UNITED NATIONS
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COUNCIL
ECONONUCCO~S~ONFORAflUCA
Meeting of working group for the preparation of the Conference of African ministers responsible for civil aviation
20-22 October, Nairobi, Kenya
Distr.: LIMITED ECA/RCID/45(k2)/98 October 1998
ENGLISH
Original:
ENGLISHCONs-rRAINTS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF YAMOUSSOUKRO DECLARATION
(Preparedby AFRAA)
This paper presents in summary the core practical difficulties of implementation of the Yamoussoukro Declaration as seen from the perspective oftheAfrican Airlines Association.
FIRST MEETING OF THE PREPARATORY COMMITTEE ON THE CONFERENCE OF AFRICAN MINISTERS
RESPONSIBLE FOR CIVIL AVIATION Nairobi, October 20 - 22, 1998
CONSTRAINTS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF YAMOUSSOUKRO DECLARATION
(Preparedby AFRAA)
I. INTRODUCTION
1. Nearly 10 years ago the Yamoussoukro Declaration came with a big bang heralding a new era for Africa air transport, full of bold ideas for revamping the African civil aviation industry in order to meet the challenges of the nineties and beyond.
2. The practical difficulties in the implementation of the Declaration emanate from a number of reasons which have been documented by past studies and analysis conducted by the ECA and AFRAA
II. DIFFICULTIES
3. The major practicaJ constraints include:
The lack of proper focus on the objectives of the Declaration. For some, the objective of the Declaration is the establishment of regional groupings and integration, while for others, the primary objective is the creation of an enabling environment by gradual liberalization. Today there is a general recognition that integration of airl ines may be beyond the authority of States and difficult to achieve.
Lack of a binding institutional and legal framework for the implementation and enforcement of the Declaration.
Mismatches between the political pronouncement and commercial realities deriving from the fear of airlines that the implementation of the Declaration would commercially disadvantage them.
Lack of unity of purpose and inaction.
The failure of some African governments to act in the spirit of the Declaration.
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The reluctance of African governments to align their current Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASA) with the principle enumerated in the Yamoussoukro Declaration.
4 As the dawn of the new millennium approaches and nearly after 10 years of efforts, the one unavoidable conclusion is that African air transport remains hostage of past inaction and lack of commercial and political will, unlike developments in other parts of the world, especially in Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean.
5. Given the constraints and difficulties, other alternatives need to be explored to provide the impetus to propel African air transport to the next millennium. This new approach would take into account the practical difficulties encountered in the implementation of the Yamoussoukro Declaration and the experience of the past decade. It would focus on removing all of the perceived shortcomings and constraints of the Yamoussoukro Declaration.
