The International Air Transport Association (IATA) and The Arab Civil Aviation Organization (ACAO) have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will focus on advancing the Middle East and North Africa’s aviation market.
Muhammad Albakri, IATA’s Regional Vice-President for Africa and the Middle East, said: “Aviation and related-tourism already support some 2.4 million jobs and contribute $130bn to the MENA region’s GDP. With passenger demand expected to double by 2037, these benefits could reach 4.3 million jobs and $345bn, respectively.
“But aviation’s ability to deliver this growth is dependent on enhancing already high safety levels, achieving a harmonized regulatory environment and improvements to infrastructure and capacity-building. And we must accomplish this while ensuring environmental sustainability. Strong partnerships with governments will be key. This MoU will strengthen IATA’s historic and strategic relationship with ACAO”.
As per the agreement, the two parties will exchange information and expertise across various aspects of aviation. This includes safety and flight operations, regulatory harmonisation, environment, treaties and ICAO standards, the value of aviation and future trends in air transport, as well as infrastructure, capacity building and training.
Commenting on the agreement, Abdennebi Manar, director general of ACAO, said: “ACAO aims to strengthen cooperation and coordination among Arab countries in the field of civil aviation. The MoU with IATA will strengthen the cooperation between states and the aviation industry, a key partnership for the advancement of civil aviation and the promotion of universal standards. Twenty-one countries across the Arab world will benefit from this important step taken with IATA”.