The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called on the South African government to step up its support for the air transport industry amid the COVID-19 crisis to facilitate the recovery of industries supported by aviation such as travel and tourism and unlock the job opportunities and other economic benefits they provide.

“South Africa’s air transport and tourism sector’s contribution to GDP all but evaporated with the COVID-19 crisis which coincided with the closure of one airline and the deep restructuring of two others. In 2019 aviation supported 364,000 jobs in South Africa. Because of COVID-19, about 298,000 of those jobs have been put at risk. It’s a significant impact for over 80% of jobs to be lost if connectivity is not restored. As South Africa’s foreign trade and tourist markets begin coming back online, it is crucial that steps are taken to ensure no more jobs or opportunities are lost,” said Kamil Al Awadhi, IATA’s Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East.

Key priorities to support and sustain the recovery of South Africa’s air transport and tourism sectors include:

Financial Support and Relief to the air transport industry: South Africa’s entire airline industry requires support and financial relief if it is to fulfill its role as an economic enabler and job creator.  Government has several levers at its disposal to assist all carriers and service providers, both public and privately-owned.  Besides cash or financial guarantees, they include reductions, waivers, and discounts on user charges and taxes on air travel and aviation and wage subsidies.

Adopting an inter-operable digital platform for COVID-19 testing and vaccination certificates: As passenger numbers increase in the recovery, digitally managing travel health credentials will be essential to avoid queuing and crowding at airports. IATA Travel Pass and the African Union’s Trusted Travel Pass are both tools that can help governments efficiently and conveniently verify traveler health credentials.

Increasing intra-Africa connectivity: The African Union’s Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) is intended to unlock travel and economic benefits within the continent. An IATA-commissioned econometric study found that the full implementation of SAATM across the continent would create 14,500 new jobs for South Africa and add US$283.9 million to its GDP.

IATA also urged the South African government to ensure the effective functioning of the South African International Air Services Licensing Council to enable the granting of operating licenses for new routes and increased frequencies on existing routes to South African carriers.  

“The prolonged absence of a functioning South African International Air Services Licensing Council is exacerbating the crisis by preventing new routes and competition, further curtailing options for international travelers, inhibiting trade, and delaying the creation of jobs,” he added. 

Equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines

With low vaccination rates across Africa, the continent and its people are vulnerable and the economic recovery from COVID-19 is at risk. Moreover, with more countries lifting travel restrictions for those vaccinated, the freedom of movement will be limited until vaccines are universally available. With 13.9% of South Africa’s population fully vaccinated, the challenge is particularly acute.

Source: Tornos News

The first world fair to be held in the Middle East, Expo 2020 Dubai, opened on Thursday with a lavish ceremony of fireworks, music and messaging about the power of global collaboration for a more sustainable future.

Stars headlining the opening ceremony, which was projected in public spaces around the UAE, included Italian tenor singer Andrea Bocelli, British singer Ellie Goulding, Chinese pianist Lang Lang and Saudi singer Mohammed Abdu.

Dubai, the region’s tourism, trade and business hub, is hoping to boost its economy by attracting 25 million business and tourist visits to the world fair which has been built from scratch on 4.3 sq km (1.7 sq mile) of desert.

Many countries and companies are also looking to the expo – the first major global event open to visitors since the coronavirus pandemic – to boost trade and investment.

The full expo site will open its doors to exhibitors from almost 200 countries on Friday after being delayed for a year by the pandemic. Chosen eight years ago to follow the 2015 Expo in Milan, Italy, the event cost around $6.8 billion.

Dubai says it wants the Expo, an exhibition of culture, technology and architecture under the banner “Connecting Minds and Creating the Future”, to be a demonstration of ingenuity, and a place where global challenges such as climate change, conflict and economic growth can be addressed together.

The event will probably contend with a global reluctance to travel and many events will be streamed live online. But Expo still officially expects to attract more visits than Milan received and more than twice the population of the UAE.

“We are quite confident…that by being responsible in how we manage the situation with COVIV but also in how we put forward an exciting program for visitors, we will hopefully be able to thread the needle by opening up but remaining at the same time conservative and keep public safety first and foremost,” Reem Al Hashimy, Expo 2020 Dubai’s Director General told Reuters.

