KANOMBE INTERNATIONAL UPGRADES TO CONTINUE
Although the planning for the new Bugesera International Airport is continuing on schedule the Rwandan government is nevertheless committed to upgrade and modernize the present Kanombe International Airport to keep it user friendly and able to cater for the sharply risen traffic experienced in recent years.
‘We are a landlocked country and depend on air traffic more than others, for our visitors to reach us, for urgent cargo to arrive by air’ said a senior aviation stakeholder when asked about the latest reports, that the number of check in desks at Kanombe was being doubled and the arrival capacity for baggage delivery too expanded by 100 percent. ‘We need to make Kanombe even more user friendly, this is the public face of Rwanda our visitors see when they arrive and when they depart. The country must give a positive impression to them on both occasions. It is not only the physical facilities which are face-lifted and improved. We now have the latest technology for check in and so forth in place, but lounges and shops also are on the agenda. More traffic often means that some flights come and go almost at the same time so we require faster handling which makes for shorter waiting and queues. There will be better and more parking also and the entire package of our international airport is upgraded and made attractive for business to come and invest in extra facilities to serve travelers and people working here but also Rwandans who want to come and see what our gateway looks like. But also very important is our staff here and we have invested in training them, giving refresher courses and bring the latest information on aviation security, safety and customer relations to them. Mind you it is not the new check in desk which makes the difference we seek it is the people manning those desks and interacting with our passengers’.
Rwanda has in recent years made a huge and deliberate effort to upgrade and improve infrastructure across the entire country and roll out a human resource development programme which has paid off handsomely with investments pouring into the country on an unprecedented scale and visitors streaming to the ‘land of a thousand hills’ in ever greater numbers, enjoying the natural and cultural attractions Rwanda has to offer. As reported a few days ago, year on year results for the first quarter of tourism receipts shows an increase from 43 million US Dollars to 56 million US Dollars in direct earnings, an indicator just how successful the quest for quality has been in Rwanda.
Watch this space for regular updates from Rwanda and other countries in Eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean region.
