Aviation players seek free, fair competition as services change

By Halili Letea

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Dar es Salaam. Players in the aviation sector yesterday voiced their support for the

liberalisation of ground handling services in the country, but they urged the regulator to undertake two major initiatives to enable the system to work in accordance with the market.

Those who spoke during a Stakeholders’ Consultation Meeting that organised by the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) said in Dar es Salaam on Monday, April 25, that authorities need to conduct a critical analysis to ensure that the liberalisation results in a free and fair competition among operators. The meeting sought to collect opinion to improve service provision.

On April 11, 2022, TCAA announced its intention to liberalise ground handling services in the country.

Reading the written opinion presented by Swissport Tanzania, the Zanzibar Aviation Services and Travel Trade (ZAT) and TCCIA - Consumer Consultative Council’s (TCAA-CCC), the economic regulation director at TCAA, Mr Daniel Malanga said the stakeholder wanted the authority to conduct critical analysis on existing airports infrastructures and make the required changes on them.

“Ground handlers should not have limited access to airports. There is need to ensure full free and fair competition such that no operator is being favoured over the other. The authority also needs to set the benchmark price and the build capacity to its employees in relation to the change,” he read.

Swissport Swissport Chief Executive Officer, Mrisho Yassin said the critical analysis and study before allowing liberalisation are important because companies were still yet to recover since 2016.

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“In 2016, our company made Sh57 billion revenue and in 2019 it was Sh35 billion, I will ask a question: Where did the Sh22 billion go? I am sure they did not go to other handlers… this means the sector loses its revenue,” he said.

The president of ZAT Mohammed Raza said the liberalisation should consider protecting local investors and this can be achieved by putting favourable regulations and legal framework.

For his part, TCAA Director General Hamza Johari said the liberalisation comes after reviewing the decisions based on available airport infrastructures including runways, taxiways, ramp, terminal buildings, and equipment parking.

“Improved passenger traffic, aircraft movements and cargo volume mean the need for more ground handling service providers at the airport,” he said.

He said the move would also achieve effective competition where market forces will be left to take a lead in determining the rates, charges, and quality of services and meeting specific needs of a particular airport.

He said the current system whereby there were few companies could possibly result in price wars, cartels and the influx of requests from airport operators and ground handling services licensees.

The TCAA board chairman Prof Lunginus Rutasitara said that the views will all be taken into consideration for decision making and the authority will make further announcements thereafter.