The African continent continues to witness a significant increase in number of Covid 19 cases. The situation seems to be getting out of control especially in South Africa where daily infection has now exceeded 15,000 cases. Some African governments are resorting to lockdowns again as a way to curb the surging COV2 infections and deaths. Europe is also not out of the woods yet, despite the fact that 50% of the adult population has been vaccinated.
The Delta variant is indeed a threat to the safe and smooth reopening of borders. Globally the number of infected cases reached 190 million out of which 6 million are in Africa. The global recovery rate stands at 97.6% as against 97.1% for Africa.
In the month of July 2021, air passenger traffic is estimated to have reached 42.9% compared to same month in 2019. Similarly, capacity reached 53.7% as of July 2021. Domestic markets across Africa continue to post better performance with demand for passenger travel outperforming intra-Africa and intercontinental at 64% compared to 22.9% for intra-Africa and 13.1% for intercontinental in May. As regards passenger seats offered, domestic, intra-Africa and intercontinental account for 50.2%, 27.3% and 22.5% respectively.
African airlines restart of operations on international routes continued the positive trend observed in the last three months. May 2021 saw a resumption of 62.5% of international routes compared to the pre-Covid period, recovery further improved to 72.7% in June 2021 and 74.7% in the month under review. Some countries have been easing travel restrictions to facilitate the movement of people and tourists across borders. There is however concern that this positive trend may be reversed in subsequent months if the rate of Covid-19 infections continues to soar.
As regards intra – African connectivity, Mauritius remains the most impacted air travel destination, with a reduction of 98% of possible connections to/from African airports compared to February 2020. Connectivity however improved for the North and West African airports.
Generally across Africa, passenger traffic volumes remain low due to the inconsistencies in the messaging regarding border closures, health protocols and continued surge in Covid-19 infections in some countries. The result is significant low in airlines revenues. In the first 6 months of this year, AFRAA estimates cumulative revenue losses of US$5.0b by African airlines. Full year revenue loss for African airlines for 2021 is forecast at US$8.4b.
In 2020, African airlines made a cumulatively revenue loss of $10.21b due to the impacts of Covid-19. This poor performance is a direct threat to the survival of the African aviation industry if the trend continues’ to the end of the year. There is a need for governments to heed the call by the African Union, AFCAC, AFRAA and other organisations to provide financial reliefs and support to airlines to avoid their collapse.
Other regulatory Developments related to covid19 situation:
Moroccan authorities to resume flights to and from the Kingdom under exceptional authorizations.
Rwanda back into lockdown to curb surging coronavirus cases and deaths. International flights and tourism movements will however continue.
Elsewhere, the Italian Government published ”Technical Regulation” that will compel airlines to allocate seats for minors, disabled persons and passengers with disabilities close to their parents and/or care givers. The regulations came into force on 27 July 2021.
The EU has recommended the lifting of European travel restrictions for some third-countries. No African country is on the list published.
Nairobi, 04 August 2021: The African Airlines Association (AFRAA) has concluded its 2021 fuel programme for the period 2021-2022 under the framework of the AFRAA fuel project. The fuel programme, which runs on an annual basis, has achieved a total of US$55M cost savings to the participating airlines since its establishment in 2012. The 2021 fuel programme is expected to realize an estimated US$ 0.5 million in cost savings cumulatively for the participating airlines for the period 2021-2022.
Fuel is the most significant component of operating costs of flight operations. Fuel costs are significantly higher in Africa compared to the rest of the world. High fuel costs and other expensive charges drive down the competitiveness of African air carriers. As a result, African airlines’ available seat-kilometer costs are much higher than the industry average.
Mr. Abdérahmane Berthé, AFRAA Secretary General stated: “Sustainability of the African airline industry is among AFRAA’s top priorities. Excessive taxes, charges and fees make African airlines less competitive since these levies have significant impact on the financial performance of airlines operating in a high cost environment. It is against this backdrop that continuously establishes initiatives and joint projects for its members.”
