Aviation's role in helping Africa become an economic superpower
As home to the world's youngest workforce, paired with evolving legislation and massive capacity for expansion of airline services, Africa has unprecedented potential for development, writes Thierry Antinori.
With the world's youngest and fastest growing workforce and rich natural resources, it is well documented that Africa has vast potential for socio economic development. Much has been said and written about how to unleash that potential, but the continent's people, business and political leaders have what it takes to turn Africa into an economic giant. A major reason for this is the continent's energetic, entrepreneurial spirit.
It is clear that work still needs to be done. Increasing productivity is essential to restoring Africa's economic vitality and promoting growth. The aviation sector is a perfect example of where the challenge – and potential – lies. While home to 18 per cent of the global population, Africa makes up just two per cent of global air traffic, and two per cent of international trade.
At the same time, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the world's major aircraft manufacturers, Boeing and Airbus, forecast that Africa is the only airline market that will grow significantly over the next 20 years.
As a major global airline, Qatar Airways is keenly aware of the potential Africa holds and is laser-focused on ensuring that aviation plays an important role in connecting Africa. The aviation sector would drive and promote Africa's social, economic and political integration and boost trade and tourism.
This has driven Qatar Airways to make investments and network expansions that support this goal. You only have to look at Qatar Airways' recent investment in Southern Africa's premier independent regional airline, Airlink; a new route to Kinshasa and its existing engagement in the development of Rwanda's aviation sector, to see that these words are backed by action. It's why, for example, Qatar
Airways has adjusted its services leading to its current Africa-wide summer capacity that averages over 44,000 seats per week, equating to a maximum of 180 flights a week to about 30 cities across the continent.
Moreover, Qatar Airways' passengers travelling between Cape Town and Doha will, as of 1st of June, be able to access Starlink's cutting-edge internet connectivity on-board select flights, allowing them to enjoy a fully complimentary and ultra-fast Wi-Fi service for streaming, gaming, and working seamlessly at 35,000 feet.
As Qatar Airways celebrates its 20th anniversary in South Africa, the continued focus on the schedule and improved passenger experience reflects its commitment to the country and continent. The airline's recent acquisition of a 25% stake in South Africa's regional airline, Airlink, underscores its confidence in Africa's tourism growth potential.
But it is not just route frequencies that are helping drive aviation's role in helping manifest Africa's potential. Legislation is also a factor. The Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) aims to harmonise Africa's airspace, improve air traffic management, and increase intra-African air connectivity.
So far, 34 African countries have signed up. The movement is promising and will be more effective once all African countries come onboard.
We will need the best people working in aviation if the projected tourism numbers are to be met. The total contribution of travel and tourism to Africa's GDP was USD191 billion in 2023 and is forecasted to rise by 4.4 per cent annually from 2024 to 2034. The impact of this on the continent's workforce cannot be overstated. It is projected that by 2034, travel and tourism would support 38,760,000 jobs (6.0% of total employment), an increase of 3.9% per annum since 2024, according to World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) research.
Qatar Airways' commitment to Africa has been underscored with a steady recruitment drive to bolster the nearly 8,500 full-time employees from across Africa that are currently working within the Qatar Airways Group, both in Doha and the outstations.
Qatar Airways' continuous strategy-aligned recruitment drive to help develop human capital across Africa accelerates the airline's growth in the region, which will continue to unlock hundreds of vacancies in fields such as cabin services, cargo and airport operations, customer services, engineering, flight operations as well as retail and hospitality services. This provides opportunities for exciting and fulfilling
careers for young Africans with the world's best and fastest growing airline and helps drive aviation's role as a driver of regional and global development.
This commitment has led to Qatar Airways being voted the most desirable company to work for in countries like Algeria, Morocco, Seychelles, Uganda and Zimbabwe, according to switchonbusiness.com.
With greater employment opportunities comes the associated economic benefits. The ratification of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a major component of the African Union's (AU) Agenda 2063, was drawn up to accelerate the continent's socio-economic growth.
