MARGARET CHIDERA
Stakeholders in the aviation sector have been called to work towards resetting the African aviation industry, with a view to harnessing the benefits of sustainable energy and technology-driven operations.
In his opening remark at the fourth Aviators Africa Conference and Tower Awards, held at the Protea Hotel by Marriott Johannesburg Wanderers in South Africa, the Founder and CEO of Aviators Africa Conference and Tower Awards, Toni Ukachukwu, said the conference’s core mandate was to carve a niche and continue to pioneer sustainability initiatives in the African aviation eco-system whilst connecting it with tourism.
“I would like to welcome everyone to the 4th Aviators Africa Conference with the theme: ‘Sustainability in African Aviation’. This year saw us being true to our objective as a pan-African organisation, by bringing the event to South Africa, having hosted it in Nigeria for three straight years.” Mr Ukachukwu said.
“We intend to look at sustainability in the broader sense of the word, covering diverse areas with inclusivity from the stakeholders and academia to explore not only aviation but its allied industries for more sustainability development of Africa.” He added.
The conference, which held under the theme: “Sustainability in African Aviation”, featured three engaging and brainstorming panel sessions, all of which x-rayed the various challenges bedevilling the aviation and tourism industry in Africa, as well as recommend possible recovery paths.
Day two of the conference began with an expository keynote address by Aaron Munesti, the Chief Executive Officer of the Airlines Association of Southern Africa (AASA), which highlighted the imperative and the urgency of resetting the African aviation industry post the COVID-19 pandemic, rather than restarting it.
The international conference was attended by delegates and airline executives from across the world, and provided the excellent business-to-business (B2B), opportunities for aviation and tourism players to network on a global platform for sustainable business impacts.
