Abderahmane Berthé – Secretary General – AFRAA intervention at the Embraer Airline Business Seminar 2024
Mr. Abderahmane Berthé – Secretary General – AFRAA articulated AFRAA insights in a panel discussion at the Embraer Airline Business Seminar 2024 in Cape Town – South Africa. The Seminar was held under the theme: “Accelerating Africa’s Opportunities”
Themed, “Pan-African Aviation Leadership – Beyond Borders”, the panel covered:
- The role of various business model airlines in shaping intra-connectivity across Africa.
- challenges & opportunities African airlines need to navigate through.
- Partnerships and collaborations intra-regionally and beyond Africa’s borders.
On measures to address the market challenges: cost environment, blocked funds, market access, Mr Berthé highlighted the 3 main priorities of AFRAA for 2024 include:
- Safety first in African airlines’ operations
- Connectivity and Route Development
- Sustainability of African Airlines
On airline collaboration and Consolidation in Africa which has been a trend in other continents, aimed at creating more resilient and competitive carriers, Mr Berthé highlighted that from comparative studies that over the past 15 years, the African continent has had the lowest level of market consolidation compared to the other regions in the globe. He added that a crucial element in the success of the African airlines is consolidation and collaboration.
Some of the barriers to airline consolidation highlighted in Africa include:
- Cases of failure of Legacy merger attempts worldwide
- Aero political barriers
- Huge cross–border capital investment
- Potential need for big cost cuts and asset reallocation
- Cultural barriers
“At AFRAA, we think that the ultimate constitution of an African Airlines Alliance can benefit to airlines and passengers. Because of the current lack of cooperation amongst African Airlines despite AFRAA efforts, we think that it is better to go step by step. The AFRAA Route Network and Cargo Committee addresses this. The Committee is aimed at reviewing options for network coordination and schedule harmonization to address some of the challenges of dwindling traffic, network connectivity and schedule alignment. The Committee facilitates easier market access at minimal costs, thus generating incremental revenue, stimulating traffic growth and increasing aircraft utilisation and flights connectivity for participating Airlines.” he stated.