The Regional Service Centre Entebbe (RSCE) has signed an airline discount agreement with the Lufthansa Group of Airlines that has the potential to lower the cost of travel for RSCE clients. The Director RSCE, Mr. Paulin Djomo signed the agreement on behalf of the RSCE, as well as the UNHCR Uganda Country Office.

Ms. Hope Kahwa, Sales Manager, and Ms. Rita Macedo, Country Manager, signed on behalf of Brussels Airlines in Uganda, and Mr. Kevin Markette, the General Manager for East Africa from the Lufthansa Group witnessed the signing.

The discount will be applicable to both official and personal travel and is available for all RSCE clients to use through the RSCE's travel agents. The discount agreement covers all regions of the world where the Lufthansa Group operates and travel does not need to start from Africa.

In his remarks, Mr. Djomo expressed to the Lufthansa Group representatives the importance of this agreement to the RSCE and its clients, saying, “We (RSCE) as the largest travel processing office in the UN Secretariat, with as many as 250 travel requests a day at our peak, through these discounts, we can achieve some savings and also save on travel times.”

“The potential of this agreement is huge considering it extends to personal travel as well, specifically for staff in the missions going on R&R (Rest and Recuperation) being able to access these discounts will make for a better experience.” He added.

The agreement runs to 2025, with the discount averaging between 5 and 10 percent of the base fare. Utilization of the discount will depend on the route, the airline, and seat availability. RSCE's travel agents will be available to advise further once the discounts are loaded into their ticketing system.

Mr. Markette also welcomed the possibility of expanding the agreement to UN entities outside of the RSCE client missions, saying that, “the agreement is flexible and the terms can be extended to apply to other agencies, funds and programmes in Uganda since we have already done the heavy lifting and agreed on all modalities.”

The Lufthansa Group is one of the largest airline groups in the world by fleet size. The group consists of Brussels Airlines, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, Discover Airlines, Eurowings, and Swiss International Airlines. The agreement will also include flights on United Airlines and Air Canada. The Group airlines have a European and North American focus, but provides global coverage.