The headquarters of the African Civil Aviation Commission (CAFAC) in Dakar, Senegal has been hosting, since Thursday 30 January, the 3rd Stakeholders' Meeting on the implementation of the Joint Priority Action Plan for the operationalization of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM).

For 2 days, the 30 participants will work on the establishment of a common platform for all partners and stakeholders in African civil aviation. Participants include representatives from the African Union, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), ASECNA, the Association of African Airlines (AFRAA), the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and the Regional Economic Communities (RECs).

Results of the workshop will be compiled in a report that will be presented by Faure Gnassingbé, President of the Republic of Togo and spokesperson for the SAATM, at the 33rd ordinary session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union scheduled for 9 and 10 February in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

A key project of the African Union's Agenda 2063 alongside the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the Protocol on the Free Movement of Persons, the single air market is expected to accelerate connectivity across the continent, leading to the sustainable development of the aviation and tourism industries, with a significant contribution to Africa's economic growth, job creation, prosperity, and integration.

Romuald Ngueyap