In Kenyas coastal towns and especially in poor neighbourhoods such as Maweni husbands agree to rent their wives to rich tourists, mostly from Europe, without them knowing the women are their spouses.

Ramadan said. "This was an opportunity for us to make some cash to pay our bills."

Kenya received more than one million tourists in 2016, according to the Kenya Tourism Board, a government corporation. This number translated into Sh 10 Billion earned in taxes, making Kenya one of the top tourism destinations in Africa.

In 2017, TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel website, ranked Kenya's Diani Beach inKwale the seventh-best beach in Africa.

Survival

But all these accolades do not translate into success in the villages where locals survive solely on tourism.

Ramadan Juma, 43, has been a beach operator for more than 20 years.

"Life is becoming difficult by the day," he said, wearing his black sunglasses to fend off the glaring sunlight.

Desperation

On a good day, he earns about Sh 4,000 by helping out tourists navigate the blue waters of Indian Ocean. But nowadays, he complains the situation has become desperate.

"We have been neglected. We depend on tourism as a source of living. Since most of us do not have a constant income, my colleagues go to the extreme and give away their wives to have a good living," said Juma, who also chairs the Diani Beach Boys Association.

Kwale County's chief tourism officer Anthony Mwamunga says the local government is training beach vendors and guides to gain skills to help them earn a decent living. He adds there's not much that can be done about prostitution.