JKIA Ranks Second in Africa for Intra-Continental Flights

Nairobi has cemented its position as one of Africa's four principal aviation gateways, according to a new analysis by the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) covering passenger traffic across the continent's top 100 domestic, intra-African and international routes. Africa's aviation network remains heavily concentrated around a small number of cities.

The AFRAA Routes and Connectivity Report, which analysed passenger traffic during the second half of 2025, ranked Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) as Africa's second busiest hub for intra-African connectivity, trailing only Johannesburg. Nairobi, alongside Johannesburg, Tunis and Cairo, accounts for much of the continent's regional connectivity.

Two Nairobi routes, Mogadishu-Nairobi and Entebbe-Nairobi, ranked among the five busiest regional city pairs on the continent. Across the top 100 routes reviewed, domestic services carried 13.4 million passengers, compared with 9.3 million on international routes and 4.08 million on intra-African services.

Despite Nairobi's growing regional standing, domestic air travel across Africa remains dominated by South Africa and Nigeria, supported by their large populations, geographic size, multiple commercial centres and strong internal travel demand. The Cape Town-Johannesburg corridor remained Africa's busiest domestic route during the July-December 2025 period, carrying nearly two million passengers, followed by Durban-Johannesburg and Abuja-Lagos.

Africa's international aviation market showed a similar concentration, skewed heavily toward routes linking North Africa and France. Algiers-Paris Charles de Gaulle and Algiers-Paris Orly ranked as the busiest international connections, while Paris-Orly services to Tunis, Marrakech and Réunion also featured among the continent's top international corridors.

Paris Orly emerged as the most connected international airport in the analysis, reflecting long-standing tourism, diaspora and economic ties between France and the Maghreb region, with Cairo and Algiers standing out as Africa's leading gateways for international travel.

AFRAA said accelerating implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market could help reduce the continent's reliance on a handful of dominant hubs by encouraging more direct services between African cities, strengthening trade, tourism and economic integration while improving access to underserved markets.