Authorities of Ghana’s aviation industry have been advised to develop a comprehensive strategic policy to drive the industry rather than the politically ad-hoc measures normally implemented.
Aviation Analyst, Sean Mendis says Ghana must position itself to benefit from the robust growth of air traffic which is projected to exceed 3 million in 2024.
He tells The High Street Journal that the country risks the advantage of the booming air traffic which can undermine the development of the industry if a strategic and sustainable aviation policy is not developed and implemented.
Sean Mendis has observed that most of the aviation policies implemented by successive governments are politically-driven which does not ensure the long-term benefit of the industry. He cited the latest charter of flights, attempts to set up a national airline, and the huge subsidies as examples to justify the politically motivated attempts by successive governments.
In his views, the government should rather be preoccupied with policies that will create an enabling environment for the industry players to flourish.
Mendis therefore emphasized that that there is a need for a clear long-term strategic plan that will cater to issues such as infrastructure development and management and also the growth of the sector.
“Ghana’s air traffic market continues to grow strongly and is poised to once again exceed 3 million passengers in 2024 and possibly set a new all-time record. It is important for there to be a clear policy on how the infrastructure to handle this growth will be managed rather than an ad-hoc politics-driven approach that has unfortunately been the trend by both political parties in the past,” the former Chief Operations Officer (COO) of African World Airlines told The High Street Journal.
He added that “The government’s role should be to create an enabling environment for its constituents, rather than to get into micromanaging the operations of the aviation sector through chartering flights at a huge loss/subsidy, trying to set up national airlines, etc.”
Critics of excessive political interventions in state-owned enterprises have observed that these interferences often result in financial losses, inefficiencies, and diverting resources from critical infrastructure development. Sean Mendis suggests that a more market-driven approach would allow private operators to thrive while enabling the government to focus on policy frameworks and regulatory oversight.
