Nigerian CommunicationWeek

Afreximbank Tasks Govts on Robust Aviation Infrastructure

Jean-Luis Ekra, president of Afreximbank

Afreximbank has urged African governments to scale up aviation infrastructure funding to attract investments to the sector.

Jean-Luis Ekra, president of the bank, who made the call at the African Aviation Summit 2014 in Addis Ababa, said the non-African airlines dominance in its airspace was a setback.

Represented by Mr Obi Emekekwue, bank’s head of External Communication, Ekra said the non-African airlines had generated about 10 billion dollars a year from plying African routes, citing the 2012 Airline Economics report.

According to him, the industry, in 2010, supported about seven million jobs in Africa through direct and indirect support to activities in the travel and tourism industries.

“It is further projected that the industry will grow in terms of its impact on African economies in the next 20 years and job creation is forecast to be around 879,000’’ according to AfDB 2012 report.

He added that the volume of African airline business is expected to treble in the next 20 years from its current level to about 200 billion dollars.

Ekra said aviation finance was imperative for effective trade development, particularly to create more employment above the seven million reported in 2010.

He said in spite of the potential contribution of the aviation industry to trade development across the continent, the performance of the sector lagged behind than the rest of the world.

He, however, noted that the demand for air transport services in Africa had increased steadily in recent years.

“Passenger numbers and freight traffic grew by 45 per cent and 80 per cent respectively between 2011 and 2012.

“It is projected that at 6.1 per cent, Africa will be the third fastest growing region with regard to international traffic by 2015.

“The growth rates for other regions are Middle East 7.9 per cent; Asia Pacific 6.9%, Europe, 5.0%; and North America, 4.9% while the global rate is expected to be 5.8%’’, according to the AfDB (2012).

He said the bank being a trade finance institution, was aware of the role of trade in the continent’s developmental agenda and its critical contribution to national and continent’s development.

Exit mobile version