Kigali, 18 October, 2019 - Hon. Claver Gatete, Minister of Infrastructure joined on Friday, KLM family to celebrate 100 years of existence.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, was established on the 7 October, 1919 by eight Dutch businessmen, turning100 years of existence. It has been in Rwanda for nine years, operating 7 times a week with a steady clientele.

As it has been mentioned by the Air France KLM General Manager East Africa Mr. Arthur Diefenthaler, KLM chose to conclude these celebrations in Kigali for its East Africa operations.

Proud of its service in Rwanda, the General Manager said “KLM has survived in business because of its loyal clients in Rwanda and KLM operations are expected to increase with the anticipated construction and completion of the Bugesera International Airport”.

The Minister of infrastructure and the guest of honour, Honorable Claver Gatete expressed his gratitude to KLM management to have chosen Rwanda to host 100 years anniversary celebrations as part of the global celebrations”.

The Minister saluted remarkable milestones achieved by the Dutch Airline during this long journey, “100 years symbolizes determination to create momentum for an upward trajectory to the future”, he emphasized.

KLM has been flying for a century now, and has inspired aviation industry in Rwanda and other countries in the region. Minister Gatete said “Aviation business is relatively exciting. Rwanda has identified aviation as one of its key pillars for the socio–economic development as stated in the Country’s Vision 2050. In fact, aviation-tourism has contributed around 13% to the country’s GDP” adding that the Government of Rwanda has fully liberalized airspace, signed and initialed 94 Bilateral Air Services Agreements with countries globally.

The intention is to create a conducive environment for Airlines like KLM and others to operate and create social cohesion for economic development.

Not to become complacent in airline business, the Minister of Infrastructure urged KLM Management to continuously improve and invest in their operations, human resource and technology to meet the high expectations of their stakeholders.

He also urged all stakeholders and partners to work together to maximize the benefits of air transport, and to support the sustainable growth of aviation by connecting more people and more places.

Minister Gatete assured the Royal Airlines of the continuous support by creating a conducive business atmosphere to enable a vibrant aviation sector.

According to ICAO annual global statistics, the total number of passengers carried on scheduled services rose to 4.1 billion in 2017, which contributed $2.7 trillion to global economy with positive impact on jobs, tourism and trade. This is therefore a good indicator of how the aviation sector is performing.