African airlines to lose $2bn this year; sector faces danger of collapse – Iata

29th July 2020 By: Rebecca Campbell - Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

The global airline industry’s representative body, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) on Wednesday released its latest analysis and forecast regarding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Africa’s airline sector. The continent’s airlines are expected to suffer total losses of $2-billion this year and the entire sector is in danger of collapse, which would imperil $33-billion in African gross domestic product and 3.3-million jobs.

“Over $30-billion in financial support has been pledged to aviation and tourism in Africa,” pointed out Iata regional VP for Africa and the Middle East Muhammed Albakri. “Some of this money has been allocated by governments, but far too little of it has reached its intended recipients.”

The governments of Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Rwanda and Senegal have allocated a total of $311-million in direct support to their air transport sectors. The African Development Bank, the African Export Import Bank, African Union, the International Monetary Fund and some governments have also pledged a further total of $30-billion to support the continent’s air transport and tourism sectors. Unfortunately, the disbursement of this aid has been hampered by red tape, including complicated application and creditworthiness processes, and cumbersome bureaucracy.

“Governments and lenders need to urgently unchoke the bottlenecks so that the money can flow quickly, otherwise it will be too late to prevent closures and job losses,” he urged. “There will be no point in re-opening the borders and skies if there is no industry left to speak of that is capable of supporting trade and tourism, which are the key components of any thriving economy.”

Iata is urging African countries to harmonise their approaches to restarting their civil aviation sectors. This could be achieved if they all adopt the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO’s) Take-Off guidance document. (ICAO is a specialist agency of the United Nations.) At the moment, seven African countries have resumed or announced the imminent resumption of scheduled international air passenger flights. They are Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal and Tanzania. Together, they account for 19% of Africa’s air passenger traffic. (Note that this list includes nearly all the countries of East Africa.)

“Containing the pandemic is the top priority,” stressed Albakri. “But without a lifeline of funding to keep the sector alive, and a roadmap to restart aviation safely as soon as possible, the economic devastation of Covid-19 could take Africa’s development back a decade or more. Aviation supports livelihoods, trade, education, good health and wellbeing, quality education, reduces hunger and poverty and ensures access to essential medical supplies and humanitarian aid, as proven throughout this crisis. Without an air transport industry, the people of Africa are at risk of not being able to realise their dreams and aspirations.”