African Aviation: Stakeholders advocate technology as tool to address infrastructure gaps

Global Aviation stakeholders have called on African governments to tackle without delay the infrastructure gaps on the Continent’s Aviation Industry, utilising technology as way out of the challenge.

The stakeholders made the call at one-day workshop, organized by Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) in conjunction with the Aviation Strategies International (ASI) Institute and Egis, adding that the Industry needs a reset with the advent of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Participants at the workshop with the theme: ‘Global Megatrends and Impact on Aviation,’ said that for the challenges to be properly addressed, Civil Aviation Authorities (CAAs) in Africa needed to drive the change through technology.

President of ASI Institute, Pierre Coutu, presenting his paper titled   ‘Global Mega trends in Aviation,’ said that the Aviation Industry faces one of the stringent periods in the world, followingtheoutbreakofCOVID-19 pandemic.

Coutu posited that players in the Sector needed to bring out the businesses in the industry to be ready for the future and called on the stakeholders to develop some areas to ensure compliance with global practices.

He cited climate change, global economic power shift, demographic changes, new technology and global connectedness as some of the current global megatrends that may define the future of the industry.

“There are more networks and communications, which seek to connect the world than in the past. This leads to things happening so fast in the world. According to IBM 2016 Study, 90 per cent of data in the world had been created in the previous two years alone.

“Scientists say frequencies of pandemic might increase in the future.COVID-19 pandemic was not the first pandemic ever. Aviation organizations need to plant or reduce such impacts in the sector in the future,” Coutu urged.

For the Sector to succeed another pandemic, he called for scenario planning, adoption of future wise strategic management, competency-based human capital, data analysis, risk analysis, partnership based organization and agile organisation culture, stressing that in this era, no organisation could stand alone without the supports of the others. Jean-MarcTrottier, in his presentation tiltled, ‘Planning for a Turbulent Future,’ said that climate change would affect the African Aviation Industry.

Jean-MarcTrottier highlighted that the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic would make investors and lenders to view aviation investments through a different lens.

The Director General of the NCAA, Capt. Musa Nuhu, in his address disclosed that the Nigerian Aviation Industry was faced with challenges pre-COVID-19 era, but added that the outbreak of the pandemic had finally exposed the problems in the sector in Nigeria.

Nuhu pointed out that the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic had created the need to urgently accelerate growth in the Industry globally and ensure the needed changes.

The DG NCAA said that it had become paramount for players in the industry to develop strategies that would lead to development.

Nuhu explained that technology was an ongoing issue, which a lot of the airlines had keyed into, stressing that for the agencies; such changes would be a bit difficult because of regulations.

He also disclosed that unlike in some CAAs on the continent, NCAA does not receive subvention from the federal government, stating that 80 percent of its revenues are from the Ticket Sales Charge (TSC).