• Ethiopian Airlines and Asky plan a regional aircraft maintenance hub
• West Africa faces a shortage of MRO infrastructure
• Project enters a growing but still uncertain and competitive market

Ethiopian Airlines has entered into a partnership with Asky Airlines to develop an aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) center in West Africa, aiming to position the facility as a regional hub in a market with limited capacity.

The project is part of Ethiopian Airlines’ broader “Vision 2040” strategy, which includes efforts to diversify its operations beyond core airline services.

Aircraft maintenance capacity in West Africa remains limited. Aside from facilities operated by Nigeria’s Aero Contractors—widely seen as insufficient—most projects in the region are still under development or at the planning stage.

In Senegal, MRO infrastructure is being developed at Blaise Diagne International Airport. In Côte d’Ivoire, a similar project backed by the national carrier recently secured funding from the West African Development Bank.

In Nigeria, most initiatives are led by private operators. These include Air Peace, which began construction on its MRO facility in September 2025, as well as projects announced by United Nigeria Airlines and Ibom Air, alongside broader ambitions from the federal government.

At the continental level, several established MRO hubs already exist, including those operated by South African Airways, EgyptAir, Royal Air Maroc, and Ethiopian Airlines itself.

While the Ethiopian-Asky project could help address West Africa’s maintenance gap, it will face increasing competition if other planned projects move forward.

More broadly, the economic viability of MRO centers in the region remains an open question. In a fragmented market, access to skilled labor and sufficient volumes of aircraft servicing will be critical to ensuring long-term profitability.

Henoc Dossa