Tanzania has announced the withdrawal of approval for Kenya’s flagship carrier, Kenya Airways, to operate a passenger service between the two countries. This decision comes in response to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority’s denial of approvals for Air Tanzania to conduct all cargo flights between the neighboring nations.
The Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority, acting on behalf of aeronautical authorities, cited the lack of necessary approvals from Kenya as the reason behind their decision. In retaliation, Kenya Airways, which operates daily flights to Dar Es Salam, assured the public that the matter would be resolved amicably.
Kenyan Foreign Affairs Minister Musalia W Mudavadi stated, “We have jointly agreed that our respective Civil Aviation Authorities will work together to resolve the matter amicably within the next three days. There should, therefore be no cause for alarm.”
This recent dispute adds to the East African Community regional economic bloc trade disagreements. Kenya has previously imposed restrictions on importing milk from Uganda and farm produce from Tanzania. In response, Tanzania has limited the importation of onions to Kenya, resulting in a surge in prices for this essential commodity.
Notably, the landlocked nation of Uganda has taken legal action against Kenya at the East African Court of Justice. The lawsuit alleges that Kenya denied a license to Uganda’s government-owned oil marketer, Uganda National Oil Co., preventing it from operating and handling fuel imports destined for Kampala at Kenya’s Mombasa port.