“We will continue to facilitate beneficial cooperation among African airlines with the objective to implement cost-effective common solutions on various aspects of airline operations. I invite more airlines to partake in the AFRAA fuel Project which is well aligned to AFRAA’s Covid-19 recovery plan pillar 6 actions on Cost Management.” Mr Berthé added.
Mr. Sanjeev Gadhia, CEO of Astral Aviation commented: “Fuel is such a large component of an airline’s operating costs that intense efforts in the industry are needed to reduce these costs and improve fuel efficiency. Fuel prices in Africa have historically been 20% higher than other regions even though the sources and supply chains are similar. Through Astral Aviation’s participation in the project, we have achieved price competitiveness from the fuel programme and cost reduction through the lobbying efforts and the economies of scale. As the Chair of the Committee, Astral Aviation will continue to support AFRAA’s coordinated efforts to attain sustainability of the aviation industry in Africa.”
Other focus areas for value addition to airlines by the AFRAA Fuel Committee include:
Lobbying in close collaboration with industry stakeholders (Airlines, Industry Associations, Fuel Suppliers, Governments and Regulatory Authorities) for the reduction of high taxes charges and fees.
Addressing unique challenges being faced by African airlines on fuel on a location by location basis.
Capacity building to participating members in fuel purchase and management through experts on the negotiation and handling of fuel purchases as well as fuel cost management and other areas relating to commercial aviation fuel.
A total of 12 member airlines participated at the 2021 programme, including: Air Bostwana, Air Burkina, ASKY, Astral Aviation, Kenya Airways, LAM Mozambique, Precision Air, RwandAir, South African Airways, TAAG Angola, Camair-co and Congo Airways.
About AFRAA
The African Airlines Association, also known by its acronym AFRAA, is a trade association of airlines from the member states of the African Union (AU). Founded in Accra, Ghana, in April 1968, and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, AFRAA’s mission is to promote, serve African Airlines and champion Africa’s aviation industry. The Association envisions a sustainable, interconnected and affordable Air Transport industry in Africa where African Airlines become key players and drivers to African economic development.
AFRAA membership of 46 airlines cuts across the entire continent and includes all the major intercontinental African operators. The Association members represent over 85% of total international traffic carried by African airlines. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.
With the alarming spread of the Delta variant, the havoc caused by the Covid-19 pandemic particularly on the aviation industry globally is far from over. Despite the seeming reduction in the number of new cases in many parts of the Western Countries, Africa currently accounts for a worrying number of new infections since the beginning of June. The countries most affected include Zambia, Uganda, Namibia, Botswana and Kenya, which are experiencing very high infection rates. Middle East too experienced a slight increase in infections. As at 25 June 2021, the number of infected cases worldwide reached 180 million out of which 5.3 million were in Africa. The global recovery rate stands at 97.6% as against 97.1% for Africa.
The month of June saw African airlines’ traffic decreasing by 59% compared to same month in 2019. Similarly, capacity declined by 49.6% as of June 2021. Domestic markets continue to record better performance with demand for passenger travel outperforming intra-Africa and intercontinental at 63.2% as opposed to 22.2% for intra-Africa and 13.9% for intercontinental. As regards passenger capacity (seats offered), domestic, intra-Africa and intercontinental account for 47.8%, 22.3% and 21.7% respectively.
African airlines restart of operations on international routes continued the positive trend observed in the last couple of months. From a May 2021, recovery of some 62.5% of international routes compared to the pre-Covid period, June 2021 saw an additional 10.2% increase to 72.7%. This impressive trend is partly attributable to the reopening of international boarders by Algeria and Morocco after more than a year of closure in the case of Algeria.
