SAA Cargo has
expanded its network
on the continent
despite challenging
times as supply chain and
logistics
suppliers seek
to cut costs
to survive the
slow global
economy.
Ronel Rossouw,
SAA Cargo’s
national sales
manager, said
the expanded
network
formed part of
the company’s
long-term
turnaround strategy which
had identified growth in
Africa as a key objective.
“We have increased our
innovation in terms of
technology into cities like
Lagos, Dakar, Luanda,
Maputo, Harare, Accra,
Mauritius, Entebbe, Kinshasa,
Blantyre, Windhoek and
Walvis Bay,
with others still
in the pipeline.
We are also
providing
seamless
express cargo
services from
within the
continent via
Johannesburg
into other parts
of the world
like the United
States and
Europe within a short period
of time,” she said.
“Connecting Africa to
the world has been part of
our strategy for some time.
We partner with carriers
on the continent together
with ground handling and
sales agents to enable our
stations on the continent
to have connectivity
throughout,” Rossouw said.
SAA Air Cargo moves an
estimated 131 000 tons
per annum and has a 30%
airfreight market share on the
continent. The company won
the African Cargo Airline of
the Year award and launched
its Accra-Washington DC
operation in 2015 and the
Johannesburg –Abuja-
Johannesburg route in 2016.
Rossouw said imports
into Africa had dropped
last year following the
cancellation of the airline’s
Mumbai route, mostly used to
transport pharmaceuticals,
while the introduction of
the Airbus 320 aircraft to
replace the Boeing 737-
800 had reduced capacity.
“However, out of our African
markets we have seen a 2%
increase year
on year in
exports and
are hoping
that will
improve. We
plan to keep
increasing
our capacity
on the
continent
by accessing
more
markets,” Rossouw sad.
Southern African countries,
especially Zimbabwe and
Zambia, were showing
consistent demand for both
imports and exports, while in
East African countries such as
Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania
exports were growing, she said.
“We are hoping that this
year Nigeria will pick up with
the launch of our direct three
weekly
service into
Abuja,” she
said.
But
challenges
facing the
airfreight
sector,
Rossouw
said, were
rising
handling
costs and continuous pressure
on yields as international
carriers were shifting focus
from China to increase
capacity on the continent.
INSERT & CAPTION
We plan to keep
increasing our
capacity on the
continent by accessing
more markets.
– Ronel Rossouw
Hopes that Abuja service will boost Nigerian trade growth
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