KIA to start serving 500 people per hour

Kamuzu International Airport will now start serving 500 people per hour following the construction of new terminal buildings at the facility.

On Monday, Japan handed over the new terminal buildings to the Malawi Government. Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Public Works Francis Chinsinga received the buildings from Gyros Corporation president Takao Yamaguchi whose company is main consultant for the project.

Speaking to the local media, Airport Development Limited (ADL) chief executive officer Rhoda Gomani Misomali said the new terminals will enable it to process 500 travellers, up from the current 50 travellers per hour.

She expressed hope that this will increase the number of people coming to Malawi.

On his part, Chinsinga said the old building – which had one baggage conveyor and a few cubicles for passport control – was structurally tired and had failing equipment which led to delays.

“We will now have the privilege of separating our international departures from international arrivals; we have also dedicated a terminal to domestic passengers,” Chinsinga said.

The construction of the three terminals started in 2017 and was the main phase of the $35 million (about K26 billion) project funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica).

A new radar surveillance system was also installed at the airport as part of the project.

“We are now moving into the second phase of the project, which is renovation of the old terminal building to turn it into shops and offices.” said Marubeni Protechs general manager Yasuhiro Tanaka.