IATA: Africa’s Air Cargo Demand Up 3% Despite Capacity Surge

Africa’s air cargo market recorded a three per cent year-on-year increase in demand in August 2026, but the growth was accompanied by a much sharper 14 per cent expansion in cargo capacity, according to the latest data released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The performance placed African airlines among the regions that recorded growth during the month, although Africa’s demand expansion remained below the global average of 4.4 per cent.

IATA’s August 2026 global air cargo market report showed that worldwide demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTK), increased by 4.4 per cent compared with August 2025, while international demand grew by 5.3 per cent.

Global capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTK), meanwhile, declined marginally by 0.1 per cent year-on-year, although international capacity increased by 0.1 per cent.

For Africa, the three per cent increase in demand came alongside a 14 per cent rise in capacity, the largest capacity expansion among all the regions tracked by IATA.

The sharp increase in available capacity was reflected in the continent’s cargo load factor, which fell by 3.9 percentage points to 36.5 per cent.

Africa also accounted for 2.1 per cent of global industry cargo tonne-kilometres in 2025, according to IATA.

The figures indicate that while African carriers succeeded in generating additional cargo traffic in August, capacity growth substantially outpaced demand, leaving a larger proportion of available cargo space unfilled.

The African market’s demand growth was below that recorded in North America, where carriers posted a 6.6 per cent increase, Latin America and the Caribbean, which recorded 5.1 per cent growth, Asia-Pacific at 4.3 per cent and Europe at 4.1 per cent.