African countries urged to liberalise airspace

From left: Presidents Uhuru Kenyatta (Kenya), Paul Kagame (Rwanda) and Yoweri Museveni (Uganda). The three countries form the Coalition of the Willing (CoW), which has been accused of leaving out Tanzania and Burundi in making key decisions that affect the East African Community. Photo/FILE 

By SCOLA KAMAU Special Correspondent

In Summary

• Officials at IATA, the global aviation lobby, said African governments should come up with an agreement to grant flying rights to African airlines.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is urging African countries to open up their skies for airlines to boost air operations across the continent while bringing down costs.

Officials at IATA, the global aviation lobby, said African governments should come up with an agreement to grant flying rights to African airlines.

“Many governments, fearing dominance by other African carriers, deny these carriers market access, while granting limited rights to non-African airlines. It is easier to give rights to an airline that won’t compete on heavy intra-Africa routes,” said IATA in a statement.

The Yamoussoukro Decision adopted in 1999 commits its 44 signatory countries to deregulate air services, and promote regional air markets open to transnational competition.

Its implementation has been held up by the long time taken to draw up continental-wide competition regulations, a competition authority, dispute resolution mechanisms, implementing provisions, and the incorporation of the Yamoussoukro Decision into the domestic legislation of many states.

A 2010 World Bank Open Africa Skies report indicates that Africa is home to 12 per cent of the world’s people, but accounts for less than one per cent of the global air services market, a trend that can be reversed by liberalisation of its air space.

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According to IATA, after the European Union introduced their single aviation market, there was a 310 per cent increase in intra-EU routes between 1992 and 2009.

Part of the reason for Africa’s under-served status, according to the IATA report, is that many African countries restrict their air services markets to protect the share held by state-owned air carriers.