Kenya Airports Authority Handbook 2011-12
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Many regional and international cargo carriers have been looking to JKIA as their hub of choice
JKIA is Africa’s premier cargo hub
Expansion turns JKIA into a fresh produce hub The ongoing expansion of Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) will not only enhance facilities at the region’s largest and busiest airport but will underline its status as the passenger and cargo hub of choice for East and Central Africa.
This includes an extension of the cargo apron at the termini and an expansion of the aircraft parking bays to accommodate more and larger freighters. According to Simbah, the cargo area has been expanded to handle at least eight wide-bodied cargo aircraft compared with three previously.
Boasting the largest air cargo business in Africa, fuelled by Kenya’s booming horticulture and floriculture subsectors, JKIA has been taking decisive steps to meet growing cargo demand. According to William Simbah, cargo commercial manager at Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), the cargo business at JKIA, especially for fresh produce, has been on an upward path over several years.
operations
William Simbah Cargo Commercial Manager Kenya Airports Authority
Moreover, KAA is looking to consolidate operations at the cargo termini in a move that will see cargo handling companies relocate to the airside. According to Simbah, this will involve a centralisation of key handling activities, especially of perishable cargo, closer to the airside. This will help to safeguard cargo at JKIA, which was prone to pilferage when cargo had to be transported from the landside to the airside. Consolidation to the airside, notes Simbah, will further enhance security at the cargo termini and avoid duplication of duties. To meet the growing demand for cargo capacity at JKIA, the KAA has entered into a build, operate and transfer (BOT) agreement with major cargo handling companies at the airport. Under this agreement, the companies will install modern cargo termini to boost cargo capacity. This has seen the number of cargo termini at JKIA increase from two to five, with plans to increase them to seven. Cargo termini now in operation at JKIA:
The strategic location of Nairobi, at the crossroads of various trade routes, together with the rapid expansion of national carrier Kenya Airways, have also helped to push up cargo traffic at JKIA. Many regional and international cargo carriers have been looking to JKIA as their hub of choice to serve the growing cargo business from Kenya and the entire Great Lakes Region. In its efforts to expand capacity at JKIA and improve the infrastructure, the government, through the KAA, has so far invested more than KES 1.6 billion in expanding the cargo termini and associated infrastructure.
• Kenya Airfreight Handling Limited (KAHL) • The Nairobi Cargo Centre • Transglobal Cargo Centre • Swissport International Ltd • Siginon Freight.