Regarding intra-African connectivity, Mauritius continues to be the most impacted hub, with a reduction of 98% of possible connections to/from African airports compared to February 2020. Connectivity at Nairobi JKIA in June declined mainly due to schedule adjustments and frequency reduction by national carrier, KQ. Up North, intra-African connectivity for Algiers and Cairo decreased by 75% and 64% respectively.
However, Africa passenger traffic volumes across remains low due to the inconsistencies in the messaging regarding border closures, health protocols and continued upsurge in Covid-19 infections in some countries. The result is significant losses incurred by airlines. In the first quarter of 2021, AFRAA estimates airlines’ loss in revenues at US$2.6 billion. The estimated loss in revenues for quarter two is US$2.4 billion. In 2020, African airlines cumulatively lost $10.21b in revenues due to the impacts of the pandemic. This poor performance is a direct threat to the survival of the African aviation industry if the trend continues.
Other regulatory developments related to covid19 situation:
Algeria partially reopens its air borders to international traffic after over 14 months of lockdown.
ECOWAS air transport and finance ministers are engaging in consultations to reduce and/or harmonize taxes, charges and fees with the view to making air transport in within the sub-regional block affordable and attractive.
The government of Tanzania has given to the national carrier, Air Tanzania $194mn bailout.
Malawian Airlines to resume full operation following recapitalization by the government of Malawi.
The Covid-19 pandemic continues its devastating effects on the aviation, travel and tourism industry. The number of Covid-19 infection cases globally continues to increase in absolute terms though the rate of infection is on the decline in all world regions in April compared to prior months. The number of infection cases worldwide exceeded 165m as at 20 May 2021. In Africa, the number of infections stood at 4.7m, representing 2.8% of the global total. The countries with the highest infection in Africa are: South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia and Egypt. The recovery rate in May is 97.5% and 97.1% for global and Africa respectively.
Traffic recovery for Jan-May was 37% of 2019 level. In May alone, traffic declined by 62.2% compared to same month in 2019. Similarly, capacity declined 53.1% compared to May 2021. Mauritius remains the most impacted hub, with a reduction of 98% of possible connections to/from African airports compared to March 2020. Connectivity at Nairobi JKIA reduced mainly due to schedule adjustments and frequency reduction of national carrier, KQ.
Demand for domestic passenger travel continues to out-perform intra-Africa and intercontinental at 61.5% compared to 23.1% for intra-Africa and 15.1% for intercontinental. In terms of capacity seats offered, domestic, intra-Africa and intercontinental account for 47.7%, 27.2% and 25.1% respectively.
After 3 consecutive months of increase in the number of international routes operated by African airlines (February-April), May saw a dip following border closure announcements by the governments of Algeria and Morocco resulting in airlines in the 2 countries suspending some routes. Ethiopian, RwandAir and SA Airlink however re-opened more routes in May. But the general constrained passenger demand is due to continued increase in Covid-19 cases globally, constantly evolving travel health advisories as well as restrictive access to many tourist sites around the world.
With the low volume of traffic, airlines continue to suffer major losses month after month. In the first quarter of 2021 alone, airlines loss $2.6b and the estimate for Q2 is $2.5b. In 2020, African airlines cumulatively loss $10.21b.
In related Covid-19 developments
The government of Tanzania introduced more restrictive Covid-19 travel advisory effective 04 May 2021 to align with similar restrictions in the region.
The Nigeria announced it will deny entry to all passengers originating from Brazil, India and Turkey. Airlines that land passengers from any of these countries will be subjected to a fine of not less than $3,500 per passenger.
Good news from South Africa is that, the business rescue practitioners filed a notice on 30 April, which ended the rescue and restructuring process of South African Airways, saying the airline was now solvent and liquid.
The African Airlines Association (AFRAA) has released the 2020 Africa air transport report. The report gives an in-depth analysis of Africa’s air transport industry performance for 2020 covering: financial performance, passenger and cargo traffic evolution, airport ranking, intra Africa connectivity and openness.
