Abidjan – Ivory Coast is in talks with three African airlines to operate the first direct route to the U.S. by early 2018 as the West African nation seeks to attract more investors to its fast-growing economy.
The most advanced discussions are with Ethiopian Airlines Enterprise, which is due to send a delegation to Ivory Coast before the end of the month, Transport Minister Amadou Kone said in an interview. Africa’s largest carrier by passenger traffic leads Kenya Airways, which only made “first contact” with the government last week, and South African Airways, he said.
“I’m pushing for it to happen, that we have a flight at the end of the year or in January 2018,” Kone said in his office in the commercial capital of Abidjan, where the flights would depart from. “That’s my objective. I’m not saying it will be easy but I’m working on it.”
The move would fit with the strategy of Ethiopian, which is pushing to consolidate its lead as the continent’s biggest airline with new hubs and already flies to Ivory Coast and the U.S. SAA is relying on a government-led recapitalization to remain in operation and has had two bailouts this year to avoid defaulting on debt. Kenya Airways, almost 27 percent owned by Air France-KLM, has said it’s seeking a U.S. partner to start.
A direct route to a city such as New York would attract more investors to the West African nation and help Abidjan position itself as a regional hub, Kone said. Ivory Coast’s economy has expanded by an average 9 percent per year since 2012, while President Alassane Ouattara’s government has lured companies including Carrefour SA to the country and initiated several infrastructure projects, including an Abidjan urban railway.
More than 400,000 passengers travel from West Africa, excluding Nigeria, to the U.S. every year, according to Kone. SAA already flies from Accra, the capital of Ghana, to Washington D.C. while Delta Air Lines Inc. of the U.S. operates a route from the same city to New York.