The Gulf state has relaxed most coronavirus restrictions but Expo requires face masks to be worn and for visitors over 18 to be vaccinated against, or test negative for, COVID-19.

Before the pandemic, the consultancy EY forecast that the Expo would over the course of its six months contribute 1.5% of the UAE’s gross domestic product.

Source: Reuters

Kenya Airways (KQ) and South Africa Airways (SAA) are considering a Pan-African Airline Group to fight back foreign carriers’ dominance of intercontinental traffic in the region.

This is a revisit of a similar plan eight years ago that sought to bring together KQ, SAA and Ethiopian Airways during the 44th annual meeting of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) in South Africa. 

The memorandum between Kenya’s national carrier and the South African counterpart touches on strategic positioning in global aviation, diversifying earning streams, and reinforcing regional partnership in Africa through diplomatic and commercial relations. 

This is expected to spur an increase in passenger traffic, cargo opportunities, and general trade by taking advantage of strengths in South Africa, Kenya, and Africa.

KQ chief executive Allan Kilavuka said the future of aviation and its long-term sustenance is hinged on cooperation.

”This will enhance customer benefits by availing a larger combined passenger and cargo network, fostering the exchange of expertise, innovation and adopting home-grown solutions to technical and operational challenges,” Kilavuka said. 

He added that KQ which is in financial turmoil is committed to its turnaround strategy.

”The pursuit of partnerships is one of the core strategic pillars that shall transform the airline by ensuring its financial viability while offering world-class services in Africa and the world,” Kilavuka said. 

The airline posted an Sh11.5 billion loss for the half-year to June with turnover during the period dipping nine per cent to Sh27.3 billion compared to Sh30.2 billion same period last year.

This was mainly on reduced passenger numbers in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic which continues to restrict global and domestic air travel.

SAA’s Interim CEO Thomas Kgokolo said this cooperation, which includes demand recovery and other cost containment strategies, will aid the recovery of both carriers in an increasingly competitive African airline environment.

”It will also enhance related Kenya and South Africa tourism circuits, which sectors account for significant portions of respective country growth domestic product, benefiting from at least two attractive hubs in Johannesburg, Nairobi and possibly Cape Town,” Kgokolo said. 

The after-effects of Covid-19 on the aviation industry have seen airlines rethink strategy, with the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) calling on members to unite. 

Other continents are already reaping dividends of consolidation.

Europe has for instance consolidated to three major airline groups – Lufthansa, Air France-KLM and British Airways/Iberia parent IAG – in a region of 27 countries.

In the United States, the United and Continental have come together along with Delta and Northwest. In Latin America, there have been mega-mergers in recent years with LAN and TAM and with Avianca and TACA.

According to AFRAA, Kenya’s national carrier, Ethiopian, and SAA currently offer about 650,000 weekly seats. This would make it roughly the 30th largest airline group in the world, slightly behind Avianca-TACA.

The latest report by the association shows that while the big three airlines are big in the context of the African market, globally they are small relative to giant competitors such as Emirates, Air France-KLM and British Airways. 

Even if Kenya Airways, Ethiopian and SAA were to combine, they would account for just 37 per cent of Emirates’ revenue and about half the number of passengers.

One of the biggest challenges facing the industry is the lack of open skies.

Each African state negotiates its own bilateral agreements which have led to a highly restricted intra-Africa airspace but competing foreign airlines offering inbound tourism and trade connections being granted significant capacity rights.

”African airlines have the capacity but are not able to deploy it to access most of the continental market. Intra-Africa air travel accounts for just 26 per cent of total air passengers while regional trade is only 10 per cent,” AFRAA’s report reads in part. 

Source: The Star

Kenyans in need of urgent passports can now access specially accelerated applications.

According to a press release issued on Thursday, September 30, the Directorate of Immigration Services, there is a new service that will allow the issuing of urgent passports at Nyayo House.

Directorate General Alexander Muteshi revealed that a Special Desk had been set aside for applicants who need passports for urgent travel such as medical emergencies. 

The desk, dubbed counter 16, will be located on the ground floor of Nyayo House and will also cater for those seeking travel for studies and scholarships.

Those returning to work and official assignments abroad will also be given priority.  Applicants can present requests for rescheduling appointments for biometrics at the desk.

They will however be required to provide documentary evidence to prove that they require emergency or urgent passports.

