Ghana Receives Prestigious Awards at UN Aviation Agency Assembly

Ghana Receives Prestigious Awards at UN Aviation Agency Assembly

Montréal, 25^th September, 2019 — Government’s vision and strategic reforms aimed at repositioning Ghana as an aviation hub in Africa received global recognition yesterday after the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) conferred two awards on the country during the United Nations aviation agency’s 40th Triennial Assembly in Montréal.

ICAO is recognizing Ghana’s progress in resolving aviation security and oversight deficiencies, and the country’s commitment to the effective implementation (EI) of its Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPS) under the first award, known as the ICAO Council President Certificate in Aviation Security.

The second award, the ICAO Council President Certificate in Aviation Safety, is in recognition of strides Ghana made in 2018 towards the resolution of safety oversight deficiencies and improvement in the EI of related ICAO SARPs. In April this year, Ghana obtained an EI rate of 89.89%, the highest by an African country, following ICAO’s conclusion of its Coordinated Validation Mission (ICVM) in Accra.

The two awards, Ghana’s first since the ICAO Council established the Council President Certificates in 2015, were received by the Minister for Aviation,  Joseph  Kofi Adda, who was joined by the High Commissioner of Ghana to Canada, Nii Ayikoi Otoo, the Director General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Simon Allotey, and the Acting Managing Director of the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL), Yaw Kwakwa.

In his opening remarks to the over 2,600 Ministers, senior government officials and other crucial industry stakeholders present, the President of the ICAO Council, Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, noted that “collectively, as aviation leaders, we have a very critical responsibility to ensure that there are sufficient numbers of skilled personnel to manage the increasingly complex technological foundation for 21st century aviation.”

“This Assembly will be one for bold decisions, and a time to refine our vision for how air transport can be of even greater service to States and regions, businesses and travelers, in the exciting years ahead. I would encourage you to progress this work mindful of the global expectations now and always upon us, and in the spirit of the preamble to the Chicago Convention.”

Delivering an address to the ICAO Assembly, the Aviation Minister expressed Ghana’s deepest appreciation to ICAO for the awards and commended GCAA and GACL for their commitment to continued ICAO compliance, adding that the recognition was a direct outcome of the numerous steps which government had taken in support of the growth of the aviation industry.

Referring to aviation as the “new growth pole,” Minister Adda stressed that enhanced air connectivity and States’ economic development were inextricably linked, and urged greater collaboration between ICAO and key players in the global air transport system in this regard.

“I wish to strongly encourage the leadership of ICAO to partner with governments across the globe to prioritize this sector in their economic development policies and to elevate it as a principle for adoption at the World Economic Forum,” Mr. Adda underscored.

Mr. Adda also used his address, the first by a Ghanaian Minister for Aviation to an ICAO Assembly, to highlight sectoral policy reform and key investments in ICAO compliant infrastructure intended to complement on-going efforts at transforming Ghana’s aviation industry.

“The uptake in these projects is in line with government’s vision towards repositioning Ghana as a major aviation hub in Africa,” the Minister explained. “And the establishment of a home-based carrier to ensure that Ghana remains on the global aviation map is currently being pursued through a strategic partnership arrangement with an established airline which should be operational soon.”

Turning to unmanned aircraft and the critical role they play in nations’ economic development, the Aviation Minister highlighted the excellent health outcomes that were being realized in Ghana following the implementation of a government policy to provide vital medical supplies to far-flung communities through the deployment of drones.

He also updated the Assembly on the crucial importance of the establishment of a Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) to continent-wide efforts to enhance air connectivity and the sustainable development of air transport, stressing how the historic implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) would create a tariff-free continent in support of local business growth, Intra-African Trade, accelerated industrialization and job creation.

While acknowledging this remarkable progress, Mr. Adda reminded his audience that “at a time that ICAO recognizes that Africa presents the highest potential for growth out of all of the UN aviation agency’s global regions, air connectivity in the continent should not be so poor that people travelling to parts of Africa have to fly into Europe to be able to connect flights into their final destinations back in Africa.”

“By the year 2022, when the next ICAO Assembly will have taken place, anyone flying from anywhere in Africa to everywhere in Africa, should be able to do so within Africa in less than 24 hours, without leaving the African airspace.”

Concluding his remarks, Mr. Adda commended ICAO for its leadership in fostering effective partnerships between States and industry, and particularly for facilitating capacity-building within and beyond Africa through the introduction of the No Country Left Behind (NCLB) initiative as well as the establishment of a Peer Review Mechanism for Air Navigation Service Providers.

While in Montréal, the Aviation Minister paid a courtesy call on President Aliu, who is the first African to occupy the position. In recognition of this, and on behalf of the government and people of Ghana, Mr. Adda presented a plaque to the ICAO Council President. The two leaders also deliberated on areas of mutual cooperation for Ghana and ICAO.

Ghana’s delegation to Montreal also included senior officials from GCAA and GACL, the Ghana Meteorological Agency, and members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Roads and Transport.

The 40^th Assembly, which will also elect the 36-Member Council of ICAO and agree on the UN aviation agency’s work programme and budget for the next three years, will be concluded on 4^th October.

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About GCAA

Created in 1986, GCAA is the regulatory agency for air transport in Ghana. It licenses air transport operations, maintains oversight of aviation safety and security, as well as provides air navigation services within the Accra Flight Information Region (FIR), which comprises the airspace of Ghana and a large area over the Atlantic Ocean in the Gulf of Guinea. It is also responsible for consumer protection and the promotion of the development of Ghana’s air transport sector.

Contacts:

Eric Amaning
Manager, Corporate Communications
eamaning@caa.com.gh
+233-302-776171 x 1253
Twitter: @GhCivilAviation
 

Raymond Bayor
Corporate Communications Officer
rbayor@caa.com.gh
+233-302-776171 x 1254
Twitter: @rybayor
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rybayor/

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Evans Ntiamoah

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