Org de Rac Wines takes to the Skies with RwandAir

In another boost for tourism and business travel to Cape Town, RwandAir recently introduced a direct flight between the Kigali in Rwanda, Zimbabwean capital Harare and the Mother City. With Org de Rac Winery from the Swartland selected as the preferred wine of choice on board.

The new route will be operational four times a week all year round – with the aircraft departing from Kigali collecting passengers in Harare to touch down in Cape Town. Boasting full connectivity for the duration of the flight via “On Air”, passengers can select from two different levels of comfort, Business or Economy class. And, of course, the opportunity of sipping on one of two of Org de Rac’s organic wines to add to the pleasure of the journey.

“We have been the preferred wine supplier to RwandAir since 2014, currently offering passengers the opportunity of enjoying our Merlot, Chenin Blanc, Lightly Wooded Chardonnay and the Reserve Shiraz and Chardonnay,” says Org de Rac cellar master Frank Meaker.

“This new flight between Kigali, Harare and Cape Town is a very welcome link between these three Africa cities, and will no doubt lead to increased tourism and business. Besides the comfort of the aircraft and the quality of the service, passengers will be able to enjoy South African Org de Rac wines, and we look forward to giving passengers who may not be so familiar with wine and the country’s offerings a taste of the superb wines we offer.

“South Africa already exports over R10m worth of wine to Rwanda annually, and hopefully the on-board experience offered by Org de Rac can help increase this.”

Connecting the Cape, via Kigali, to Western Africa, the new route firmly establishes Cape Town as the gateway to the rest of Africa, with the continent being the biggest source market for Western Cape goods – valued at over R45 billion.

Harare is to date the largest unserved city in Africa for Cape Town with just under 40 000 passengers recorded through Cape Town International Airport in 2017. Passenger growth revealed a 15% increase per year between Cape Town and Zimbabwe, with a significant 39% growth recorded between Victoria Falls and the Mother City last year

Rwanda is also a growing destination for tourism and business for Cape Town and the Western Cape with the capital opening an impressive Conference Centre in 2016.

Research conducted by Wesgro’s IQ unit revealed that the top five Western Cape exports to Rwanda in 2016 included: Refined petroleum at R13,7; wine at R11m, recording a 100% growth; insecticides at R6,6m, engine parts, R3.8m and undenatured ethyl alcohol amounting to R1,8m.

“We welcome the introduction of the direct route from Kigali via Harare to Cape Town, not only does this facilitate improved business and tourism between the two Capitals, but further positions the Cape as a gateway to Africa,” commented Wesgro CEO, Tim Harris.

The Western Cape Minister of Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde added: “This route opens up new opportunities for the Cape’s business and the tourism sector. Rwanda is one of the fastest growing economies on the continent and Zimbabwe holds a lot of potential for development and we hope that by opening up access between Cape Town, Kigali and Harare, it will be easier to explore these possibilities.”