Busara Advisors is the presenting sponsor of Global Atlanta's Africa Channel. Subscribe here for monthly Africa newsletters.
South Africa on Sept. 27 became the fifth nation in Africa to sign a “sister airport” agreement with Hartsfield-Jackson, becoming the newest member of the growing sorority the world’s busiest airport is convening on the continent.
The Atlanta airport signed a similar deal with Namibia a month ago, pledging to share best practices in the areas of airport management and air service development, the process of wooing flights to their respective destinations. A Kenya deal is being explored in the wake of a presidential visit to Georgia in May.
In addition to being the busiest and most efficient airport in the world, ATL is one of the leading U.S. airports for nonstop flights to Africa thanks to Delta Air Lines Inc.’s direct reach to Lagos, Nigeria, and both Johannesburg and Cape Town in South Africa, as well as the Ethiopian Airlines flight to Addis Ababa that started more than a year ago.
Officials from Airports Company South Africa, headed by CEO Mpumi ZamaZwide Mpofu, signed the deal after attending the Airports Council International World’s Customer Experience Summit in Atlanta.
Ms. Mpofu said in a news release that the partnership is a “blueprint for a strategic alliance” focused on “growth, collaboration and excellence.”
She added that a particular focus would be fostering air cargo growth, as the company is set to spend $330 million over the next eight years to develop a new cargo terminal at Johannesburg’s O.R. Tambo International Airport in the City of Ekurhuleni. ACSA manages nine airports across the country.
“This strategic infrastructure goes beyond just moving goods, but connecting continents, fostering trade and driving economic growth,” Ms. Mpofu said.
The agreement comes at a high point in the Atlanta-South Africa relationship, which has been prioritized by the U.S. Embassy there under the leadership of Ambassador Reuben Brigety.
Mr. Brigety earlier this year brought a delegation to the city to kick off the Atlanta Phambili initiative, an effort to install the city as the focal point in a U.S.-South Africa relationship that he believes can thrive commercially and culturally even as the two countries work through divergences on foreign-policy issues.
In that context, USAID’s Southern Africa Mission Director Leslie Marbury and Cynthia Griffin, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs for sub-Saharan Africa, were on hand for the deal’s signing.
“It will increase the flow of people and goods between our countries, and deepen our business, tourism and cultural ties. The agreement reflects the spirit of the Atlanta Phambili initiative, which seeks to advance our bilateral partnership through economic, educational and cultural exchanges,” Ms. Griffin said in an ATL news release.
Atlanta officials added that the deal was chance to showcase the city’s growing global influence and drive business and people-to-people ties.
“In this age of global connectivity, this partnership represents an incredible opportunity for growth and learning,” said Jan Lennon, Interim General Manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, in a news release.
Beyond South Africa, Hartsfield-Jackson has sister airport agreements with African countries including Liberia, Cote D’Ivoire, Nigeria and Namibia.
Read the Atlanta airport new’s release
See the release from Airports Company South Africa
Learn about Atlanta Phambilli from our interview with Ambassador Reuben Brigety: