The Kigali Africa Hub is Qatar Airways Cargo’s first hub outside of Qatar, and will lay the foundations for expansion in Africa and help the continent meet its annual economic growth forecast of 3-5% annually over the next decade.
The first flight, a Boeing 777 Freighter with its Moved by People livery, touched down at 13.00h local time on yesterday (Wednesday 3 May) where it was met by local dignitaries, freight forwarders, partners and customers, as well as Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo for Qatar Airways Cargo and Yvonne Makolo, CEO of RwandAir.
The B777F will fly from Doha to Kigali twice a week and since March, Qatar Airways Cargo has created an intra-Africa service between Kigali and Lagos 3 times a week and a weekly Istanbul – Doha – Kigali route, both operated by an Airbus A310.
To launch the hub, QAS Cargo, a subsidiary of Qatar Airways, provided consultancy services to RwandAir Cargo to improve its cargo handling performance.
A team from QAS Cargo visited the cargo handling facilities and presented RwandAir with an action plan to improve operational and handling performance.
The team is working on a future roadmap including a proposed improvement plan for its warehouse infrastructure, which will form part of RwandAir’s long-term strategic plan.
Halleux says Africa has fast growing economies but needs to develop its infrastructure to meet its potential.
He says, “Qatar and Rwanda have long-enjoyed bilateral trade agreements, with both Qatar Airways and Qatar Investment Authority having previously invested in Kigali International Airport and RwandAir. It was therefore a logical step that Qatar Airways Cargo supports RwandAir in its cargo ambitions. Our customers will benefit from both a reliable intra-African network through our Kigali hub, as well as enhanced service levels and cost synergies.”