Kenya will become the first country in the world to adopt The International Air Cargo Association’s new Cargo Service Quality tool nationwide.

According to Kenya Airports Authority, it aims to implement the online tool at all Kenyan cargo hubs by mid-2019, allowing forwarders to rate and review the service quality they receive so airports can then use the data to drive up performance and improve their standards.

“When the TIACA system is fully adopted by mid-2019, we will be able to provide visibility and transparency to customers and improve relationships with service providers by creating service quality benchmarks,” said Evans Michoma, commercial manager of cargo at KAA. “The tool will also allow us to make business decisions based on cost considerations with less emphasis on quality of services letting us improve our products and services across the board.”

The online tool was developed by the board members of TIACA in an effort to set new global benchmarking standards for the worldwide air freight industry to adopt and enhance quality across the chain.

Airports and terminals that took part in the pilot scheme which took place this summer include India’s Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport and AAICLAS Chennai Cargo Terminal, Indonesia’s PT Jasa Angkasa Semestra, Hong Kong’s Asia Airfreight Terminal and Singapore’s SATS Ltd.

“TIACA ran a successful pilot of Cargo Service Quality tool over the summer which involved a total of 179 forwarders and 18 airports, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Sanjiv Edward, chief commercial officer of Delhi International Airport and board member of TIACA. “We have now moved towards full global implementation of this project, which will eventually be expanded to incorporate all segments of the air cargo supply chain.”

The CSQ tool consists of four parts: Benchmarking, Assessment, Improvement and Excellence. It allows participating cargo terminals to provide ratings on factors including process, technology, facilities, regulators and general airport infrastructure, amongst other variables.

The data collected provides airports and cargo terminals with the business insight to identify areas of improvement and guide investment decisions, according to TIACA.