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The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has reiterated its commitment to improve aviation safety in Africa, while calling on African governments to get their acts together on safety infrastructure.
The Director General and CEO of IATA, Giovanni Bisgnani, who said that the Association is serious about delivering results that will raise the bar on aviation safety, disclosed that although African air safety record has improved, the continent’s accident rate is still nearly six times the global average. Bisignani made these comments in a keynote address to industry stakeholders at the IATA Aviation Days for Africa held in Lagos, where the Association has just opened a sub-regional office serving Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Liberia and Cape Verde. The IATA chief also lamented that the infrastructure costs airlines pay on the African continent were huge. He also said that infrastructure in many parts of Africa was poorly funded and not up to international standards. "African governments must get their act together on infrastructure safety. The infrastructure in many parts of Africa is poorly funded and not up to international standards", he said. He reiterated that transparency is the real issue that is impacting lives, adding that the body supports the creation of special infrastructure fund mechanisms to ensure that what the airlines pay in charges stays in the industry. Bisignani revealed that the Association’s latest plan for African safety is the Implementation Programme for Safe Operations in Africa (IPSOA). "This is a US$3.7 million programme that follows on the US$5.4 million that we have already committed to improving safety in this region", he said. According to him, IPSOA will give up to 30 African airlines access to IATA’s Flight Data Analysis (FDA) tool over a three-year period, adding that FDA offers airlines the capability to statistically analyse data from actual flights to improve procedures and monitor compliance. FDA, he said, enables critical insight for aircraft maintenance by using data to monitor engine condition trends and aircraft fuel usage. "IPSOA is a partnership to improve both safety and efficiency. IATA will provide access to the data, but the airlines must invest to ensure that their organisations can take advantage of the programme", Bisignani said. Bisignani also highlighted auditing, infrastructure, and skill shortage as IATA’s three other key areas of improvement in African safety auditing, reiterating that 20 African carriers are among the 193 airlines on the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) Registry. With less than eight months to the December 31 deadline for obtaining IOSA registration, 15 IATA members in Africa have open findings. "Our goal is to have all of our members on board to raise the bar on safety. We will be working with our African members in a special Partnership for Safety Plus programme to bring our members into compliance with IOSA standards by the end of the year" the IATA boss said. Bisignani also urged African governments to make use of IOSA. "Already Egypt and Madagascar are mandating IOSA as part of their safety oversight programmes. I want to see more African governments follow their lead, including Nigeria", he said. The IATA chief also stated that "Airlines are competing in a global market that has a shortage of licensed personnel. To meet projected demand in 2026, we must train 19,000 pilots a year. With a capacity of 16,000, the shortfall by 2026 would be 54,000 pilots". He however that there was need to broaden the pool of qualified candidates without compromising on safety, adding that IATA’s Training and Qualification Initiative (ITQI) is working on a comprehensive approach from recruitment to training, standards and technology. "However, the challenge is for governments to cooperate and jointly provide standards, licensing and training. It would help Africa (and other regions) use scarce resources more efficiently while improving safety", Bisignani said. "Safety is a team effort. IATA is working closely with all its members to deliver results. Safety oversight is a government responsibility. They must be equally committed to providing resources and leadership. Working together, we can make Africa’s skies safer", he added. The Director General of Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr Harold Demuren, blamed corruption, undue government interference and inept management for the decline of African airlines. He stated that in the 1970s and 1980s, the West African sub-region had a vibrant air transport industry, but regretted that in the 1990s, the progress dwindled to the detriment of airlines in the sub-region. To stem further decline, Demuren called for private public partnership where government owned carriers have failed. The Group Managing Director of United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr Tony Elumelu, whose bank has been appointed as a clearing bank for the Billing Settlement Plan (BSP) in Nigeria by IATA, noted that the system is designed to facilitate and simplify the selling, reporting and remitting procedures of IATA accredited passenger sales agents, as well as improve financial control and cash flow for BSP airlines. With the new office, IATA will expand its Billing and Settlement Plan (BSP) to the Nigerian market. Anticipating the 100 percent e-ticketing deadline on 31 May 2008, the Nigerian BSP operation will be among the first completely e-ticketing BSPs in the US$220 billion IATA settlement system.
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