With 198,961 foreign passengers in December 2023—104,160 arrivals and 94,800 departures—Entebbe International Airport has set a new record.
According to Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) Spokesperson Vianney Mpungu Luggya, this number—which averages 6,418 passengers per day—represents the biggest single-day record in Uganda.
The notable surge is ascribed to various factors, including business travel, the holiday season, and tourism.
In contrast, the total number of passengers in 2023 was 1,932,000, exceeding the 1.8 million recorded in 2019 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Due to the 19th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and Group 77 (G77) as well as the China Summit, which is anticipated to draw a sizable number of foreign delegates, Luggya projects similarly high figures for January 2024.
With representatives from 120 countries in Africa, Europe, America, the Caribbean, Asia, and the Pacific, as well as 18 observer governments and 10 observer organizations, the NAM summit formally kicked off at the Commonwealth Speke Resort Munyonyo.
Between 1,000 and 1,500 delegates are expected to be hosted by Uganda from January 15–23, 2023.
In September 2023, Uganda’s aviation sector showed notable progress, outperforming both regional and worldwide averages after an important safety audit conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Uganda’s remarkable score of 72.17 per cent in the assessment audit is indicative of the nation’s dedication to aviation safety.
During the same time frame, Entebbe International Airport documented 59,000 metric tons of cargo overall.
According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), 96.7 percent of the freight moved by African airlines in 2019 was transported by these carriers in 2023, totaling 960 thousand tons.
In 2022, global airlines carried 3.4 billion people, up from 2.2 billion in 2021, according to a report by IATA.
With 67 million passengers transported by African airlines in 2022—a 55.8% increase—they accounted for just 2% of all passengers worldwide.