Strict airport rules keep off traders

• Two airlines halt flights to Eldoret due to reduced cargo business

“So that if you import contraband, KRA can trace the owner,” the commissioner for investigations and enforcement added.

Mr Nduati said that even if the importers who have been using the airport moved to other ports, they would face the same stringent rules.

Not rosy

Cargo statistics given by the airport manager indicate that things are no longer rosy for Eldoret International Airport.

Since last June, cargo passing through the airport has been on a downward trend. From 810,022 kg last June, it plummeted to 617,280 kg the following month.

Last November, the cargo capacity went up to more than 700,000 kg only to plummet to 541,000 kg in January again. But last month’s capacity was the poorest for the airport in the last one year.

An importer who was using the airport said he had reverted to using the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport after realising that there were no benefits using Eldoret.

The importer said the charges at Eldoret were the same as Nairobi and, since his shops were in Eastleigh, it was cheaper.