UN team visits Jomo Kenyatta Airport for humanitarian aid hub

A team from the United Nations made a site visit to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to view the proposed site for the creation of a UN humanitarian logistics hub with the support of Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).

The discussions were chaired by Caleb Kositany, Chairman, KAA and focused on enhancing humanitarian operations in the region, says a LinkedIn post from KAA.

"The hub will be the first on the African continent. The other three are in Dubai, Copenhagen and Brindisi, Italy. Locating the hub in Kenya will provide for speedy delivery of life saving aid to conflict regions and areas of humanitarian crises on the continent and other regions in the global south."

The vision is a humanitarian logistics hub and corridor spanning from Mombasa to Naivasha through Nairobi, and the main objective will be to support regional humanitarian activities, the update added.

The UN delegation highlighted the importance of establishing a dedicated logistics hub to streamline aid delivery processes, especially in response to natural disasters, conflicts and other emergencies.

Some of the key benefits of the collaboration will include the injection of foreign exchange into the economy, employment and business opportunities, improved infrastructure, increased business for the hospitality industry, and positioning of Kenya as a major multilateral hub and global capital, the update added.