South African Deputy Transport Minister Sindisiwe Lydia Chikunga reaffirmed the country’s support for opening Africa’s aviation markets. “South Africa supports the liberalisation of air transport in Africa,” she said in her keynote address at the recent South African Civil Aviation Authority’s Aviation Industry Growth Conference, in Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg.

She highlighted that the International Air Transport Association, in its Future Growth Trend Highlights, had concluded that eight of the ten fastest-growing aviation markets (in percentage terms) would be in Africa. The African aviation sector as a whole was expected to grow by 4.7%.

Further, she pointed out, given the difficulties with terrestrial transport across the continent, air transport continued to offer a means of transporting cargo and facilitating business and tourism. She noted that September 27 was World Tourism Day, when, “once again, we realised the value of aviation and tourism, culturally and economically, to our country and the continent”.

She urged the conference to examine strategies and models, including research and development, to permit the aviation industry to help meet the challenges faced by Africa. As for African commercial aviation, its core challenges were safety, security, environmental protection, human resource development and capacity building (including the empowerment of women). Regarding the sector in South Africa, she complained that 90% of the holders of air transport pilot’s licences were white men and affirmed that the sector was “grossly untransformed”.

“Air transport plays a major role in the global economy,” she cited. “It is also one of the fastest-growing sectors in the world economy.” Chikunga recounted that January 2014 had marked the centenary of commercial aviation. Over those 100 years, the sector had grown from carrying one passenger on that first flight to carrying 3.3-billion passengers a year. The latter figure had since increased to 3.5-billion, carried on 40-million flights annually.

The intergovernmental body that oversees global commercial aviation is the International Civil Aviation Organisation (Icao), which held its most recent assembly late last month. At that assembly, she highlighted, all eight African countries (including South Africa) that had stood for election to the Icao council had been elected.

A major concern of the assembly was the development of policies, principles and programmes to reduce the aviation industry’s carbon dioxide emissions. “South Africa, together with the other African States who are members of the Icao council, has in this instance, contributed significantly to ensuring that the adoption of such schemes will not be detrimental to the development of aviation in the African continent,” she stated.

In her address to the conference, the country’s director of civil aviation, Poppy Khoza assured that the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA, often rendered just CAA), which she heads, fully supported the growth of the country’s aviation sector. “The CAA is committed to holding discussions which will facilitate aviation growth.”

She stated that her agency sought to be part of the “meaningful change and growth” of the local aviation industry. “We are committed to engaging with as many aviation stakeholders as possible.” This engagement would include discussions, liaison and facilitating interactions between aviation stakeholders and government departments.

“The majority of regulators around the world do not have to take into account the financial viability of [aviation] licence holders when making regulations,” she noted. The SACAA, however, believes that regulators should take the financial viability of licence holders into consideration when regulating. “The challenge will be to ensure the balance between regulatory compliance and the economic viability of the licence holders.

“We can only achieve the desired results by working together.” She urged the various branches of the aviation sector to find more ways of cooperating.

Khoza affirmed her belief that South Africa had the expertise and talent to increase innovation in the aviation industry and to expand that industry to include the manufacturing of aircraft. She called for increased innovation through research and development, while protecting the environment to ensure the sustainable development of the sector. She also highlighted the need for improved cooperation within the sector in order to boost “brand South Africa”.

The SACAA is committed to transforming the industry, “one young person at a time”. It supports the training of young people who are interested in careers in the aviation industry.