Cameroonian Airline ZeJet Reports CFA1.2bn Revenue in First Year of Operation

Related Articles

Marc Brys or How a Foreign Coach Takes on a Colonial Attitude in Cameroon

November 22, 2024

Vinicius Jr. découvre ses racines camerounaises grâce à un test ADN

November 20, 2024

Vinicius Jr. discovers Cameroonian ancestry through DNA test

November 20, 2024

Business in Cameroon | As of December 31, 2023, Fly ZeJet, a private Cameroonian airline, disclosed a revenue of CFA1.2 billion, as per company records. Its operating expenses were estimated at CFA80 million per month, totaling CFA1 billion for the year.

The company states it has no bank debts but must settle a supplier debt of CFA600 million. This debt results from the “unavailability to date of the working capital initially earmarked for the project”, which has been continuously solicited since January 2023. Since March 2023, Fly ZeJet specifies that the company’s operation relies solely on equity, generated by flight revenues.

ZeJet, equipped with a fleet of three Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft, each with a capacity of 50 passengers, invested CFA4 billion in acquiring these aircraft. With a team of about forty employees, the company initially focused on private flights during its first year of operation. As of March 31, 2024, the company reports having completed a total of 900 flights, serving 39 airports in 50 cities across more than 20 African countries. During this period, over 20,000 passengers and more than 226 tons of freight were transported.

Domestically, ZeJet operates flights to southern destinations such as Douala, Yaoundé, and Bafoussam, as well as to northern destinations like Garoua, Maroua, and Ngaoundéré. Internationally, the company serves the six countries of the CEMAC (Cameroon, Gabon, Congo, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, and Chad) and expands its activities to other regions of Central Africa, including the DRC and São Tomé and Príncipe.

Founded in 2021 by Christophe Semengue, a Cameroonian who spent over ten years at Air France in Paris, ZeJet officially commenced operations on March 23, 2023. This launch followed the receipt of its air carrier certificate on October 12, 2022, issued by the Cameroonian Aeronautical Authority (CCAA). With this certification, the company obtained the approval of the Cameroonian government to operate in all segments of air transport, including regular and private flights, freight, and mail, both domestically and internationally.

“The company will become a direct competitor to Camair-Co, the national public airline, once it launches its regular flights soon,” says a company official. He also specifies that for the second year of operation, “the minimum challenge is to double the company’s revenue to continue its development and fully settle its supplier debt.”