Air Côte d’Ivoire opens new route to South Africa

Air Côte d’Ivoire has announced that it will be launching the quickest route between Johannesburg and Abidjan, in Côte d’Ivoire, in June.

The Johannesburg-Abidjan via Kinshasa route is expected to launch on 29 June 2022 and will be the fastest route between South Africa and Côte d’Ivoire offered by any airline in Africa.

The airline will be introducing four flights per week between Johannesburg and Abidjan.

Bookings opened on 1 June 2022.

The new route also offers ease of access to 16 West and Central African countries including Congo, Cameroon, Senegal, DRC, Ghana and Nigeria, among others.

Côte d’Ivoire is also expected to host the 2023 Intra-African Trade Fair (IATF2023), the continent’s key event for trade, which actualises the vision of the AfCFTA.

The organisers of the fair, the African Export-Import Bank in collaboration with the African Union and the AfCFTA Secretariat, are expecting deals to well exceed $36-billion in business deals signed at last year’s event.

Air Côte d’Ivoire CEO Laurent Loukou believes the new route between Abidjan and Johannesburg will be key to opening up opportunities for investment and improving bilateral trade between the two countries.

“Of course, the timing of the new route has been strategic as we lead up to IATF2023. Africa is gearing up to become a strong economic bloc and Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa have a massive role to play in that growth. Intra-Africa trade is key to unlocking industrial opportunities for many African countries, including between Côte d’Ivoire and South Africa.”

“We believe in the future of Africa just as we believe in the future of our airline. We are making bold new plans for our future and that includes this new route to connect South Africa with Côte d’Ivoire. Africa is open for business and we want to make it easier for business to happen,” Loukou said.

Côte d’Ivoire is seen as a strategic partner for South Africa – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last year signed nine cooperation agreements with his Ivorian counterpart, Alassane Ouattara.

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