Hon. Najib Balala

Hon. Najib Balala, EGH Executive Vice President, Government Affairs, Advocacy and Research, World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Hon. Najib Balala leads WTTC’s Government Affairs, Advocacy and Research Department, strengthening the Council’s engagement with governments around the world. WTTC represents more than 200 CEOs and leaders of the world’s foremost Travel & Tourism companies and is the global voice of the private sector in the industry. Hon. Balala brings more than 25 years of experience in public service and the private sector. He served as Kenya’s Minister of Tourism for twelve years, and also held cabinet posts for Mining, National Heritage, and Gender, Sports, Culture and Social Services. During his time as minister, Kenya passed 2 million international arrivals in 2019, and he guided the sector through several crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership Kenya earned international recognition for its health and safety measures. Internationally, he