Trade

Jet fuel makes UAE Kenya’s second largest exporter

January 9, 2025, 4:25 PM

UAE Kenya exports FlyDubai first flight to Mombasa — Flydubai's inaugural flight to Mombasa is welcomed with a celebratory water cannon salute: increased refuelling by UAE airlines has pushed up export figures from Kenya

Refuelling by UAE airlines
Goat meat and tea exports up
Total more than doubles

The UAE has moved ahead of the US, Pakistan, Netherlands, Tanzania and the UK to become Kenya’s second largest export market, according to latest government figures.

The Emirates are second, behind Uganda, after exports from the Gulf state more than doubled, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) said in its latest report.

However, the majority of the increase “was primarily driven by increased re-exports of kerosene-type jet fuel,” attributed to increased fuelling of UAE-owned aircraft in Kenya, authorities told Business Daily Africa.

The Kenya Revenue Authority, which provides data to KNBS, records fuel as an export when foreign airlines refuel planes at Kenyan airports.

Flydubai launched four return flights a week to Mombasa in January last year. Emirates Airline flies double daily flights from Dubai to Nairobi, Air Arabia operates flights from Sharjah to Nairobi and Etihad Airways resumed its operations to the Kenyan capital in December.

Exports more than doubled in the nine months to September 2024, to reach KSh87 billion ($671 million), up from KSh39.7 billion in the same period in 2023.

The 119 percent increase in exports was also attributed to higher sales of goat meat and fermented black tea.

The UAE and Kenya completed negotiations on a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) in February last year.

Non-oil trade between the UAE and Kenya reached just over $3 billion in 2023, up 26 percent year on year.

The two sides hope the agreement will help accelerate investment into areas including logistics, healthcare, travel and tourism, infrastructure and information and communication technology.

The UAE is one of the most visited countries by President William Ruto since he took office in September 2022.

UAE-Kenya trade links

Kenya extended oil import agreements with Saudi and UAE oil companies in December to ease pressure on its currency. Before the deal, Kenya imported fuel through an open tender system, resulting in monthly payments of more than $500 million.
The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has invested nearly $10 billion in development projects in 42 African countries over the past decade, including a road project in Kenya.
The UAE’s International Resources Holdings announced last May joint venture agreements to mine in Angola, along with advanced stage discussions in Burundi, Tanzania and Kenya to extract a range of critical minerals.
Kenya and the UAE discussed a commercial loan in October worth $1.5 billion, according to the Kenyan minister of finance, to help manage its debt load.
The Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ signed a finance framework agreement with Kenya last April to enable investments in priority sectors of its economy.