Africa must move beyond aviation policy commitments and begin implementing the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) if the continent is to improve connectivity and compete globally, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy says.
Speaking at the Board of Airline Representatives of South Africa (Barsa) Aviation Summit in Zimbali, KwaZulu-Natal, Creecy said stronger integration between African aviation markets was essential as airlines faced growing global competition.
Africa accounted for about 18% of the world’s population but less than 3% of global air traffic, she noted. SAATM – launched by the African Union in 2018 to liberalise air services between participating states – could be one of the most transformative policy instruments on the continent, but only if implementation shifts “from aspiration to execution”.
Gulf carriers and major European network airlines continued expanding across Africa, operating within highly integrated ecosystems backed by deep capital and alliance strength, Creecy said. “The question before us is not whether competition will intensify. The question is whether Africa will compete collectively or remain fragmented.”
Africa should pursue sequenced liberalisation, building competitive strength while progressively opening markets, she said. “If we’re serious as a continent about building competitive strength as we open our skies, we will need to address three issues: moving SAATM from aspiration to execution, addressing structural cost disadvantages on the continent, and ensuring regulatory capacity is aligned with international aviation standards.
“Liberalisation without sufficient institutional and operational capacity could create vulnerability, while protectionism without reform entrenches inefficiency,” Creecy said.
Licensing reforms and infrastructure upgrades
Creecy also outlined developments in South Africa’s aviation regulatory system, including reforms to licensing and permitting processes.
She said historical backlogs in air services licences and foreign operator permits had been cleared and a new licensing council had been appointed for a three-year term, selected for its aviation, legal, financial and transport economics expertise. “Automation of processes is under way,” she said.
Creecy added that a diagnostic review of the entire foreign operator permit (FOP) value chain had been commissioned in consultation with industry to identify structural and administrative inefficiencies. The aim is to develop a digitised system based on “the correct operational fundamentals”, with industry input through Barsa.
