For a country positioned between Southern, Central and Eastern Africa, Zambia’s aviation opportunity has always been larger than the routes currently available to passengers and cargo operators. Its location gives it a natural claim to regional connectivity, but geography has limited value unless it is supported by direct services, viable route economics, enabling policy, airport infrastructure and airlines willing to build networks around real commercial demand.
Zambia already has a stronger air services base than many markets of comparable size. The country is served by 16 airlines, including 14 international operators and two domestic carriers, with established links into Johannesburg, Dar es Salaam, Kigali, Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Dubai and other destinations. Lusaka-Johannesburg remains one of the busiest regional routes and is also among the most competitive, with Proflight Zambia, Zambia Airways, Airlink and South African Airways operating on the city pair. Ethiopian Airlines connects Lusaka to Addis Ababa Bole International Airport, feeding passengers into one of Africa’s most extensive hub-and-spoke networks, while Emirates provides onward global connectivity through Dubai.
Within Zambia’s own market, traffic is concentrated among a small group of carriers. Five airlines account for approximately 80% of the country’s air traffic, with Proflight Zambia holding the largest share at around 47%. That position gives Zambia a domestic and regional operator with enough scale to participate meaningfully in route development, although the broader connectivity picture still depends heavily on external hubs.
For travellers and businesses moving between Zambia and several nearby African markets, the lack of direct services continues to impose unnecessary time and cost. A passenger travelling from Lusaka to Kinshasa may need to route through Nairobi, while access to Luanda can require a connection through Johannesburg. North African destinations may be even more indirect, with a trip from Lusaka to Marrakesh potentially involving Addis Ababa, Paris and then a connection onto Royal Air Maroc.
Airlines assess whether a route can sustain itself through passenger volumes, corporate demand, tourism flows, investment activity and cargo potential. The strongest routes are usually supported by a clear economic reason to travel, whether that comes from mining, trade, tourism, government activity, regional business links or freight demand. For Zambia, unlocking additional air links will depend on building route cases that show airlines where demand exists, who will use the service and how the route can be supported beyond the first few months of operation.
That is the role of the Air Access Project, which has been developed under a Team Zambia approach. Rather than leaving route development to airlines alone, the project brings together transport, tourism, airports, civil aviation and investment stakeholders around a coordinated air access strategy. At the steering committee level, the process includes representation from the Ministry of Transport and Logistics, the Ministry of Tourism, Zambia Airports Corporation Limited and the Civil Aviation Authority. Technical work is being carried out beneath that structure, with route studies intended to produce detailed business cases for priority destinations.
This type of coordinated route development is particularly important in markets where the opportunity is real but not yet fully visible in scheduled traffic numbers. An airline considering a new regional route needs more than an assurance that the destination is important. It needs evidence of mining movements, trade flows, tourism itineraries, corporate accounts, cargo requirements, airport support, regulatory openness and possible incentives. The involvement of agencies such as the Zambia Tourism Agency and Zambia Development Agency helps link aviation planning with the sectors that generate travel demand.
Mining is one of Zambia’s clearest sources of route potential. Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo both have economic activity that could support stronger air links, particularly where mining companies need to move staff, spares and specialist support. Proflight Zambia’s experience on the Kalumbila route in north-western Zambia shows how mining activity can underpin aviation demand when airlines work directly with corporate clients. By engaging mining companies and securing a baseline of traffic before scaling services, airlines can reduce the risk associated with new or developing routes.
Tourism offers a different but equally important connectivity case. Proflight Zambia’s Windhoek service, launched in April, builds on the movement of tourists between Namibia and Zambia, particularly those who may combine Namibia with Livingstone. The Livingstone-Maun route follows the same regional tourism logic, linking Zambia with Botswana and supporting multi-destination travel patterns. Long-haul visitors from Europe and other source markets are often looking at a region rather than a single country, and better air links make it easier to combine Victoria Falls, Namibia, Botswana and other destinations within one itinerary.