AFRAA 2020 Africa Air transport report Highlights
1. Financial performance
2020 was an exceptionally difficult year in history. The travel industry was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The estimated Passenger Revenue loss for Africa airlines in 2020 is US$ 10.21 billion.
2. Passenger Traffic Evolution
The number of scheduled Passengers carried by African airlines dropped from 95 million in 2019 to 34.7 million in 2020, representing a year-on-year decline of 63.7%. The reduction in traffic continued until June, before reversing with the gradual opening of borders.
Northern Africa was the leading region in terms of passenger volumes, representing 36.6% of the total continental traffic. This was followed by Eastern Africa with a share of 22.2%.
3. Airport Ranking
Johannesburg and Cairo were the busiest airports in Africa in 2020. The only West & Central African airport in the top 10 ranking is Lagos.
In terms of cargo volumes, Nairobi Jomo Kenya airport was top, handling more than 330 thousand tons of freight during the year 2020. Cairo was second with 280 thousand tons.
In terms of airport charges, Lusaka had the highest level of airport charges while Mahe Island had the lowest. Some of the busiest airports in Africa like Johannesburg, Addis, Algiers are among the least expensive. This indicates that lowering the airport charges can have a positive effect on traffic.
4. Intra Africa connectivity and openness
Among the 54 countries in the African continent, 13 have direct flights to more than 20 African countries. Ethiopia and Kenya lead with 30 direct flights and more to other countries within Africa.
However, intra-African connectivity remains low. African airlines should take the opportunity to develop their Intra-African Network, especially in this period where the EU has limited travels to Europe.
African Ministers responsible for Health, ICT, and Transport have made a call to the African States to work towards harmonizing pre-entry and exit requirements for cross-border travel, increase mutual recognition, and cross-border information exchange. The Africa CDC, the lead COVID-19 response organ of the African Union, has gone further to provide a platform to member states to support this undertaking known as Trusted Travel (www.africacdc.org/trusted-travel). The Ministers also called for cross-collaboration among different sectors and stakeholders. The Call to Action comes under the umbrella of Africa Against COVID-19: “Saving Lives, Economies, and Livelihoods” campaign, which recognizes the need to define our “new normal” by striking a balance between saving lives, re-opening of economies, and revitalizing livelihoods within the African continent.
The Call to Action has been jointly developed by a multi-sector Africa High-Level Task Force, comprising of the African Union and other relevant regional and international institutions and partners. It addresses specific elements to safely re-open all borders including intra-regional and international air travel as outlined below:
Travel entry and exit requirements
States should consider applying alternative measures to border closure and mandatory quarantine through instituting and strengthening the recommended non-pharmaceutical public health and social measures before, during and after travel.
– Harmonization of alternative measures to allow mutual recognition and trust in the information shared among Member States about travellers, and in particular through the use of the African Union Trusted Travel solution.
– States should consider alternative testing protocol for travel that uses the rapid diagnostic antigen test to in situations where PCR testing is not readily available or where result turnaround time is long.
– States should not impose COVID-19 vaccination certificates as a mandatory travel entry and exit requirement until there is satisfactory access to vaccines globally, reasonable vaccination coverage is attained, and sufficient evidence and guidance on the use of the vaccine for travel is available based on temporary recommendations of the 6th WHO IHR emergency committee. However, states are encouraged to adopt modern technological tools for maximizing benefits to citizens of vaccination, especially those that align with the AU 4D principles
2. Maintaining safe public health corridor before, during and after travel
States should remain vigilant to all applicable regulations, laws, guidelines and standards issued by national and international authorities aiming to minimize infection and to maintain a safe public health corridor during travel. Specifically, all State Parties should ensure that preventive measures are observed at all times.
3. Compliance to multinational treaties and regulations
Reminding countries to comply with the international treaties signed by State Parties that protect governments, authorities and travellers. Specifically, African Union Member States are reminded to comply with article 40 of the International Health Regulations (2005), which requires State Parties to not charge travellers for interventions meant to protect public health.