Services will be available strictly by appointment booked on the e-citizen portal.

However, the immigration department strongly advised Kenyans against engaging with brokers who use unorthodox means to attempt to bypass the e-citizen appointment system.

It stated that it had put in place measures to detect attempts, warning that anyone who will be caught bypassing the online application would be denied access to the service.

On June 3, the Directorate of Immigration Services and Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) launched a passport delivery service that would see Kenyans countrywide get their passports delivered at their doorstep. 

Source: Kenyans.co.ke

Nairobi — The Department of Immigration and the National Police Service on Thursday embarked on a crackdown on Pakistan citizens reported to be transiting through the country to Saudi Arabia for greener pastures.

The two agencies launched the operation following a directive by Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho who ordered an immediate crackdown on foreigners following reports of illegal immigrants.

Sources indicated that close to 2,000 Pakistan citizens were picked from different hotel residences and bundled at Waiyaki Gardens Place, an apartment in Nairobi’s Mountain View area, where the verification exercise was being undertaken.

A foreigner picked up in the operation lamented saying the operation was unnecessary since they have valid transit visas to Saudi Arabia.

“We are being told we are here for verification. We are only labourers, poor people on transit to Saudi Arabia. We have come to Kenya to quarantine for 14 days before we travel to Saudi Arabia to look for greener pastures,” said Patel.

Patel did not disclose his second name so as to keep his identity confidential.

It also emerged that the foreigners had opted to transit through Kenya, the county having been listed among three African nations from where a cluster of nationals from certain countries can travel to the United Arad Emirates.

The transiting travelers raised concerns on how the manner in which the crackdown was conducted the crackdown saying they were being held incommunicado with no clarity on the next course of action.

“We came here last night; we have not slept even for a second. We have no food, no water. We have been bundled together with no social distancing,” a foreigner held following the operation said.

Patel Jera, a local agent for the foreigners, questioned the rationale for crackdown saying a majority of those targeted were in the country legally.

“It was not really done in a nice way. There were rumors that they are Pakistani in the country illegally, most of this people have gone through the airports and applied for visas. What was the necessity of bringing all this people over here? You could have just asked them for their passport instead of bundling them here, you can see the chaos, “he said

The agent warned that the crackdown could cost Kenya as foreigners preferring the country as a transit hub could switch to other destinations.

“The most preferred destination is Dubai, but it has its own issues at the moment due to COVID-19 restrictions. The influx is due to what is happening currently in Dubai. I hope it will not tarnish the hope to come back to Kenya. These foreigners have given us good business,” Patel said.

The directive by the interior ministry was issued after reports emerged of an influx of Pakistani nationals spotted in estates in Athi River within Machakos and Nairobi.

Kenya consequently suspended an agreement that Pakistani citizens grants visa-free entry.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday that the country will no longer admit visitors from Pakistan without entry visas, until further notice.

The Foreign Office cited a spike in the number of people traveling from Pakistan en route to Saudi Arabia and other destinations, through Kenya.

The ministry raised concern that Pakistani travelers were taking advantage of the visa-free agreement to violate COVID-19 quarantine regulations.

Source: Capital News

(Reuters) – Algeria’s supreme security council decided on Wednesday to close the country’s airspace to all Moroccan civil and military aircraft, the Algerian presidency said, less than a month after it cut diplomatic relations with the Kingdom.

The decision came “in view of the continued provocations and hostile practices on the Moroccan side”, it said in a statement.

The closure also includes any aircraft carrying a Moroccan registration number, the presidency said after a meeting of the council.

There was no immediate Moroccan official response. A source at Royal Air Maroc said the closure would only affect 15 flights weekly linking Morocco with Tunisia, Turkey and Egypt.

The source described the closure as insignificant and said the relevant flights could reroute over the Mediterranean.

The airline gave no official comment on the Algerian decision.

Algeria late last month decided to cut diplomatic ties with Morocco, citing “hostile actions” from the Kingdom, referring mainly to comments made by Morocco’s envoy in New York in favor of the self-determination of the Kabylie region in Algeria.

Algiers also accused Rabat of backing MAK, a separatist group that the government has declared a terrorist organisation. Authorities blame the group for devastating wildfires, mainly in Kabylie, that killed at least 65 people. MAK has denied the accusations.

