East African Business Council EABC has piled pressure on both Kenya and Tanzania to resolve their flight differences for business purposes.
Weighing on the matter on Saturday August 1, the council noted that the bitter and unnecessary fallout between the two nations may hurt business and trade in East Africa.
In their statement, they argued that both tourism and hospitality were the most hit in the ongoing flight circus between Uhuru and his Tanzanian counterpart John Magufuli.
“The East African Business Council congratulates Kenya and Rwanda as they resume international flights today, 1st August 2020. Tanzania resumed international flights on the 18th of May 2020. These are important steps towards the recovery of the aviation and tourism sectors, however, the differences emerging in regional air transport services among some partner states are set to adversely affect the rebound of business in the region,” Dr. Peter Mathuki, the EABC Executive Director also the Chief Executive Officer at the Council noted.
He further explained that Covid-19 impact on intra EAC trade was worsening and any other friction among nations will double the impact. He added that before Covid, EAC trade was standing at $5.98 billion.
A report from the International Air Transport Association IATA has already indicated a dark future for countries in East Africa which are now set to lose more than $ 5.4 billion an equivalent of sh 581.6 billion in trade.
He therefore urged both President Uhuru and his Tanzanian counterpart John Pombe Magufuli to rethink about the ongoing impasse and urgently resolve by opening up the travel between the two nations for the benefit of their countries as the only way to bolter business back to normalcy.
After Kenya’s president failed to open the country for Tanzania flights, Tanzanian president retaliated in equal measure and banned Kenya’s flights from his airspace.
