Workers' Strike Over Kenya Airport’s Controversial Lease Disrupts Regional Travel
The Kenya Airports Authority had planned to lease Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to India’s Adani Group to upgrade and operate for 30 years.
Flights at the airport were canceled and hundreds of passengers were stranded after workers went on strike, demonstrating in front of the airport in Nairobi, Kenya on September 11, 2024.
The action, led by the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU), resulted in widespread cancellations and delays for passengers in one of Africa’s busiest travel hubs, which serves about 9 million passengers and handles almost 260,000 aircraft movements yearly.
Aviation workers initiated a "go-slow" on Tuesday night, deliberately slowing operations to cause disruption. The effect on travelers was immediate, as major regional carriers reported cancellations and delays. At the airport, hundreds of frustrated passengers were left sitting outside the terminals.
Earlier on Wednesday, Kenya Airways, which is headquartered out of JKIA, released a statement to customers acknowledging the strike, adding that “they would continue to observe the situation.” Airport workers in other domestic airports in Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret also went on strike in solidarity.
KAWU argues that the proposed deal with Adani Group could result in job losses and an influx of non-Kenyan workers, concerns shared by the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) and the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), who had filed a lawsuit to stop the lease. The two organizations argued that JKIA is a strategic and profitable national asset, and the deal violates principles of good governance, accountability, transparency and responsible use of public funds.
Government officials have defended the proposal, contending that the airport is operating beyond capacity and requires private investment for modernization. They have stressed that the airport is not for sale.
Despite these assurances, the strike erupted following a high court ruling on Monday that temporarily halted the deal as part of an ongoing judicial review. The ruling also permitted KHRC and LSK to file an application for a judicial review of the decision with October 8 set as mention date.
Rumors of a strike had been circulating since July when news of the deal leaked on Kenyan social media. In August, the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) finally confirmed receiving an investment proposal from Adani Airport Holdings Limited. In response, KAWU opposed the proposed lease of the airport, calling for the resignation of the KAA Board of Directors and senior managers for incompetence and mismanagement.
By Wednesday evening local time, Francis Atwoli, who heads Kenya’s Central Organisation of Trade Unions, said that workers had agreed to resume work. He also added that there has been an agreement with the government that the participating workers — who could be heard chanting, “Adani Must Go!” during the protests — would not be victimized.
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