The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted Jomo Kenyatta International Airport a Category One status, finalising a pact which signals the beginning of direct flights to America from Nairobi. The import of the move is that Kenya has attained the highest International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) status that is set to open up business and trade opportunities for East Africa’s largest economy through direct flights.
It significantly reduces the number of days taken to export cargo from seven days to even one day between the two trading partners. Transport Cabinet secretary James Macharia said yesterday Kenya Airways and other local interested operators can fly directly from Kenya to the US once the necessary approvals and last point of departure (LPD) are granted.
“Following the attainment of the Category One status, Kenya Airways will immediately apply for approval to codeshare with US Airlines while concurrently pursuing approval for direct flights,” the CS said at a media briefing in Nairobi.
Kenya mostly imports medical engineering equipment, industrial products, aircraft engines and chemicals from the US while exporting textiles and perishable products, including flowers and vegetables. Even without the direct flights, US visitors had overtaken those from the UK as Kenya tourism looks up and the direct flights will only increase the flow of visitors.
Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) estimates that 82,363 visitors from the US toured the country between January and October last year, compared to 80,821 from Britain as US arrivals increased 16.4 per cent while those from UK dropped 4.2 per cent.
Direct flights will ease the cost of transportation and logistics to the US, as Kenya is one of the major exporters of textiles through the American Growth and Opportunities Act (Agoa) which gives African states preferential treatment into the huge US market.
The US imported goods worth $573.1 million (Sh57 billion) from Kenya in 2016 and exported goods worth $393.9 million (Sh39 billion), leaving a $157.6 million (Sh16 billion) balance of trade that currently favours Kenya, according to US Department of Commerce data.
Efforts to attain the new status started in October 2014, when the FAA conducted a technical review of the safety oversight system in Kenya. This was followed by a Corrective Action Plan which was developed in Washington in January 2015 to address deficiencies identified in the technical review.
Airport expansion
A total of 81 corrective actions were developed and all have since been closed. Last year, the FAA inspectors were in Kenya and cleared the way for the final audit after they were satisfied that the government had put in place all requisite measures.
Apart from putting up a new Civil Aviation Law, Kenya also set up a Civil Aviation Tribunal as part of the requirements. The Government of Kenya has invested in the expansion of airport infrastructure which now boasts a new Terminal 1A both for arrivals and departures.
[crp]
