The Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) has requested for Shs 5 billion to whitewash the country’s image following reports of terror threats.
Officials from UTB led by the executive director, Lilly Ajarova, told MPs that the pronouncement by UPDF that the ADF rebels had infiltrated into Uganda, had affected the sector.
They claimed that some tourists had cancelled their bookings following the alert.
“So now, we have to counter that and that means, from that press release (about terror threats) we are going to get more negative travel advisories that will come up, so we must be able to counter that by bringing more international media people who can be able to verify that it is safe and then they are able to report back,” Ajarova said.
She said they currently have Shs 1.2 billion for publicity but they need an additional Shs 4 billion to effectively engage the international media.
She said UTB had been overwhelmed by calls from tourists about the security situation in the country.
