Aviation experts have continued to emphasise the need to build airlines that would stand the test of time by going into joint venture with foreign companies and other willing private investors.
To them, for the country’s aviation sector to grow, airlines need strong financial muscles to make them survive by opening it up to several investors and spread the risk.
Supporting the call was a former Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr Richard Aisuebeogun while fielding questions earlier in the week.
According to Aisuebeogun, a report of survey carried out in May, 2016 stated that over the past 12 years nearly 37 airlines were launched in Africa, and almost all of them had failed with 25 of the collapsed airlines coming from Nigeria.
He stated that today, only about 12 African airlines have inter-continental operations, stressing that the more, “We realise that airlines are not a luxury but a necessity in our remote villages and hub cities, the more we can change our thinking and make sustained efforts to ensure that airlines are supported and developed for the accelerated development of our economies and improvement of our livelihoods.’
Aisuebeogun who is one of the very few qualified and graduate of (Global) International Aviation Professional (IAP) noted that the potential of aviation in Africa is under-utilised, which means that there are huge opportunities for the sustainable airlines to thrive, but for the region to realise these latent possibilities, aviation – particularly, commercial air transport – must be prioritised by government.
The former FAAN Chief disclosed that today, air transport is recognised as an important element in the achievement of the United Nation’s Vision 2030 Sustainable Development Goals which seeks to improve individual livelihoods in all corners of the globe, adding that air transport is also vital to achieving the African Union’s (AU) Agenda 2063, which seeks to transform Africa’s economy from its current largely underdeveloped state to hugely develop economies.
While stating that Africa has the potential to be a significant force in aviation on the back of robust economic growth forecasts, with Africa having among the fastest growing economies worldwide, he lamented that African airlines carry only l.3 percent of global air cargo.
“These small proportions contributed by Africa to global air cargo indicate that Africa has a huge potential to grill. The growth is heavily constrained by the high industry costs, inadequate infrastructure at several airports, slow implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision (liberalization of Africa’s airspace), lack of a single traffic rights negotiating body with respect to third parties like the EU. Nonetheless, demand for air transport has increased steadily over the past years with passenger numbers and freight traffic growing significantly,” Aisuebeogun said.