Les Echos | African Air Transport, Between Hopes and Concerns

Written by Abshir Aden Ferro

The growth of African air transport is conditioned by several imperatives, including fiscal harmonization across the continent and better safety on the ground and in the air. Unfortunately, these two points are currently hampering the attractiveness of African airports, regrets Abshir Aden Ferro.

Africa, which today represents only 3% of international air traffic, can hope for an estimated growth in the number of passengers estimated at 4.3% per year until 2035, according to projections by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

However, this growth remains conditioned by several imperatives: the emergence of a globalized middle class, sustained economic growth and the structuring of the market around large competitive companies. In addition, there is the need for increased efforts on safety on the ground and in the air as well as pan-African fiscal and regulatory harmonization which is slow to materialize.

Political determination

African states have understood that air transport is a catalyst for economic growth and firmly support their national companies in order to make them more competitive on a continental and international scale. This voluntarism of the public authorities has enabled the emergence of major players in Africa, such as Asky, Royal Air Maroc or Ethiopian Airlines, now able to compete with European and Chinese companies on international and continental flights.

State determination is also reflected in the financing of infrastructure. Ethiopian Airlines, owned by the Ethiopian government, has invested 5 billion dollars for the construction of a new airport, fifty kilometers from the capital, Addis Ababa. The same political determination has enabled the national company Air Senegal to be set up in record time with the determined support of President Macky Sall. Here again, the acquisition of a modern fleet, notably via the Airbus A330Neo, testifies to the desire of these new entrants to put modernity and safety at the heart of their development strategy.

Fiscal pressure

In terms of taxation of the aviation sector, Africa is a bad student. There are a dozen taxes, fees and charges affecting companies on African soil. West and Central Africa are breaking all records with taxes of between $ 50 and $ 150 per passenger. Authorizations granted to an airline wishing to operate between two countries require a long and costly authorization process, except for illegal practices that may facilitate them.

To these taxes is added the price of fuel, on average 35% higher on the continent than in the rest of the world, which leads to a mechanical increase in the price of the already very expensive ticket for passengers. The prospects of an increase in the price of the barrel still darken the future of the African sky. For companies, the consequences are disastrous. Globally, as the Afraa (African Airlines Association) reminds us , the profit per passenger is 6.85 dollars. In Africa, it is negative and losses amount to $ 1.09 per passenger.

The single African air transport market, a flagship project of Agenda 2063, should certainly ultimately strengthen intra-African connectivity and facilitate trade. But it is slow to materialize and the prospect of a fully effective African common aviation space remains remote.

Safety on the ground and in the air

On the ground, Isago certification from the International Air Transport Association (Iata), a guarantee of safety and security, must become the standard for all service providers operating on airport infrastructures. It is still insufficiently widespread. The lack of certification of ground service providers has a very negative impact on the attractiveness of African airports as a whole.

In addition, dubious practices, such as those revealed in recent weeks in the press , by the Gabonese subsidiary of the Monaco Resources Group (MRG), R-Logistic, on its management of the Léon Mba international platform in Libreville have thus severely hampered President Ali Bongo's ambition to make the airport an African air hub. MRG is also said to be in the process of trying to win the groundhandling contract for Félix Houphouët-Boigny airport in Abidjan, risking, if it were to obtain it, causing it to lose its Isago certification.

In the air, the prevalence of fatal accidents is no higher in Africa than in the rest of the world. These encouraging indicators are part of a continuous trend of improving safety standards. Still insufficient, however. 76 African companies are on the European Commission's blacklist and, as such, do not have access to the European sky. Only 46 African airlines are listed in the IATA security register of Iata, which remains the international benchmark for airline security.

First Published by Les Echos