The International Air Transport Association (Iata) has urged African governments to boost the post-Covid-19 recovery of their aviation sectors and wider economies by speeding up the implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM). Iata, which is the representative body of the global airline industry, also encouraged African governments to ensure that they harmonised the reopening of their air transport industries by all adopting the ‘Take-Off’ guidance of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO – a specialist agency of the United Nations).

“Planning for recovery from Covid-19’s economic destruction also presents an opportunity for governments to draw even greater benefits from aviation by opening African borders for African aviation,” affirmed Iata regional VP: Africa and the Middle East Muhammad Albakri. “That transformation change could turbo-charge the recovery by strengthening economic ties and creating jobs in ways that only aviation can achieve.”

“With SAATM, Africa has a ready-made mechanism to add power to the economic recovery,” he highlighted. “And it faces a much slower recovery if it relies on hubs outside the continent to re-establish connectivity. Now is the time for the 34 governments that have committed to SAATM to actually implement [it]. And the other governments should make plans to catch-up quickly.”

The 34 countries that have agreed to the SAATM together account for 75% of African air passenger traffic. But only ten of them (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, the Gambia, Ghana, Mozambique, Niger, Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Togo) have so far fully implemented it. This lack of intra-African air connectivity puts the continent at a significant disadvantage in comparison to the other continents. Worldwide, Iata expects aviation to restart with domestic flights, followed by the reinstitution of regional operations, and then direct (point-to-point) long-haul flights and finally the restart of operations centred on international and intercontinental hubs. But in Africa, regional connectivity is so limited that it will provide little in the way of economic benefit.

“The top and immediate priority for aviation in Africa is implementing ICAO’s Take-Off guidance,” he urged. “That is the key to removing the severe restrictions on movement that have grounded much of the continent’s air transport industry and severely impacted individual jobs and national economies.”

But as of August 24, only two African countries were fully aligned with the ICAO recommendations. They were Kenya and Rwanda. Ghana and Togo had achieved a more than 90% alignment and the Gambia had reached about 81%. “This is a positive start, but we are far from restoring the economic catalyst that only aviation can provide,” pointed out Albakri. “ICAO’s Take-Off measures are the bedrock for ensuring safe operations and re-building passenger confidence. Africa’s governments need to make urgent implementation their top aviation priority.”