The AU anticipates that Agenda 2063 will catalyse the integration of African regional markets, stimulating growth and supporting the welfare of its people. Underpinning that is the role of faster, easier, more economically viable trade networks, expediting the movement of people and goods.
The numbers speak for themselves. The WTTC estimates that international visitors will spend USD71.5 billion across Africa this year; an increase of USD11.2 billion from last year, and domestic visitors will spend USD101.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of 6.8 per cent. Leisure spending still outweighs business spending at 70.1 per cent. The momentum of the aviation sector's contribution in Africa's development must be maintained. As governments fully embrace the freedom of movement under an 'Open Skies' policy, liberalisation of Africa's airspace promises to spur trade and development and deliver improved connectivity within Africa and between the continent and rest of the world.
Aviation plays a central role in infrastructure development, economic growth and tourism, generating $6 in economic activity for every $1 spent. According to a 2020 study conducted by the Air Transport Action Group, airlines, airport operators, retailers and other aviation related businesses supported 7.7
million jobs across Africa and generated a $63 billion contribution to GDP. Business and its associated out-turns such as employment, always thrives where there is dependable, safe, and competitively priced air transport network.
Now more than ever before, it is important that we all work hand-in-hand to ensure that we unlock all of the potential and benefits that come with better connectivity in Africa. Commercial aviation stands ready and is in many ways already playing its part in helping ensure that Africa emerges as the global economic superpower it is capable of becoming.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mail & Guardian
17 hours ago
- Mail & Guardian
Labour department denies racial quotas in Employment Equity Amendment Act
Minister of Labour and Employment Nomakhosazana Meth. (File photo) The department of employment and labour has rejected claims by the Democratic Alliance (DA) that the In April, the DA But labour department spokesperson Pertunia Lessing, told the Mail & Guardian that the Act 'does not have quotas'. The DA, whose challenge will be heard in the coming weeks, says the new amendments will 'make employers self-implement sectoral racial quotas', which give employers the right to identify and record an employee's race if the employee chooses not to disclose it voluntarily. In a written reply to a DA question in parliament, Employment and Labour Minister Nomakhosazana Meth said the amendment was meant to ensure 'reliable, existing historical data'. This would mean that an employee would either need to disclose their family history, which is considered personal information, or have their race assumed. DA spokesperson on labour Michael Bagraim said Meth's 'generic' definitions of persons of colour cannot stand in a democratic South Africa. 'This is a preposterous suggestion and appears to expect employers to conduct race inspections to tick a box, in order to avoid being fined,' he said. According to the Employment Equity Act, 'black people' is a generic term that includes African, coloured and Indian people. This definition in the Act has not been amended since 1998. According to the 2025 amendments, employers with 50 or more workers are required to ask each worker to fill out a form to declare their occupational level in terms of race, gender and disability status information. If an employee refuses to fill out the form or gives incorrect details, the employer is allowed to use reliable past or current information to determine the person's race, gender or disability status. This process must be done at the workplace and is the employer's legal duty. The DA accused the minister of not conducting a formal investigation based on evidence to establish the 'South Africa continues to be one of the most unequal nations on Earth, with more than eight million South Africans unemployed and a small elite enriched, making the evidence against employment equity regulations undeniable,' Bagraim said. The Act as amended further sets hiring quotas for 18 economic sectors, from mining and transport to construction and agriculture, in a bid to increase employment opportunities for 'designated groups' including black people, women and people living with disabilities. The DA noted that South Africa no longer uses the Population Registration Act, an 'It cannot stand that employers become racial classification agents,' Bagraim said.
The Herald
21 hours ago
- The Herald
Mozambique minister optimistic about TotalEnergies resuming LNG project
Mozambique's energy minister said on Friday the government has not received a request from TotalEnergies to lift a force majeure declaration on its $20bn (R360.71bn) liquefied natural gas (LNG) project there, but he is optimistic about the oil major's plan to resume its development this summer. The force majeure will be lifted as soon as the project's operator determines conditions are in place to resume operations, minister of mineral resources and energy Estevao Pale told reporters in Tokyo after meeting with Japan's industry minister Muto Yoji. "We, as government, are doing everything that we can to be able to resume the project," Pale said. "We are working together with all partners on the project to create the security conditions favourable to restart the project," he said, adding that security conditions have improved considerably.
