QA In Final Stage Of Equity Investment In Southern African Airline
Date
5/16/2024 5:00:52 AM
(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Joelyn Baluyut |The Peninsula
Doha, Qatar: Qatar Airways is in the final stage of an equity investment in an airline in southern Africa, as the state-owned airline drives its expansion on the continent.
Speaking during a panel discussion titled“Connecting the Middle East and Africa” at the Qatar Economic Forum yesterday, Qatar Airways Group CEO, Eng Badr Mohammed Al Meer, said:“We are at the final stage of an equity investment in an airline in the southern part of Africa. This airline will help us complement the operation of Kigali as a hub.”
Eng Al Meer explained that the deal would be announced within two to three weeks.
Although he did not disclose the target of Qatar Airways' equity stake investment, he mentioned that southern Africa has only two or three airlines to choose from.
He noted that the state-owned airline has a vast network in Africa, serving more than 30 destinations.
“Our model is to cover the whole continent of Africa. However, we need to look at certain areas within the continent. I'll give you an example: our network in the north and west of Africa is growing organically. For example, we fly to four cities in Nigeria, and we have a successful partnership with Royal Air Maroc. When it comes to the eastern part of Africa, we also grow organically. The only missing element in this equation, covering the whole of the continent of Africa, is central Africa and the southern part of Africa,” he said.
He further explained:“When it comes to Central Africa, we couldn't find any better partner or any better location than the centre to create or to build a hub for us and our partners other than Kigali. This is where we started working with RwandAir and the government in Kigali to build an airport and infrastructure that can cater to the requirement of building a hub within the central part of Africa. With this, RwandAir will help us connect people from other parts of Africa to Kigali so we can take them all over the world.”
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