Morocco said in response that Algeria was unjustified in cutting ties and its arguments were “fallacious and even absurd.”

The border between Morocco and Algeria has been closed since 1994 and Algeria has indicated it will divert gas exports from a pipeline running through Morocco, which was due to be renewed later this year.

Relations have deteriorated since last year, when the Western Sahara issue flared up after years of comparative quiet. Morocco sees Western Sahara as its own, but the territory’s sovereignty has been disputed by the Polisario Front, an Algeria-backed independence movement.

Source: Reuters

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called on the government of Ethiopia to continue its focus on maintaining efficient air connectivity amid the COVID-19 crisis. This will place Ethiopia in a strong position to weather the crisis and speed up the eventual industry and economic recovery.

“We congratulate Ethiopia for the positive steps it has taken to promote travel and air service connectivity throughout the pandemic. This includes accepting vaccinated travelers without restrictions, managing the cost of PCR testing to ensure it is affordable, and implementing a testing regime that accepts both PCR and rapid antigen tests. These measures should put Ethiopia on a faster track to recovery, not just for air transport but across the economy,” said Kamil Alawadhi, IATA’s Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East.

Ethiopia is performing above the African continent’s average demand for air transport services and has made progress in the recovery.

Passenger traffic to, from, and within Ethiopia in June 2021 was 30% less than in June 2019, a significant improvement on the 47% drop for January 2021 compared to January 2019.
Ethiopia’s June performance was well ahead of the -66.6% (compared to 2019) recorded for the African continent.
Passenger demand is expected to recover to pre-COVID levels by 2023.
Key priorities to support and sustain a recovery include:

Digitalization of health certificates: As passenger numbers increase in the recovery, digitally managing travel health credentials will be essential to avoid queuing and crowding airports. The African Union’s Trusted Travel Pass and the IATA Travel Pass are both tools that can help governments efficiently and conveniently verify traveler health credentials.
Releasing Blocked Funds: Approximately $59 million (as of August) in airline funds are being blocked from repatriation in Ethiopia. Resolving this quickly is critical for airlines to continue providing connectivity needed to sustain jobs and energize economies as they recover from COVID-19.
Implementing the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM): The SAATM was the solution to unlocking travel within the African continent pre-pandemic. Post-pandemic it will provide an even more important economic boost to the continent. Full implementation of SAATM across the continent would generate significant economic benefits for Ethiopia, namely creating 21,000 new jobs and adding $81.8 million to the GDP.
Equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines
With low vaccination rates across Africa, the continent and its people are vulnerable and the economic recovery from COVID-19 is at risk. Moreover, with more countries lifting travel restrictions for those vaccinated (as the US announced yesterday), the freedom of movement will be limited until vaccines are universally available. With less than 1% of Ethiopia’s population fully vaccinated, the challenge is particularly acute.“Nations, governments, politicians, and businesses must cooperate through COVAX so that everyone gets access to the vaccines they require, no matter where they are,” said Alawadhi.

Source: Tornos News

The Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) is ramping up its international marketing campaign to drive further awareness of Dubai as a must-visit destination with a focus on next month’s Expo 2020 Dubai.

At a series of in-person networking events held last week in the key markets of UK, Russia and the United States, Dubai Tourism shared its positive industry outlook with partners and leading media organisations.

Issam Kazim, Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Tourism, commented: “Aligned with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, we have increased our global marketing activities to reinforce the message that Dubai has completely regained its vibrancy and is the first choice destination for global travellers.”

“As Dubai continues to safely welcome international tourists, we are pleased to engage with the media and our partners in key markets in cooperation with Expo 2020 to raise awareness of the region’s first World Expo and the unique destination proposition. We received encouraging feedback from participants at the recent engagements overseas, as we intensify efforts to attract more visitors from all of our strategic markets that are open. With the industry registering steady growth in the first seven months of 2021, we are confident that together with our partners we can collectively leverage the prevailing optimism to further accelerate momentum during this landmark year of Expo 2020 and the UAE Golden Jubilee,” he added.

Kazim briefed the media and travel trade in Russia on September 2 on the various initiatives taken by Dubai in leading the global tourism recovery.

At this meeting, Sumathi Ramanathan, Vice President, Market Strategy & Sales, Expo 2020 provided insights into the mega event.

