The pilot phase of the MUTAA ( Unique Market for African Air Transport) project was launched on Monday 14 November in Dakar, Senegal, in the presence of some fifteen African transport and aviation ministers.
Gradually, the MUTAA is becoming effective. Meeting in Dakar last Monday for the 23rd anniversary of the Yamoussoukro decision, 15 African countries took part in the launch of the MUTAA pilot implementation project. The first flagship project of the African Union (AU) Agenda 2023, MUTAA was initiated to liberalise access to the African aviation market. The first flagship project of the African Union (AU) Agenda 2023, MUTAA was initiated to liberalise access to the African aviation market.
Affoh Atcha-Dedji, Togo’s Minister of Transport, who attended the meeting in Senegal, called on other African countries to sign up to the program. “The President of the Republic of Togo, H.E. Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, as MUTAA’s Champion Chairman, is committed to ensuring the realisation of a fully integrated air transport market in Africa and has consistently advocated for all Member States to join and implement MUTAA. Our continent has a bright future in air transport. Therefore, like the fingers of one hand, we must join hands to see this continent flourish and to facilitate connectivity between our major cities,” he said.
Furthermore, “The celebration of the 23rd anniversary of the DY therefore provides an opportunity for us, as Ministers of Transport/Aviation, to commit to the continental benefits of the full implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision and MUTAA, as presented in the AU-commissioned continental study, in order to contribute to the success of the AU’s Agenda 2063 and to the socio-economic development of our respective States and the continent,” he continued.
Launched in 2018 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during an Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the project has so far only registered the unconditional adhesion of 35 countries on the continent. Moreover, of these, only 23 have signed the Memorandum of Implementation of the Common Market.
According to information published by the news website Wakatsera, a continental study cited by cAfrica reveals that the implementation of the single market will generate more than $4.2 billion in additional global gross domestic product (GDP) for African countries. It will also create 596,000 new jobs and lead to a 27% reduction in air fares. Finally, the implementation of the Mutaa will contribute to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs).
