NAIROBI March 01, 2021 –Airports Council International (ACI) – the voice of world airports; has today awarded the coveted Best Airport by Size and Region to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Nairobi, and Moi International Airport (MIA), Mombasa for their excellence in customer service.

JKIA won the 2020 Best Airport by Size and Region in the 5 – 15 million passengers per year in Africa while MIA won the 2020 Best Airport by Size and Region under 2 million passengers per year in Africa in ACI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Survey. ASQ is the world’s leading airport customer experience measurement and benchmarking programme.  The survey captures passengers’ experience at all airport passenger contact points at more than 300 airports worldwide.

While officially writing to the Authority on the awards, ACI World Director General, Luis Felipe de Oliveira congratulated Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) for its efforts in improving customer experience.

“I congratulate KAA on the success in the Airport Service Quality Awards which represent the highest possible accolade for airport operators around the world on customer experience. During this most difficult and challenging of years, customers have spoken and recognized the successful efforts of the team at KAA in providing a superior customer experience under trying circumstances.” – Mr. Felipe de Oliveira said

Kenya Airports Authority’s Acting Managing Director, Alex Gitari noted that the recognition was timely, coming at a time when JKIA and MIA are undergoing major rehabilitation works set to further improve on customer experience.

“Winning these awards is a reaffirmation of our commitment to providing our customers with a stress-free travel experience.   We are truly excited and encouraged by these prestigious awards which herald a new horizon in our customer satisfaction journey across our airports.”  Mr. Gitari stated.

The ACI Awards for JKIA and MIA come soon after the recent recognition of the two airports under ACI World’s Voice of Customer Initiative.

Nairobi  7^th January, 2021 – Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) is committed to positioning JKIA as the preferred regional aviation hub.  In this regard, KAA has embarked on a renovation project to upgrade the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport’s Terminal 1B and 1C.

 The 12-month airport development project which is estimated to cost KES. 963 million aims to refurbish the departure halls to improve the check-in, security screening, retail operations as well as passenger lounge experience.

Once completed, the newly renovated light-filled departure terminals will deliver modern concessions and amenities that will give travelers a friendly and memorable experience. It will also ease passenger flow and increase efficiency due to the centralization of security screening procedures and the reallocation of available floor spaces to international departure gates.

“The refurbishment and facelift of the T1B & 1C aims to align the passenger experience in these terminals to match what is offered at T1A. said KAA Ag. MD/CEO Alex Gitari. “The remodeling project is an integral part of the ongoing JKIA Customer Service Improvement Plan (CSIP) which was formulated from feedback from our stakeholders and customers”, he added.

To expedite the implementation of this project, Airlines that have been operating from Terminal 1B and 1C are being temporarily relocated to Terminal 1A and Terminal 2. To minimize inconveniences, passengers are requested to arrive at the airport at least 4 hours before their flight departures.

Kenya Airports Authority has joined more than 100 transport sector companies who have confirmed their support to combat wildlife trafficking by signing the United for Wildlife (UFW) Transport Taskforce Buckingham Palace Declaration. The agreement sets out tangible steps that can be taken to close the routes exploited by traffickers of the illegal wildlife trade as they attempt to move their products from rare and vulnerable ecosystems to market.

The signing ceremony took place during the Asia-Pacific/World Annual General Assembly, Conference and Exhibition held at the AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong.

The illegal wildlife trade threatens the future existence of many of the world’s most iconic species and is one of the five most lucrative global crimes. The declaration is a landmark agreement which forms an action plan to strengthen and coordinate action against trafficking. It brings focus and collaboration to efforts by airports and other stakeholders to break the link between the rapidly escalating poaching crisis in regions like Africa and the demand for illegal wildlife products elsewhere around the world.

“Species are being hunted to extinction through the illegal killing and trading of wild animals. We seek to build a broad international coalition to be truly effective in combatting these deplorable practices,” ACI World Director General Angela Gittens said. “Airports play a key role in this fight and those that have become new signatories to the Buckingham Palace Declaration have demonstrated their commitment to combatting this trade. We encourage more airports and more of our partners to collaborate with us in this important work.”

