Rwanda’s national carrier, RwandAir, has launched its new route to the Nigerian capital, Abuja, making it the airline’s second destination in the world’s most populous Black nation after the commercial hub Lagos. The carrier will operate flights four times a week between Kigali and Abuja.
The airline sent its Boeing 737-700 on its maiden flight to the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja, from Kigali International Airport at around 10:30a.m last Friday. Nnamdi Azikwe is the second busiest airport in Nigeria after Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
The Abuja route brings RwandAir’s destinations to 24, in Africa, Europe and Asia. Besides Nigeria, RwandAir flies to many other West African countries and operates a regional hub in Benin Republic.
Addressing the media at the airport in Kigali, Patrick Manzi, the airline’s marketing manager, said that the decision to fly to a second city in Nigeria was prompted by the higher demand in the West African country.
Manzi expatiated, “There is a lot of potential within the Nigerian market. Nigeria is one of the markets that provide us a lot of revenues. Opening another route there is a way of tapping into this potential”.
Nigeria and South Africa seem to be competing for the largest economy on the continent. Manzi explained, “It also means that this is a way of increasing connectivity in Africa, as well as business opportunities between Rwandans and Nigerians. At the same time, it will also be an opportunity for the airline to continue increasing connectivity in the West African states”.
According to the airline managers, RwandAir will be flying to Abuja and from there connect to Accra, Ghana’s capital city. About thirty passengers were on board the maiden flight to Abuja last Friday.