Mail & Guardian
a day ago
- Mail & Guardian
African tax awakening: Reclaiming our revenue, reclaiming our voice
The African Tax Administration Forum was created to stop Africa from bleeding money through illicit financial flows, loopholes and skewed tax treaties. Graphic: John McCann/M&G Fifteen years ago, as African governments struggled with rising development needs and shrinking fiscal space, we acknowledged an uncomfortable truth: Africa was bleeding revenue. Illicit financial flows, legal loopholes and tax treaties skewed against our interests were draining the continent. What we needed was a bold, continental response, technically capable, politically grounded and unapologetically African. That's why we created the African Tax Administration Forum (ATAF). What began in 2009 as a conversation in Pretoria about taxation, sovereignty and state-building soon evolved into a movement. I was then a group executive at the South African Revenue Service (Sars), part of a small team determined to build something that would outlast us. By the time the ATAF was formally launched in Uganda's capital Kampala, 25 countries had already signed up. Today, we are 44 strong. Our early structure mattered. The Executive Council brought together seasoned leaders like Mary Baine of Rwanda and Daniel Ablorh-Quarcoo of Ghana, professionals who had long understood the political economy of taxation in Africa. We weren't there to imitate international models. We were there to build something from within. Since our formation, we've helped member countries reform laws, build audit capacity and navigate international tax policy. ATAF-supported work with the Zambia Revenue Authority, for example, helped recover more than $64 million in tax from the mining sector between 2020 and 2022, money that funds schools, hospitals and infrastructure. In Uganda, we supported the audit of its vital coffee sector, recovering $79 million in reassessed taxes. Importantly, we have always taken an African-to-African approach. When Rwanda needed support on revenue forecasting, it was Sars that provided it. When Mauritius began implementing digital taxation, lessons were shared from across the continent. These peer-based interventions were not just about capacity, they were about building trust, building relationships and building a new tradition of collaboration. The ATAF was never just about numbers. It was about power. For decades, Africa was expected to receive decisions, not shape them. I've sat in too many rooms where our voices were noted but not counted. The ATAF changed that. We made our presence felt in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Inclusive Framework on Base Erosion and Profit Sharing, or Beps. We stood behind the call for a UN tax convention. And while we didn't always get the deal we deserved, we were no longer on the margins. We were in the room and we stayed there. Along the way, we built infrastructure: the ATAF Tax Academy, a research network focused on African data, and the Women in Tax Network that centres equity in policy conversations. These weren't symbolic add-ons, they were designed to shift power from outside actors to African experts. Today, the challenges have evolved. Digitalisation, climate finance, AI and regional integration bring new tax implications. The ATAF is responding by developing a tax technology innovation hub — our way of future-proofing the fiscal sovereignty of our member states. Our work with the AU and the African Development Bank is expanding and we are gearing up to offer a new generation of tools and strategies that meet the moment. We also understand the geopolitical context. The return of trade tariffs, the rise of economic nationalism and shifts in multilateralism all affect Africa's fiscal future. These trends might not speak the language of tax, but they are tax, hidden in pricing structures, supply chains and new power blocs. That's why the ATAF's role is more relevant than ever. As South Africa prepares to host the G20, the world's attention will briefly turn to Africa. This is our chance not just to be visible but to be consequential. The ATAF stands ready to provide technical depth, policy direction and a platform for a united African voice. For me, this journey has been about African success, African belief and building a good African institution. I've seen what's possible when African countries work together with courage, competence and clarity. To the next generation of African tax leaders I want to say this: 'You belong in the room. Be bold. Be prepared. Build coalitions. Ask hard questions. And, above all, keep our agenda centred on justice, dignity and sovereignty and work hard to obtain results.' The ATAF proves that African collaboration isn't just possible, it's powerful. We will tax, we will govern and we will build on our own terms. This is the African tax awakening. And it has only just begun. Logan Wort is the executive secretary of the African Tax Administration Forum.
