UN Adds Kenya Airways to List of COVID-19 Vaccine Distributors

The United Nations (UN) has added Kenya Airways (KQ) to the list of airlines that will ferry COVID-19 vaccines around the world.

Its inclusion follows high-level lobbying by the government after the national carrier was left out from the initial list of 15 airlines contracted by the UN to distribute the vaccines. 

Only two airlines from Africa, including Ethiopian Airlines and Nairobi-based Astral Aviation, had been included in the first list.

Others are AirBridgeCargo, Air France/KLM, Emirates SkyCargo, Brussels Airlines, Cargolux, Cathay Pacific, Etihad Airways, IAG Cargo, Korean Air, Lufthansa Cargo, Qatar Airways, Saudia, Singapore Airlines, and United Airlines.

“These airlines have signed agreements with UNICEF to support the prioritization of delivery of Covid-19 vaccines, essential medicines, medical devices, and other critical supplies to respond to the pandemic,” the UN said in a statement.

The airlines are expected to ferry more than 600 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines globally between March and December this year.

The UN looks to distribute 20 percent of Africa’s COVID-19 vaccines, with UNICEF and GAVI paying for the jabs while UNICEF is doing the procurement and logistics.

The initiative supports the COVAX Facility, a global initiative whose aim is to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world.

In December last year, Kenya Airways launched a modern pharma facility at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi in readiness for the COVID-19 vaccine distribution business.

KQ recently converted one of its Boeing-787 Dreamliner into a freighter as it eyes cargo business amid reduced passenger demand.

The conversion of the wide-body original passenger jet into a cargo flight followed regulatory approval from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) and the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA).