There are several airports with monopoly service providers in ground handling, catering and/or fuel supply which often breeds inefficiency and are associated with high costs.

It is critical that the market be liberalized, bringing in more players to encourage competition and boost efficiency in service delivery. Among the airports in Africa with monopoly ground handling companies are Antananarivo, Bamako, Banjul, Brazzaville, Dakar, Entebbe, Kigali, Kinshasha, Lome, Manzini, Maputo, Maseru, Monrovia, Mogadishu, Niamey, Nouakchott, Windhoek and Sao Tome island.

Peace

During the period after independence, the African continent was well-known for instability. Coup detas, wars of independence and civil wars were quite common. Because of that environment of instability, this constrained the development of airlines in some countries.

Fortunately, as the African Union celebrates 50 years of its existence, the incidences of coups and civil wars in Africa have substantially reduced. The number of countries holding democratic elections has significantly increased.

Relatively democratic countries are presently largely the norm rather than the exception. This bodes well for the development of civil aviation on the continent.

Aviation Safety

Safety levels of African aviation over the years have been below world standards. The rates of accidents on the continent almost always exceed those registered elsewhere in the world.

Most of the accidents have taken place in those States involved in civil war. For instance, in the 1990s and up to 2003, Angola was among the countries with the highest accident rates. During that time, the country was largely involved in civil war. Following a return to peace, Angola today boasts a vibrant aviation industry with a good safety record.

Currently, DRC and Sudan account for the majority of accidents on the continent and those countries are currently involved in civil wars. During civil strife, it is difficult for the authorities to carry out effective safety oversight. Western sanctions on the Sudan are also not helping improve safety as it is difficult to purchase equipment and expertise needed to improve the operating environment.

Safety standards on the continent are however, improving, the main reason being significant reduction of conflicts and also the increased desire by States to ensure international best practices by the industry.

Perception that African airlines are unsafe has made some travelers choose non-African carriers. This is despite the fact that Africa has some of the safest airlines. The standard of safety by many African airlines (members of AFRAA, AASA and IATA) is comparable to any international airline anywhere, yet because of some isolated incidents largely in the DRC and Sudan, the entire continent is tagged “unsafe”.

African aviation can only grow and prosper if the level of safety is up to world standard. This requires that all countries meet the stipulated ICAO standards and recommended practices in safety and security.

This way, accident levels should be down to world average rates. A safety culture should be inculcated into the mind-sets of all African aviation stakeholders .The poor safety perception in the continent is among the major reasons for the tiny proportion of African aviation worldwide.

Improved Infrastructure

Infrastructure in many African States is deficient, dilapidated and not coping with the growing airline industry. Although there are a significant number of exceptions, there is nevertheless a need to develop and expand airports, runways and air navigation services facilities.

Airports should be open 24 hours a day and not just during daylight hours. There is a need for the relevant authorities to be proactive and plan for the expected rapid expansion of African aviation.

The industry is behind the world in the adoption of cost effective technologies .It is important to take advantage of the latest information communication technologies, to minimize operating costs. Airlines also need to modernize their fleets not only to reduce operating costs, but to reduce harmful emissions.

The application of technology is one big driver of Africa’s economic growth. Mobile phones usage is widespread in the continent. More than 600-million Africans have one, and a significant number of Africans, perhaps 10% of those, have access to mobile -internet services. The phones have a wide range of applications including mobile banking and information on airline prices and schedules.

Environmental Obligations

The issue of climate change is expected to be among the priority issues in the coming years.

To reduce emissions it will be necessary for African carriers to continually invest in modern aircraft which produce lower emissions.

It is envisaged that small carriers will not have the resources to carry out such critical investment, hence the need for consolidation so that airlines are large enough to be credit worthy and attract financing at concessional rates to continue modernizing their fleets.

It is also important that those African States that have not yet acceded to the Cape Town Convention do so to facilitate their airlines access to low cost capital for fleet renewal.

Regulatory Environment

The regulatory environment worldwide continues to change rapidly in response to evolving situations and challenges in areas such as safety, security, passenger rights and slot allocations.

Also as the European Union operates as one aviation block for purposes of negotiating traffic rights with third parties, the African Union has the duty to develop institutions to mirror its counter-parts in other parts of the world.

This will ensure that negotiations will be carried out in a fair and balanced manner.

The regulatory authorities will need to develop expertise and sophistication to deal with emerging complex issues such as environmental protection, consumer rights and slot allocations.

Changing Market Dynamics

Because of the growing business between Africa and emerging economies, some African airlines are beginning to change focus.

Rather than continue to operate to traditional European and Middle East destinations where competition is keen, they are exploring new markets within the continent and to Asia, North and South America.

Currently there is growing trade and investment between Africa, Asia and South America particularly with countries like China, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Brazil. Indeed, some African airlines such as KQ, ET, SAA and MS have operations to a number of Asian destinations.

There is a window of opportunity to increase and consolidate these operations to these growing markets before airlines from Asia turn their attention to Africa .On the South American routes only African airlines currently fly there. The airlines operating there include TAAG Angola Airlines (DT) and SAA but soon to be followed by ET and KQ.

To North America, six African airlines currently operate there as against two US carriers.

African airlines are also focusing on improving their product offering, including developing alliance relations with other regional and intercontinental airlines to be able to serve markets to which they do not operate their own equipment.

For example, Air Seychelles (HM) and KQ are partnering with Etihad Airways to extend their market reach. This coupled with the investments in modern fleet and in capacity development is helping Africa cope with the growing competition.

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Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Air News On Flights In Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/services/cargo-and-freight-flights.html

Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Air News On Flights In Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/services/cargo-and-freight-flights.html

Author Bio: Anthony A Juma is the Editor and Director Commercial & Flights Operations at Wings Over Africa Aviation Limited. This is an Air Charter Company that specializes on Air News On Flights In Africa. The website has guided thousands of travelers to achieve their dream holiday. For more information and guidance, visit the site http://www.wingsoverafrica-aviation.com/index.php/services/cargo-and-freight-flights.html

Category: Travel
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