Strike causes chaos at major African airport (VIDEO)

Hundreds of travelers are stranded at Kenya’s biggest international airport amid a strike by aviation workers over a controversial deal to lease the facility to India’s Adani Group, local media reported on Wednesday.

The Kenyan Airport Authority (KAA) confirmed the situation at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in the capital, Nairobi, but said minimal operations had resumed as of 7am local time.

“We are engaging relevant parties to normalize operations,” it said in a statement, while apologizing to passengers for any inconvenience caused.

Late on Tuesday, Kenya’s Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) announced on X (formerly Twitter) that its members would boycott work over the “unlawful intended sale of JKIA to Adani Airport Holdings of India.” 

The proposed agreement, described by the Kenyan government as a “public-private partnership,” would allow the Indian company operate JKIA for 30 years reportedly in exchange for $1.8 billion in investment in the East African country. The deal would also see an expansion of the airport, including the construction of a new runway and passenger terminal at the hub, which Nairobi has said is operating above its capacity and requires modernization.

However, the aviation workers’ union has expressed concerns, including the possibility of a mass layoff of locals under the Adani Group’s management.

While announcing the strike action on Tuesday, KAWU shared previous letters in which it had demanded the “immediate resignation” of the entire board of directors of the Kenya Airports Authority. The association stated that “while they should have exercised prudence and accountability as the custodians of this national strategic asset on behalf of Kenyans” the officials instead put up “a show of incompetence in presiding over” the transaction.

Footage shared by local media on Wednesday morning showed dozens of airport workers blowing plastic trumpets and chanting “Adani must go.” According to the Nation newspaper, aviation workers in the cities of Kisumu and Mombasa have joined the strike, which has spread to regional airports.

Kenya’s high court temporarily blocked the proposal on Monday pending a ruling on a lawsuit challenging the lease, despite the government insisting that JKIA is not being sold to Adani.

The Kenya Human Rights Commission and an association of the country’s lawyers jointly filed the complaint, claiming that “leasing the strategic and profitable JKIA to a private entity is irrational.” They argued that it violates the constitutional principles of “good governance, accountability, transparency, and prudent and responsible use of public money.” 

This week’s protests come less than three months after deadly youth-led rallies across Kenya forced President William Ruto to withdraw a finance bill aimed at raising $2.7 billion in taxes.