The Call to Action has been circulated to the respective Ministries and Heads of State of African States and work is underway across different levels to ensure the recommendations are carried out.
About the multi-sector Africa High-Level Task Force on the Recovery of the African Air Transport Industry
The Africa High-Level Task Force on the Recovery of the African Air Transport Industry was set up to serve as an advisory body for the campaign on African against Covid-19 “Saving Lives, Economies, and Livelihoods”. The campaign was endorsed on 20 August 2020 by the Bureau of the Assembly of the African Union (AU) Heads of State and Government with Chairpersons of Regional Economic Communities (RECS) of the African Union.
The Africa against COVID-19 campaign has three main goals:
Goal I: Minimize the spread of infections within and across the borders by creating a public health safe corridor for safe travel.
Goal II: Minimize the impacts of COVID-19 on Economies and Livelihoods.
Goal III: Ensure safe re-opening of schools.
The Task Force comprises of the following stakeholders and partners:
African Airlines Association (AFRAA)
African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC – CAFAC)
Airport Council International (ACI) – Africa
International Air Transport Association (IATA)
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
The Afrochampions Initiative
The World Health Organization (WHO)
Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC)
Imperatives for a Sustainable Recovery of the Air Travel Industry in Africa
Joint Message by AFCAC, AFRAA, ACI Africa, CANSO, IATA and UNWTO at the auspices of the 9th Aviation Stakeholders Convention, 18 – 19 May, 2021
Africa is running a race against time in the battle against the historic crisis for the air travel industry posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The different organizations in the aviation ecosystem have to date demonstrated resilience to some extent, leading to much progress made in restarting the industry on the continent.
COVID-19 is a global challenge that requires global solutions and international solidarity and collaboration.
The evolution of the virus is unpredictable and therefore there is need for a co-ordinated approach by African States for sustainable recovery of the air travel industry.
We, the undernamed stakeholders, therefore urge the decision-makers in the various instances to consider the following steps for a durable restart and recovery of the air travel industry in Africa:
Harmonization of travel protocols
There is need for constant and sustained dialogue among African governments, civil aviation authorities, tourism and travel industry players, air transport associations and other key stakeholders, to implement harmonized and internationally adopted health and travel protocols to bring back the necessary confidence for a safe, simple and seamless air travel in the new normal.
2. Accessibility of COVID-19 testing facilities
African States are encouraged to make available universal, accessible and affordable COVID-19 testing facilities to all air travellers, i.e. PCR or Rapid antigen tests.
3. Reduction of high PCR test costs in Africa
There is need for the reduction of the high cost of testing fees noting that the PCR test costs are very high in some African States. Where possible, African States are also urged to consider alternative testing protocol for travel that uses the rapid diagnostic antigen test which is more cost-effective.
4. Expedition of the vaccine roll-out campaign in Africa
Vaccines, coupled with testing and the current health measures in place, present the most efficient way out of this pandemic. It is therefore vital that the vaccine roll-out campaign in Africa is expedited equitably with the prime objective of achieving the herd immunity or that level of vaccination which inhibits the ability of the virus to circulate in the population.
5. Lifting of prohibitive travel restrictions
African States are encouraged to consider steps towards lifting prohibitive travel restrictions in the form of quarantine measures for fully vaccinated and negatively tested travellers. In the short term, quarantines may be applicable only to passengers coming from those determined areas with a very high incidence of the virus, to be regularly reviewed in co-ordination with national and international health authorities.
6. Adoption of globally interoperable digital health passes
African States are further encouraged to adopt any form of globally interoperable digital health pass or certificate, approved by the World Health Organization, that will seamlessly integrate into testing and travel processes of the different stakeholders of the air travel industry.
