Tourism Cabinet Secretary (CS) Najib Balala reiterated President Uhuru Kenyatta’s orders saying alcohol sale to the public remains banned but hotel guests can now be served in their rooms.

“The President's announcement on the issue of the sale of alcohol was clear that alcohol should not be sold to the public in hotels/restaurants to mitigate the spread of Covid-19. However, after consultation with the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Health, serving of alcohol can only be served in private and in their rooms and not in the public domain," reads a letter from the Tourism CS to the Kenya Association of Hotel Keepers and Caterers (KAHKC) chief executive Michael Macharia dated August 4, 2020.

Hoteliers had raised queries seeking the relaxation of the measure having just reopened after four months of closure because of the pandemic. CS Balala was responding to these queries in the letter.

In his letter to the CS on August 3, Mr Macharia said hotels had included liquor in their reopening offers and were seeking clarification on the way forward.