given that we do not generate much money," he said.

In another indication of tourist sector doldrums, hotels on the Indian Ocean coast have reported that room occupancy rates, usually around 80 percent at this time of year, at around 50 percent.

SPACE.WIRE