22 April 2021: The African Airline Association (AFRAA) and Airports Council International Africa (ACI Africa) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to materialise their cooperation. Under the framework of the MoU, AFRAA and ACI Africa will mutually support the development of the air transport industry in Africa through collaborative actions to address safe, secure, seamless, environmentally-friendly and affordable air travel, among others.
The MoU was signed by Abderahmane Berthé, AFRAA’s Secretary General and Mr Ali Tounsi, ACI Africa’s Secretary General. Under the MoU, AFRAA and ACI Africa will align their actions and work jointly on the following main areas:
Promotion and sharing of best practices to foster constructive engagement between airport operators and air carriers.
Safety enhancement initiatives in line with the Abuja Safety targets.
Promotion and implementation of new technologies in air travel
Data and intelligence sharing.
Affordable airfares in Africa using a holistic approach for the reduction of the cost of air travel.
Focused Think Tank group, led by AFRAA and ACI Africa and comprising subject-matter experts in airports and airlines, to exchange views, steer constructive dialogues and address matters of prime importance and interest for the air transport industry on Africa.
Joint events (webinars, trainings, workshops, etc.) on how to render air travel more affordable in Africa.
AFRAA Secretary General, Mr. Abdérahmane Berthé stated: “The high cost of airline operations in Africa negatively impacts the viability of African airlines and hinders the sustainable growth of air transport industry in the Continent. One of the constituents of these high costs is the high aviation-related taxes in the region. Through concerted efforts under the framework of this MoU, AFRAA and ACI Africa will foster regular constructive dialogues with the respective members of our organisations on aviation taxes which will lay the foundation for joint actions and advocacy.”
“This MoU, which comes at a time most needed when the industry is navigating turbulent times, will commit both our organizations to a stronger working relationship for the development of air transport in Africa,” added Mr. Berthé.
ACI Africa’s Secretary General, Mr. Ali Tounsi said: “The development of a safe, secure, and financially viable and sustainable air transport industry in Africa cannot be undertaken without a strong and enhanced collaboration between airports and airlines. The MoU signed between ACI Africa and AFRAA was long overdue. I am delighted that the collaboration between our two organizations is being brought to an altogether new level, paving the way for a constructive stakeholder engagement based on mutual trust and respect. This MoU will indeed facilitate the concrete and tangible delivery of services by both our organizations and the implementation of joint actions to advance the air transport industry on the continent.”
About AFRAA
The African Airlines Association, also known by its acronym AFRAA, is a trade association of airlines from the member states of the African Union (AU). Founded in Accra, Ghana, in April 1968, and headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, AFRAA’s mission is to promote, serve African Airlines and champion Africa’s aviation industry. The Association envisions a sustainable, interconnected and affordable Air Transport industry in Africa where African Airlines become key players and drivers to African economic development.
AFRAA membership of 46 airlines cuts across the entire continent and includes all the major intercontinental African operators. The Association members represent over 85% of total international traffic carried by African airlines. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.
About ACI Africa
ACI Africa is the international association of African airports and is self-governing under its own Statutes and internal procedures. ACI Africa, the Voice of African Airports, has as prime objective to advance the interests of African airports and to promote professional excellence in airport management and operations on the African continent.
ACI Africa is composed of 70 regular members from 53 African countries, managing more than 260 airports, and of 40 Business Partners.
05 March 2021, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: AFRAA’s Secretary General, Mr. Abdérahmane Berthé and Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO, Mr. Tewode Gembremariam, accompanied by their respective leadership teams held a consultative meeting at Ethiopian Airlines headquarters in Addis Ababa.
Leaders at the meeting noted AFRAA’s on-going projects geared towards fostering of collaboration among its members, cost reduction and creation of synergies among African airlines. Various areas of advocacy by AFRAA for the sustainability of African aviation through promotion of intra-Africa travel, reduction of high operating costs and infrastructural development were discussed.