Kazim also virtually joined a media breakfast hosted by Dubai Tourism in London on 8 September, the first in-person meeting to be held in the UK market since the start of the pandemic.

Another promotional event was hosted in New York on September 8 that featured a pre-recorded speech by the Dubai Tourism CEO, and a live presentation by Matthew Asada, Deputy Commissioner General for the USA Pavilion, Expo 2020.

Attendees including representatives from the media and travel trade, also had an opportunity to watch a screening of the third trailer of Dubai Presents, the latest global campaign featuring Hollywood stars Jessica Alba and Zac Efron that was produced to showcase the exceptional experiences that visitors can enjoy during their stay in Dubai.

Source: Khaleej Times

The African Union’s health watchdog Thursday warned that Britain’s pandemic travel restrictions could make people across the continent more reluctant to get vaccinated.

Under the restrictions, Britain only recognises vaccines administered in a few countries.

For most of the world, and all of Africa, Britain will not recognise locally-administered vaccines — even if the jabs came from Britain.

“If you send us vaccines and you say, ‘we don’t recognise those vaccines’, it sends a very challenging message for us,” said John Nkengasong, head of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

That is “a message that creates confusion within our population… creating more reticence, reluctance for people to receive vaccines,” he told a weekly news conference.

Under the rules that take effect on October 4, travellers arriving into the UK from so-called “red” listed countries are required to quarantine in government-approved hotels even if they are vaccinated.

Travellers from countries not on the red list still face tougher restrictions, including additional testing and home isolation. 

“We regret that the UK will take this position, and we really will call on them to review this,” Nkengasong said. 

Britain has been an active donor of coronavirus vaccines to Africa, sending more than five million shots to Africa, according to UN data.

Nkengasong feared that Africans will question why they should take vaccines, when some European countries are refusing to recognise those vaccines.

“That is clearly not acceptable,” he said. “We should be raising our voices against such behaviours, that is not what we need for this pandemic.”

The UK approach creates a stigma around locally administered vaccines, he said, and “will lead to eventually harming efforts of what we are doing in Africa”.

Some African countries are facing a Covid-19 resurgence as the continent lags in the global vaccination drive, with just four percent of its 1.3-billion population fully innoculated.

Morocco, South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, and Tunisia have administered the most doses. Eritrea and Burundi are the two African countries still to roll out vaccination, according to Africa CDC.

Africa has so far reported more than eight million Covid-19 cases, the equivalent of around 3.6 percent of total global infections. 

More than 207,000 of the cases have been fatal, or 4.4 percent of global virus death toll.

Source: The East African

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has urged the Kenyan government to lower the USD80 PCR cost of COVID-19 PCR tests which is among the highest in Africa in order to encourage more air travel.

Through a statement, the association noted that the recovery of the aviation sector is stalling amid the COVID-19 pandemic and requires support.

Kamil Al Awadhi, IATA’s Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East noted that expensive charges and inconsistent requirements for PCR tests undermine confidence in air travel.

“Kenya’s air transport recovery is stalling and requires ongoing support. Among the interventions, we are urging Kenya’s government to reduce the cost of PCR tests for travelers, which, at roughly USD80 each, is significantly higher than the average in Africa, we need a restart that is affordable for all,” he said.

Alternatively, IATA noted that the air transport and tourism sectors could permit the use of more cost-effective antigen tests as a substitute.

Other mechanisms proposed by IATA include the digitization of health certificates which it said will be essential to avoid queuing and crowding at the airports.

“As passenger numbers increase in the recovery, digitally managing travel health credentials will be essential to avoid queuing and crowding airports,” the statement read in part.

In addition, IATA noted that full implementation of African Union’s Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) across the continent would generate significant economic benefits for Kenya especially job creation.

“Pre-pandemic, SAATM was intended to unlock travel within the continent. Post-pandemic it will provide an even more important economic boost, namely creating 39,000 new jobs and adding US$201 million to the country’s GDP,” IATA added.

Airline passenger traffic to, from, and within Kenya fell by 52 percent in June 2021 vs June 2019 while for the first half of 2021, passenger volumes declined by 54.2 percent as compared to the first half of 2019.

“The next two years should see a stronger recovery as Kenya’s vaccination rate improves and more countries reopen their borders to the country,” IATA added.

Source: Capital Business