Qatar Airways is to buy stakes in two African airlines. One is a 49% share in RwandAir, a deal that has been several years in the making, and the other is an unnamed Southern African carrier.
“We are at the final stage of an equity investment in an airline in the southern part of Africa,” said Qatar Airways CEO, Badr Mohammed Al Meer, speaking at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha. He noted that the deal would likely be announced in the next two to three weeks, reports Reuters.
During early negotiations in 2022, Qatar Airways sought a 60% stake in RwandAir, with the intention of running the latter as its African subsidiary, reported Further Africa.
Qatar Airways is 100% owned by the Qatari government. The airline has demonstrated a clear appetite for establishing its network in Africa and currently flies to 31 destinations across the continent. According to News24, it will continue to expand its network through a series of partnerships and investments.
Qatar’s interest in establishing a hub and network in Rwanda started in 2019 when it first expressed interest in buying a stake in RwandAir. The Qatari carrier has channelled US$1,3 billion (R23,7 billion) into the construction of Rwanda’s new Bugesera International Airport as part of a plan to develop it into a regional aviation hub.
The airport was expected to start operating between 2027 and 2028, said RwandAir CEO, Yvonne Manzi Makolo, during the Qatar Economic Forum.
