Nairobi airport workers strike over Adani lease plan

# Nairobi airport workers strike over Adani lease plan

*Event date: 2024-09-11*

Hundreds of workers at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport went on strike over a planned deal that would lease the facility to India’s Adani Group for 30 years. The action began around midnight and quickly disrupted flights, leaving passengers stranded at one of Africa’s busiest airports.

The source says the proposed build-and-operate agreement would bring an investment of $1.85 billion and allow Adani to renovate the airport while adding a second runway and a new terminal. Workers, however, say the deal would cut jobs and worsen employment conditions. The Kenya Airport Workers Union, which is leading the strike, argues that the airport is being handed to a private operator in a way that threatens workers’ futures.

The disruption was visible by morning. The Kenya Airports Authority said only minimal operations had resumed by 7 a.m., while FlightRadar data showed delays and cancellations. Police officers were reportedly drafted into security and check-in roles as passengers waited in long lines and struggled to confirm whether their flights would depart. One stranded traveler told AFP he had spent the night waiting without knowing who was screening passengers or how the process would work.

The strike is also a political dispute over public assets. Critics say the deal would deprive taxpayers of future profits from a facility that handles freight and passenger fees equal to more than 5 percent of Kenya’s GDP. The government says the airport is operating above capacity and needs modernisation, but insists that it is not for sale. It has described the arrangement as a proposed public-private partnership rather than a privatization.

The legal fight had already moved into court. The High Court temporarily halted implementation of the deal on Monday while a case brought by the Law Society and the Kenya Human Rights Commission is heard. That means the strike is happening in the middle of both labor unrest and judicial uncertainty, with no final verdict on the agreement yet.

The source also places the airport in the wider Kenyan economy, noting that tourism contributes more than 10 percent of GDP. That helps explain why disruption at JKIA matters beyond the airport itself. When flights stall there, the effect reaches business travel, freight movement and tourism flows. The strike, in other words, is not just about wages or one lease proposal. It is a test of how far the state can push through a major infrastructure deal when workers and courts both object.

The strike also exposes how infrastructure disputes can spill into the wider economy. Tourism contributes more than 10% of Kenya’s GDP, and JKIA is one of the country’s most important gateways for both visitors and cargo. The legal case now running in the High Court means the strike is not the only obstacle to the deal. Even if negotiations resume, the source shows a project that will remain politically fraught until workers, courts and the government reach some form of agreement.

The airport’s importance makes the timing especially disruptive. JKIA is not just a passenger hub; it is a freight gateway, a tourism entry point and a symbol of how Kenya presents itself to the region and the world. The source’s mention of the High Court order means the dispute is now moving in parallel through courts, labor action and government messaging. That combination makes a quick resolution unlikely, even if the airport eventually returns to normal operations.