Airline credibility also matters as Zambia looks to expand regional access. Proflight Zambia’s IOSA audit, inclusion on the IOSA Registry and IATA membership strengthen its position in markets where regulators, partner airlines and passengers expect high levels of safety assurance. Those credentials also support interline and partnership opportunities, particularly with carriers that require safety and operational standards to be aligned before entering commercial arrangements.
If Zambia is to strengthen its hub ambitions, passenger services cannot be the only focus. Cargo infrastructure at Lusaka remains underdeveloped, limiting the country’s ability to attract and support freight activity. Markets such as Kenya show how air connectivity, agriculture, dedicated freighter services and cargo infrastructure can reinforce one another. Zambia currently has limited dedicated scheduled freighter activity, but stronger cargo capability could support mining, agriculture, trade and time-sensitive logistics if airport infrastructure and market access improve.
Maintenance, repair and overhaul capability is another missing piece in the aviation development picture. Regional hubs do not grow only through passenger flows; they also attract traffic because airlines can access technical services, efficient ground handling, competitive charges and reliable airport support. Developing MRO capacity would make Lusaka more useful to airlines operating in the region and could help Zambia capture value beyond passenger departures and arrivals.
Airport charges, handling costs, passenger taxes and visa processes all affect whether airlines see a destination as commercially attractive. Easier entry, including stronger use of visa-on-arrival mechanisms, could improve Zambia’s attractiveness to tourists and business travellers. Lusaka’s current transit share is estimated at about 5%, while major African hubs such as Addis Ababa handle far higher proportions of transit passengers. That gap suggests that Zambia has underused infrastructure and an opportunity to capture more connecting traffic if the policy, airport and airline environment becomes more competitive.
Continental liberalisation remains one of the most important long-term enablers. The Single African Air Transport Market, built on the principles of the Yamoussoukro Decision, is intended to remove barriers that continue to restrict intra-African aviation. Although many African countries have signed up to the framework, implementation has remained slow.
Protectionism continues to affect designation, frequencies, capacity, licensing and market access, even in countries without a national airline to protect. For airlines trying to build regional networks, these restrictions can turn commercially logical routes into regulatory obstacles.
Zambia has taken a more open approach by moving away from restrictive bilateral air services agreements and aligning its air services framework more closely with the Yamoussoukro Decision and SAATM. Greater flexibility on designation, capacity, frequency and fifth freedom rights would allow airlines to build routes around market demand rather than narrow reciprocity. Multilateral air services agreements, code shares and joint ventures could also help African carriers serve more markets without each airline having to operate every route on a standalone point-to-point basis.
That partnership model may prove essential. Airlines cannot build regional connectivity in isolation, and Zambia’s air access ambitions will require close cooperation between carriers, airports, regulators, tourism bodies, investment agencies and major economic sectors. Proflight Zambia’s relationship with Zambia Airports Corporation Limited shows how airline-airport cooperation can support route development, from infrastructure readiness to incentives and operational planning. Similar alignment will be needed across government and industry if Zambia is to compete more effectively with established regional hubs.
What now matters is execution: priority routes backed by data, infrastructure that supports passenger and cargo flows, lower barriers to entry, full use of SAATM principles and commercial partnerships that allow African airlines to extend their reach.
As regional economies grow and the demand for intra-African movement increases, Zambia has a chance to position Lusaka as more than a point of origin or destination. With the right mix of route development, policy reform and infrastructure investment, it can become a stronger connector between Southern Africa, Central Africa and the wider continent.
Editor’s note: This article is based on the panel discussion titled “Aviation Connectivity and Regional Integration Under the Single African Air Transport Market: Expanding Zambia’s Air Links Across Africa” from Land-Linked Zambia 2026.
The panel participants included Mrs Christine Chibwe, Acting Manager, Air Transport – Economic Regulations, Zambia Civil Aviation Authority; Mr Vincent Banda, Director of Ground Operations, Cargo and Catering, Proflight Zambia; and Mrs Khetiwe Lubinga-Nyirenda, Director Corporate Planning and Strategy, Zambia Airports Corporation Limited.
