Kenya’s national carrier Kenya Airways (KQ) has assured passengers that flights between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam will not be disrupted despite Tanzania’s decision to ban all flights from Kenya effective 22nd of January 2024. 

Tanzania through an official statement issued by the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority –TCAA banned all passenger flights from Kenya in what it termed as retaliatory move following Kenya’s refusal to grant Air Tanzania all-cargo flight operations between Nairobi and Third countries. 

‘’This is to reciprocate the decision by the aeronautical authorities of the Republic of Kenya to refuse the Tanzanian request for all-cargo flight operations by Air Tanzania Company Limited under the Fifth Freedom Traffic Rights between Nairobi and Third countries.’’ Read the statement in part.  ‘’Following this Decision, there shall be no passenger flights by KQ between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam from the 22 January 2024’’ added the statement.

KQ which operates 33 scheduled flights per week between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in a statement stated it is working hard to ensure flights will not be disrupted following Tanzania’s decision.   ‘’Kenya Airways is engaging the Civil Aviation Authorities and relevant government agencies in Kenya and Tanzania to  find a solution that will ensure there are no flight disruptions between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam’’ read KQ’s statement. 

Kenya’s non-compliance is ‘obvious’

The Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority termed Kenya's turndown as a non-compliance with Section 4 of the Memorandum of Understanding on Air Services between the two countries signed on November 24, 2016, in Nairobi.

This is not the first time; the two countries are differing on diplomatic and business related matters. David Bett, a seasoned journalist and a diplomacy scholar in Nairobi has likened this to sibling rivalry. 

‘’This is not the first time the two countries are retaliating against each other. It started even before the late Magufuli was in power. The two are children of the same mother who fight from time to time but eventually agree.’’ Said David Bett. ‘’Tanzania blocked Kenya’s Jambo jet from operating in her skies, Kenya on the other hand allowed Tanzania’s Precision Air to operate in the Kenyan airspace, now that Nairobi has just tried to be a little bit strict, Dar es Salaam, the small baby is crying loud’’ added Mr. Bett. 

Amicable solution

Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary and Minister of Foreign Affairs Hon. Musalia Mudavadi on his X platform (formally Twitter) said the two countries are in talks and the matter will be solved amicably. 

 ‘’I have this evening spoken to H.E. January Makamba Minister for Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation of the United Republic of Tanzania, with regard to the decision of the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority to rescind the approvals for Kenya Airways to operate passenger flights between Nairobi and Dar es Salaam with effect from 22nd January 2024. We have jointly agreed that our respective Civil Aviation Authorities will work together to have the matter resolved amicably within the next three days. There should therefore be no cause for alarm’’ affirmed Mudavadi. 

His Tanzanian counterpart January Makamba through the same platform assured the public that the matter will be solved as soon as possible. ''I spoke to my Kenyan colleague Musalia Mudavadi. We agree that restrictions of air travel between our countries and from any of our countries to a third country shouldn’t stand. With relevant authorities, we’ve resolved to settle this issue, per existing agreements, within 3 days’’ stated Hon. Makamba.

Kenya and her neighbors’ diplomatic tiff

This comes ahead of a planned meeting between president William Ruto of Kenya and his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni where the two heads of state are scheduled to have a sit down to iron out their diplomatic tiff.  Late last year, Kenya blocked Uganda from using the Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) infrastructure to transport refined petroleum products from the Port of Mombasa  Uganda under a new arrangement as directed by Uganda’s Cabinet a move that saw Uganda boycott the Mombasa port and opted to use the Dar es Salaam port to transport the essential product.

By Kelvin Ogome