The Secretary General highlighted AFRAA’s initiatives and actions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to support the air transport industry. Key among the workable solutions by the Association for resilience to the industry is AFRAA’s 9-Pillar recovery plan that outlines a framework of various areas of intervention, measures to be taken as part of urgent, immediate, and consistent actions for the survival and rebound of the industry. Other initiatives that have been launched since the on-set of the pandemic include: AFRAA MRO joint venture, AFRAA connectivity index, AFRAA connectivity portal, AFRAA capacity sharing portal: AFRAA project for reduction of air navigation bills. Mr Berthé invited Ethiopian Airlines to take part as a pilot airline for AFRAA’s new projects.
At the occasion of the visit, AFRAA and Ethiopian Airlines signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on training that will facilitate a framework of collaboration between AFRAA and Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy to achieve common objectives on training of aviation professionals across the African continent. The collaboration will support the development of sustainable and safe air transport system in Africa and thereby effectively contribute to the continent’s economic development and integration.
According to Mr. Abdérahmane Berthé, “There is a need to develop aviation professionals within Africa and bridge the training gaps in the continent and beyond. Hence, a partnership between AFRAA and airline aviation training centers would be a way forward to overcome the challenges relating to the training of next-generation aviation professionals.”
“AFRAA welcomes cooperation with Ethiopian Airlines on coordination of Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy training activities, exchange of programs to attain our common objectives and enhance the effectiveness of the Association in serving the interests of the African aviation sector,” Mr Berthé added.
AFRAA Secretary General commended Ethiopian Airlines for the agility and resilience in navigating the pandemic and reassured Mr. Gebremariam of AFRAA’s continued support to execute the Association’s mandate to ensure the African continent is served adequately with safe, reliable and economical air transport.
The MoU was signed by Mr Mesay Shiferaw, Managing Director – Ethiopian Aviation academy and Mr. Abdérahmane Berthé, AFRAA Secretary General.
The African Aviation Industry Group (AAIG) held a high-level webinar to deliberate on practical solutions for the reduction of high cost of air transport operations in Africa. Staged under the theme: “Achieving Affordable Air Transport across Africa”, stakeholders at the webinar agreed on a set of actions for implementation with defined timelines to achieve the goal of a sustainable African aviation industry.
In addition to the main topic of the webinar, which is the high cost of aviation in Africa, Aviation stakeholders at the webinar further identified key challenges affecting the sustainability of African aviation such as safety and security concerns, poor intra-Africa connectivity/market access limitations and inadequate infrastructure, among others.
The forum articulated the following recommendations as a matter of strategic priority:
1. High operational costs in Africa
Aviation stakeholders have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the industry restart and recovery must be viewed as an opportunity for the aviation industry ecosystem to address the issue of high operational costs in Africa.
Excessive and unjustified taxes, charges and other government-imposed fees and levies on international aviation have negative impacts on the industry’s competitiveness and national economies.
i. States are urged and encouraged to adhere to ICAO’s Policies on User Charges (Doc 9082) and ICAO’s Policies on Taxation on International Air Transport (Doc 8632). These are the reference documents which can ensure that all States levy fully justified aviation charges and taxes.
ii. It is therefore important that there is an appropriate regulatory body in each State to oversee and ensure the implementation of these policies. Only under such favorable regulatory environment, can we expect to see lower industry operating costs translated into lower fares for passengers.
iii. The African Union can play a pivotal role in achieving this objective especially by providing the right platform for States, RECs and economic regulatory bodies to align taxes, fees and charges across the continent with the view of promoting lower fares, stimulating travel, creating jobs and boosting economic activities.
iv. African Aviation also faces a high cost of financing: Aviation is very capital intensive and access to competitive financing will contribute to reduce the operating cost to African airlines. The risk perception is very often biased and leads to high interest rates, which generate high cost of ownership and high fares, if any financing at all. African financing Institutions have a role to play in de-risking aviation sector, in other to allow more favourable terms for the sector.
v. In respect of Operators’ costs structures, Airlines, Airports, ANS, and services providers need to constantly monitor their costs structures, in order to operate at maximum efficiency. They also need to extend cost-saving and cost avoidance measures to operators. High fuel costs for African Aviation is also extremely burdensome on the operating cost structure of airlines.
vi. OEMs on their part should extend more accessible and affordable product support to airlines.
vii. A multi-sectorial engagement of all concerned stakeholders: airlines, service providers, governments and policy makers to converge to review all cost components and discuss strategies for reduction of high taxes and charges to achieve reasonable cost structure for air transport.
