KQ re-nationalisation bill dropped

According to a letter to National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi by the House Majority Leader Amos Kimunya, the withdrawal of the bill is set to allow more time for consultations among aviation sector stakeholders including the incorporation of additional input received at the public participation stage.

The withdrawal of the bill is seen as a setback to the administration of President Uhuru Kenyatta who had in November asked Members of Parliament (MPs) to prioritise the bill which he saw as a lifeline to the continuity of the financially troubled carrier.

The National Aviation Management Bill had proposed the merger of the operations of KQ and those of the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) with the pair becoming subsidiaries to a new Aviation Holding Company.

The withdrawal of the bill which can now only be re-introduced within the next six months or voided thereafter will however not be a surprise to the management of Kenya Airways which had seemingly ‘moved on’ from the nationalisation proposal.

“Things have dramatically changed since then, even from a nationalisation point of view. It’s not the answer anymore, we need to do something different,” KQ Chairman Michael Joseph told Citizen TV in March last year.

“We need to look at partnerships that will help us grow and become a much bigger competitor against leading nationalised carriers such as the Middle-Eastern operators.”

Since then, Kenya Airways has disclosed partnership plans with the South African Airways (SAA) during a recent State visit by President Uhuru Kenyatta to South Africa.

The announcement of the partnership whose details are yet to be fully revealed has since been seen as the turning point to earlier nationalisation plans.

In addition to the proposed partnership, the National Aviation Management Bill of 2020 has faced opposition from stakeholders including the Kenya Association of Air Operators (KAAO) who lamented the lack of adequate input at the bill’s public participation stage.