Kenya’s National Treasury and Economic Planning has released a draft Government Transport Policy for 2024 that introduces stringent air travel regulations for public servants, marking a significant shift in the management of government transportation resources.
The new policy establishes clear hierarchical guidelines for official air travel, restricting business class travel to senior government officials at Job Group R and above. All other public servants will be required to use economy class for both domestic and international official travel.
According to the official policy document, “Air transport shall be used both locally and internationally. This policy aims to ensure the use of air transport is compliant to the existing austerity measures.”
The guidelines specifically state that “the use of business class is restricted to only senior government officers of JG R and above,” while “all other government officers on official travel within and outside Kenya shall use the Economy class for travel.”
The policy also addresses the use of chartered aircraft, noting that “hired air transport shall only be used within the country under exceptional circumstances where other means of transport may not be appropriate, in security services or in disasters.” This provision ensures flexibility for emergency responses while maintaining cost control measures.
In a move to support national carriers, the policy explicitly states that “preference for air transport shall be given to the national carrier-Kenya Airways,” demonstrating the government’s commitment to strengthening domestic aviation infrastructure.
