Kenya aviation staff plan strike over Adani deal

AVIATION staff at Kenya’s main international airport are set to strike next week over a contested investment proposal from an Indian conglomerate, their union announced on Monday (12).

Approximately 10,000 members of the Kenya Aviation Workers Union will walk out starting August 19, according to the union’s secretary general, Moss Ndiema. The dispute centres on a plan by the Kenyan government to enter into an investment agreement with India’s Adani Group to expand, modernise, and operate Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

“We are opposed to the Adani deal, which we believe has not followed due process,” Ndiema said.

Under the proposal, Adani would invest $1.85 billion (£1.44bn) to expand the airport in exchange for a 30-year operating lease, according to documents seen by AFP. The group would add a second runway and upgrade the passenger terminal, as per the Kenya Airport Authority (KAA).

“We suspect that this public-private partnership is tainted with corrupt intentions,” Ndiema added. “It seems they want to take over JKIA and privatise it without following proper procedures.”

The union has also raised concerns that the proposed agreement could lead to job losses and the hiring of non-Kenyan workers. An Adani Group spokesperson was not immediately available for comment, and Kenya Airways CEO Allan Kilavuka did not respond to a request for comment.

Kenya’s government has defended the deal as a necessary step to refurbish JKIA, one of Africa’s busiest hubs, which has been plagued by power outages and leaking roofs.

“The airport we have in Nairobi is made of canvas,” President William Ruto said last month. “We need to work with investors to give us a new airport.”

He added, “I have seen people saying William Ruto wants to sell the airport. Am I mad? How do you sell a strategic national asset? You have to be insane.”

KAA stated last month that the deal would be “subject to technical, financial, and legal reviews alongside requisite due processes,” without providing a timeline.

Last year, Adani Group, a sprawling Indian conglomerate, saw billions wiped from its market value after US-based Hindenburg Research accused it of “brazen” corporate fraud.

Gautam Adani, the conglomerate’s founder and the world’s 12th richest person according to a Bloomberg index, denied the allegations and called the report a “deliberate attempt” to damage the group’s image for the benefit of short-sellers.

According to the KAA, 8.8 million passengers and 380,000 tonnes of cargo passed through JKIA in the 2022-23 financial year. The airport contributes just over five per cent of Kenya’s Gross domestic product (GDP).