Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah, Deputy Minister of Aviation, speaking to journalists
Government is executing a number of priority projects and programmes to grow Ghana’s aviation sector.
The projects include construction of Modern Air Navigation Service Centre at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA), completion of the Ho Airport by the end of 2017 and the decoupling of aviation regulation from air navigation services provision.
The others include the completion of the Terminal 3 at the KIA by 2018, construction of phase 2 of the Tamale Airport consisting of a terminal building including a modern Hajj terminal, the construction of phase 2 of the Kumasi Airport consisting of the extension of the runway and a new terminal building.
Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah, Deputy Minister of Aviation, who disclosed this at the weekend, was delivering the keynote speech at the 2nd Ghana National Aviation Awards.
Airports Upgrade
According to him, the Ministry of Aviation, in collaboration with its sector agencies – the Ghana Airports Company Limited and the Civil Aviation Authority – has taken steps to promote the industry through the modernization of airports aimed at making KIA an aviation hub in the West African sub-region.”
He revealed that “our ultimate aim is to make Ghana the destination of choice for travelers. Available statistics in the aviation sector indicate that the number of international airlines operating in the country has increased to 37 with 2 domestic carriers.”
Statistics
In 2016, Ghana recorded a total passenger throughput of 2,381,789. This was made up of 1,746,521 international arrival and departing passengers.
“This is ample evidence that the aviation sector has the potential to grow bigger and achieve our aviation hub goal. With the ongoing expansion at the KIA (Terminal 3 project), it is projected that the passenger throughput will increase from 2.3 million to 5 million in the next five years.
Tax removal
“Government early this year removed 17.5 VAT on the domestic air fares to make domestic travel affordable. As a result of this policy intervention, the domestic passenger throughput has increased significantly from 163,322 as at January 2016 to 201,851 as at May, 2017, representing 23.6 percent increase.”
Ghana as a hub
In the last few years, more international airlines have operated out of Ghana.
Also more African airlines have built their West and Central Africa operating hubs in Ghana.
Ghana now serves as a hub for South Africa Airways, Kenya Airways, Tap Portugal, Royal Air Maroc and Emirates, among others.
Invitation
The country’s authorities are inviting more airlines which want to use Accra.
This has availed opportunities for smaller airlines such as Air Burkinabe, Mali and Air Cote d’Ivoire in West Africa, which cannot create a hub in their country so they can now hook unto Ghana.
BY Samuel Boadi