2. Air Transport Affordability
For equivalent distances, it is a fact that air ticket fares are higher in Africa compared to other regions. Due to the prevailing low GDP in most African States, its citizens cannot afford to fly as often as citizens from other continents. Stakeholders must address the fact that African citizens pay the highest fares to travel by air, regionally and internationally.
i. Appropriate measures need to be taken by governments to reduce the cost of aviation to make travel more affordable for African citizens.
ii. Appropriate measures need to be taken by the airline industry to enhance airline efficiencies. This has the potential to reduce costs so that the air transport sector can be made accessible and more affordable to a wider demographic of travelers across Africa. In addition, the removal of other recently introduced passenger costs, such as PCR test and quarantine, will no doubt accelerate traffic growth.
iii. To achieve the objective of aviation sustainability and air transport affordability through the growth of air traffic and revenues for all the industry players, specific targets should be set. An Implementation Action Plan with key performance indicators and timelines should be set by the AAIG members on:
– Reduction of cost of operations
– Reduction of air fares
iv. The affordability of air transport is also dependent on the economic prosperity of the population. Government are urged to promote and implement policies to encourage investments in all economic sectors to create jobs, to create economic mobility, to reduce poverty, to grow the middle class.
3. Addressing other barriers constraining the sustainable growth of African aviation
Other challenges being faced by the air transport industry need to be addressed, including:
i. Safety: The joint interventions of industry stakeholders and governments have resulted in improved safety performance for Africa. The ICAO requirement of 60% Effective Implementation (EI) performance for SAATM implementation underlines Africa’s commitment to maintaining safety as the first aviation priority in the Region.
To address public perception about the safety of African operators, aviation stakeholders need to continue coordinated efforts to safeguard the commendable performanceachieved from 2015 to 2018. States are urged to implement the Abuja Aviation Safety targets, the ICAO USOP Audit findings and the Namibia Declaration on aviation security.
ii. Intra-African connectivity: Full implementation of SAATM complemented by AfCFTA rollout will unleash the multiplier benefits of air transport for economic growth and leapfrog the inclusion of isolated African countries or regions in the international market. States and airlines that are prepared to proceed are encouraged to do so.
iii. Infrastructure: Much of the aviation infrastructure in Africa is below international standards yet attracts higher user cost than elsewhere. Infrastructural development should take into consideration the industry’s traffic needs and dynamics of the markets to build functional, environmentally friendly and cost effective infrastructure.
iv. Airline economies of scale: Whilst remaining competitive, African Airlines must increase their level of cooperation. They must put in place appropriate strategies to reduce their costs and increase their frequencies and improve connectivity. Among others, airlines are entreated to forge alliances and consolidate their businesses, optimize ticket-selling process, jointly procure spares and supplies, adopt modern cutting-edge technology and advocate for States to fully implement SAATM.
The event was attended by over 250 participants comprising representatives of African aviation
institutions, Development agencies, African airlines, Civil Aviation Authorities, Airport Operators,
Airline Associations, government entities, Aircraft manufacturers and aviation solutions and
service providers.
About the AAIG
The African Aviation Industry Group (AAIG) brings together airlines through their associations AFRAA, IATA, AASA, airports through ACI-Africa, ANS providers through CANSO Africa, OEMs, DFIs, and individuals passionate about Aviation in Africa, for a strong advocacy power, and common initiatives.
