The United States and Kenya on Feb. 5 signed an amendment to the U.S.-Kenya Air Transport Agreement at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. The amendment adds seventh-freedom traffic rights for all-cargo operations to the bilateral Air Transport Agreement, and will enter into force following an exchange of diplomatic notes. The amendment has been applied on the basis of comity and reciprocity since it was negotiated Dec. 4, 2019.

Specifically, the amendment’s seventh-freedom traffic rights allow for U.S. all-cargo airlines to fly between Kenya and a third nation without stopping in the United States, an important right for carriers operating a cargo hub. Kenyan all-cargo carriers also have reciprocal rights to serve the United States.

Ultimately, the rights in the amendment are aimed at fully opening the included nations’ air cargo service markets to one another, facilitating the liberalization of Africa’s international civil aviation sector and providing air carriers greater flexibility to more efficiently meet the needs of their cargo and express delivery customers.