KILIMANJARO INTERNATIONAL GETS 35 MILLION EUROS FOR OVERHAUL
(Posted 23rd November 2013)
Kilimanjaro International Airport, in airline circles known as JRO, will undergo further upgrades, expansion and modernization from middle of next year, after a 35 million Euro package was put together for financing the works. Managed by KADCO, short for the Kilimanjaro Airport Development Company, the airport is the gateway to the Northern safari circuit of Tanzania, which comprises Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro and the Serengeti as well as to Mt. Kilimanjaro itself.
The airport was recognized by this year’s Routes Africa meeting in Kampala as one of Africa’s leading airport and made it into the finals as Africa’s representative at the World Routes meeting a few weeks ago in Las Vegas.
The long overdue upgrade of facilities like runway, taxiway, apron and aircraft parking spaces as well as improvements to the main terminal will bring JRO in line with other airport refurbishment projects in the region, where the country’s main international airport in Dar es Salaam too is undergoing an expansion and modernization programme, as is Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
15 million Euros will be given to the project in form of a grant while the remaining 20 million Euros will be in form of a long term soft loan from the Netherlands.
Aviation infrastructure has of late been almost en vogue when the governments across the wider East African region finally began to understand what important role aviation plays, not just to bring tourists and business visitors to their respective countries but also as import and export hubs for flowers, fruits, vegetables and even fish from the main lakes in East Africa. Ethiopia is planning a new airport, as is Rwanda too while Kenya’s main airport in Nairobi will see its capacity more than tripled to cater for growing traffic well into the middle of this century. For more information visit www.kilimanjaroairport.co.tz
