DAR ES SALAAM: THE government has paid the arrears of Air Tanzania Company Limited (ATCL) retired employees and members of Wanahewa Saccos as accumulated contributions for over eight years.
According to ATCL statement issued on Monday, the arrears resulted from the accumulated unpaid contributions to the former Parastatal Pension Fund (PPF) from May 2008 to October 2016.
The payment procedures of the arrears to the retired ATCL employees and Wanahewa Saccos are coordinated by the Public Service Social Security Fund (PSSSF).
In February last year, the government told the Parliament it was set to clear the debt owed to ATCL workers and has been putting in place mechanisms to prevent fresh debts.
The government said it allocated over 10bn/- for settling debts owed to ATCL workers.
The government said ATCL generated over 4.86bn/- debts for not submitting employees' contributions to the social security funds.
A 2022 aviation report indicates that ATCL dominated the domestic market by 50.9 per cent, trailing Precision Air at 23.9 per cent and Auric Air Services (11 per cent).
Although ATCL's market share dropped by 2 per cent from 52.9 per cent recorded in 2021, the national carrier is still enjoying a lion's share in Tanzania's aviation industry.
The government-owned airline has so far a fleet of 14 aircraft; one Dash 8-Q300, five Dash 8-Q400, four Airbus A220-300, two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, one Boeing 767-300F (Cargo Freighter) and the newly procured Boeing 737 Max 9.
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ATCL maintains its position as the leading airline in Tanzania, providing extensive domestic and international connectivity with over 120 weekly flights to more than 15 destinations.
Air Tanzania currently operates more than ten domestic destinations from the Dar es Salaam hub, namely Dodoma, Kilimanjaro, Kigoma, Mpanda, Geita, Mbeya, Mtwara, Mwanza, Bukoba, Songea, Tabora, Iringa, Arusha and Zanzibar.
Beyond the borders, ATCL operates to Mumbai (India), Lubumbashi (DRC), Nairobi (Kenya), Hahaya (Comoros), Ndola and Lusaka (Zambia), Harare (Zimbabwe), Bujumbura (Burundi), Entebbe (Uganda).
Soon they expect to add more routes to cater for Dzaoudzi (Mayotte), Dubai (UAE), Juba (Southern Sudan), Johannesburg (South Africa), Lagos (Nigeria), Accra (Ghana) and London (United Kingdom).
In 2016, the government took a bold decision to revive ATCL by reforming its management, procuring new planes and expansion of airports to keep pace with the market demand.
