Kenyans are capable, give them the chance to run JKIA

Signage at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

There have been two recent developments in Kenya's aviation industry. The first is that the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) has called off an intended strike.

This is to allow for talks over a proposal by Indian airports operator Adani to take over the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). KAWU fears that Adani's proposal could cause job losses and facilitate the employment of non-Kenyans at the country's premier airport.

The other more significant development is that Kenya Airways (KQ) has reported a net profit of Sh 513 million for the half year to June this year.

This is the first time in slightly over a decade that the national carrier has turned a profit after tax. These remarkable results are a 102 per cent improvement from the Sh21.7 billion loss reported for the same period last year.

After years of loss-making, KQ's board and management team attribute this positive development to revenue growth arising from increased capacity deployment, the appreciation of the Kenya shilling and other operational aspects.

These are what the KQ Group MD and CEO Allan Kilavuka, speaking at an investor briefing, has described as "Project Kifaru 1.0" terming it "95 per cent complete."

If there is a salutary lesson to be learnt, it is that Kenyans have truly come of age and can be trusted to turn around institutions that have been in the doldrums. Operation Kifaru 1, enunciated in numerous press and investor briefings, crafted and executed with precision, is paying dividends.

It speaks to the fact that Kenyan problems are best handled by Kenyans themselves with little, if any at all, input from outsiders carefully curated for the unique expertise that they bring on board.

Perhaps it is now time to revisit the Privately Initiated Proposal (PIP) KQ made in 2020. At the time, the national carrier proposed that all the country's aviation assets be consolidated into one entity and managed by the airline.

This is a practice that is globally adopted by most successful national airlines. The flying business, because of susceptibility to demand shocks, is usually supported by income from running the airport, duty-free shops, ground-handling activities, inflight catering, airport hotels, maintenance, repairs and overhauls and aviation training schools.

Ethiopian Airlines is successful in good measure because of this model. Emirates also runs the airport in Dubai together with all attendant infrastructure. The same applies to British Airways and Turkish Airways in their respective countries.

Adani's proposal to run JKIA has generated more heat than light. It has been subjected to post-truth narratives that have little substance by way of fact. Even then, there are still some reservations that can only be best addressed when the proposal is compared to others.

One way to do this is to have the government invite an Expression of Interest (EOI) from other airport or airline operators. KQ, if invited, should rekindle its PIP. There shouldn't be any reason the national carrier, having proven itself through competent management, cannot be allowed to run JKIA successfully.

After all, it is the anchor tenant, contributing to 70 per cent of KAA's annual revenue. Give Kenyans a chance to run JKIA. The question of ceding strategic national assets to foreigners would be obviated by the success of such a bid.

Mr Khafafa is a Public Policy Analyst