Planes at Entebbe International Airport
Entebbe International Airport recorded a total of 842,429 international passengers (413,223 arrivals and 429,206 departures) in the first part of the year (January to June 2023), Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) has revealed.
Addressing the media at Uganda Media Centre on Thursday August 03, 2023 about the state of Uganda’s Aviation Industry, UCAA Director General, Fred K. Bamwesigye, said the half year performance reflects 134,679 more passengers than was registered in the same period of January to June 2022 which recorded a total of 707,750 international passengers (326,384 arrivals and 381,366 departures).
“The January to June 2023 traffic is also higher than that recorded before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the same period of January to June 2019, which registered 836,472 international passengers (405,458 arrivals and 431,014 departures),” Bamwesigye said.
He said the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) estimated full recovery of Africa’s aviation industry from the adverse effects of COVID-19 to take place in 2024.
“Going by the half year performance, Uganda may attain this by the end of this year. The increase in traffic is partly attributed to relaxation of COVID-19 travel restrictions across the globe, tourism promotion initiatives, coming on board of the national airline and attraction of more air operators to Uganda’s airspace through liberalization of air transport services, among others,” he said.
According to UCAA, Entebbe International Airport recorded 18,817 tonnes in exports and 7,125 tonnes in imports in the first half of 2023.
The table below highlights comparative details of Jan-June statistics over three different years.
| No. | ITEM | Jan-June (2019) | Jan-June (2022) | Jan-June (2023) |
| 1 | International Arrivals | 405,458 | 326,384 | 413,223 |
| 2 | International Departures | 431,014 | 381,366 | 429,206 |
| 3 | Transit Pax | 83,142 | 43,793 | 57,469 |
| 4 | Domestic Arrivals | 6,458 | 3,863 | 5,116 |
| 5 | Domestic Departures | 5,887 | 3,411 | 4,314 |
| 6 | Exports (tonnes) | 21,469 | 21,521 | 18,817 |
| 7 | Imports (tonnes) | 10,221 | 10,075 | 7,125 |
| 8 | Aircraft Movements | 15,460 | 13,715 | 14,575 |
| 9 | Over flights | 7,787 | 7,038 | 11,203 |