Chair of the United for Wildlife Taskforce, Lord William Hague, said, “I wholeheartedly welcome those members of ACI who have committed to join our Taskforce by signing the Buckingham Palace Declaration, and would like to thank ACI for providing such an opportunity.”

Managing Director and CEO of Kenya Airports Authority, Jonny Andersen, commented, “Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) is the first Airport Authority in Africa to have signed the Buckingham Palace declaration. This is as a result of recognizing the threat of illegal trade in the region and taking proactive actions. We have committed to the fight against Illegal Wildlife Trafficking by enacting laws, developing policies and procedures and training our personnel to ensure that illegal wildlife products do not pass through our airports.”

The issue was a feature at a forum at the ACI Asia-Pacific/World Annual General Assembly, Conference and Exhibition, which helped airports identify opportunities to develop a framework of action against wildlife trafficking. Airports Council International is one of several industry partners working with the USAID ROUTES Partnership to engage and support industry, provide training and raise awareness.

Following the announcement between His Excellency, President Uhuru Kenyatta and President Donald Trump, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) has now achieved Last Point of Departure status. This allows JKIA to facilitate direct flights between Kenya and the US.

Kenya’s National Carrier Kenya Airways will now fly directly to the US, presenting new opportunities for Kenyans in Travel, Trade and Commerce. The first flight is scheduled to depart on 28^th of October 2018.

“This is a major achievement for Kenya as JKIA becomes one of the elite African airports to be certified as a last point of departure to the United States. JKIA is now poised to become the premier hub in Africa.” said KAA Managing Director, Jonny Andersen

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport’s (JKIA) has been ranked as the best Airport in Africa and 38th globally by the Air help worldwide ranking group in the 2018 AirHelp Annual Score ratings of the world’s best airlines and airports. The ranking was based on a recent assessment of quality of service, on-time performance, and passenger experience at airports.

AirHelp Score rankings examined data from December 22, 2017, to March 20, 2018, factoring in delayed and canceled flights, public reviews from trustworthy sources and social media sentiments. JKIA scored highly, stumping its African peers and hosts of globally respected airports.

“JKIA airport has earned its position as a key aviation hub for the region and indeed the continent. Being the main gateway to the country, continuous improvement of service standards will aid our success in reclaiming our position as the premier tourist destination on the continent,” said Mr Andersen.

Mr. Andersen noted that under his stewardship, KAA continues to set new standards of services to customers, as a result, the authority recently launched the JKIA Service Charter, a document that promises to improve service delivery at the region’s busiest airport.

The 2018 AirHelp Score marks the company’s sixth report since it began evaluations in 2015. AirHelp developed this annual report to combine expert knowledge and industry expertise to give air passengers all the information they need to informatively book a flight and feel confident in their choices.
Early this year, JKIA was recorgnised as the best-improved airport in Africa in the prestigious 2017 Airport Council International (ACI) Airport Service Quality Awards. Jomo Kenyatta emerged winner in the Best Improvement by Region-Africa Category in what is considered as the aviation industry’s most comprehensive passenger service-benchmarking program that captured passengers’ experience at all airport passenger contact points at more than 300 airports worldwide.

The Cabinet Secretary Transport, Infrastructure, Housing & Urban Development Mr. James Macharia accompanied by the Principal Secretary Department of Transport Prof Maringa Mwangi, today officially welcomed the new Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kenya Airports Authority, Mr. Isaac Awuondo.

The Cabinet Secretary congratulated the Chairman on his appointment by His Excellency the President and noted that Mr. Awuondo is an accomplished professional with a proven track record, who brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Board and the Authority.

He underscored that Kenya Airports Authority is one the four key strategic State Corporations. Further, that KAA has a critical role in execution of Government policy on the integrated transport system.

The Cabinet Secretary assured the Chairman, the Board and Management of the Ministry’s support in maintaining and enhancing JKIA’s Hub status as it looks to attain Last Point of Departure (LPD) status; and Open Skies becoming a reality.