The inauguration ceremony of the Kigali-Guangzhou Route of RwandAir was held in Guangzhou on Wednesday, celebrating the maiden flight on June 17, connecting Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, to the third largest city of China, Guangzhou. Guangzhou thus becomes the second destination of RwandAir in the far east, after Mumbai in India.

On June 18, 2019, RwandAir’s Flight WB501 took off from Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou. After a short stop in Mumbai, India, it continued its journey for Kigali Airport in Rwanda. After flying for 14 hours and 10 minutes, RwandAir’s made its first successful Guangzhou-Mumbai-Kigali flight. This new route provides more possibilities for economic and cultural exchanges between Chinese and African passengers.

According to RwandAir, the opening of the Kigali-Guangzhou aviation route significantly reduces the travel time between the two countries. The journey that used to take more than 24 hours, can now be taken in 15 hours, which offers passengers more convenient access traveling from both nations and therefore enhancing tourism, economic and cultural communications between the two countries. RwandAir, based at Kigali International Airport in the very heart of Africa, is known for its excellent punctuality, customer service and safety, and has one of the youngest fleets on the continent. The Guangzhou-Mumbai-Kigali flights are carried out every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday in Guangzhou time, and three flights a week from Guangzhou to Rwanda.

Yvonne Manzi Makolo, chief executive of Rwanda Airlines, indicated that as trade between African countries and China increased, there was a growing demand for trade capacity between Africa and Guangzhou. This new route will bring more business opportunities and increase passenger and freight transport. Being one of the megacities and pioneers of opening-up in China, Guangzhou with its unique geographical position connecting other special economic zones, provides a massive market and abundant employment from processing and manufacturing industry to information technology industry.

This progress in transportation is facilitated by the growing relationship between China and Rwanda. In July last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Rwanda and signed 15 agreements covering a range of sectors such as trade and commerce, infrastructure, aviation transportation and others. On the day of the inaugural flight, a deal was also signed between the two governments that China will provide 42.8 million U.S. dollars to help Rwanda upgrade its road and other transportation facility.

As one typical saying goes, good friends feel closer even though they are thousands of miles apart. Official figures from the Rwandan government suggests that in 2018, China-Rwanda bilateral trade volume saw an impressive increase of 30.3 percent, hitting a record high of 0.2 billion U.S. dollars. Chinese businessmen and investors in Rwanda are involved in various sectors including tourism, manufacturing, mining and construction, creating jobs and providing personnel training for local people. The new air route and coming-up developments in aviation transportation will see more collaborations and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.

（Cover: RwandAir's flight WB501 takes off from Guangzhou Bai Yun International Airport in Guangzhou, south China, June 18, 2019. /CGTN Photo)