Chairman of the Board of Airline Representatives-Ghana (BAR-Gh), Mr. Jonas Sowah Quaye, has observed that high cost of operating at the Kotoka International Airport (K.I.A) is affecting business activities in the aviation industry.
The charges include high airport tax regime and high fuel cost.
Parliament last year passed the Airport Tax Amendment Bill 2009 to increase the Airport Tax from US$50 to US$75.
This increase, according to some industry players, has made Ghana one of the most expensive destinations in the sub-region to visit.
Mr. Quaye, who made these disclosure at a conference in Accra, said: “As airlines try to survive, the service providers such as travel and top operators in the country strive to decrease their cost and improve their margins, institutions go back and forth without any workable policy to support the industry and passengers make their purchase decisions with little product and service information.”
He explained that the airport is faced with system-challenges, including amenities and infrastructure to manage cargo and passenger handling.
He therefore called for a tripartite approach among industry players to act in consonance in order to address the current challenges.
“Linkages must be created among operators, information gathered must be shared among them and they must be the ultimate sources of policy framework formation to guide the industry in the country.
“We are confident that the combined effect of these actions will make Kotoka International Airport (KIA) the most attractive airport in West Africa and the increased number of passengers, tourists and kilos of cargo will certainly generate more revenue and provide more employment opportunities for our country.”
He also indicated that effort will be made to provide airstrips in various regional capitals to facilitate the operations of light aircraft requirements, including charter operations. This will ably support the oil discovery.
More than 70 percent of the international tourists enter the country by air, with tourism emerging as the fastest-growing sector of the economy.
Approximately 50 percent of the value of total export is shipped through the Kotoka International Airport (KIA), hence the role of air transport cannot be over-emphasised.
The country’s aviation industry stands out as one of the fastest-growing and most competitive in the West African sub-region. The number of cargo and scheduled carriers flying in and out of the country has almost doubled from 15 in 2000 to about 30 and increasing, with interest being shown by other foreign carriers.
Passenger rate has also improved from 900,000 in 2007 to over 1.29 million as at the end of 2009. The number of scheduled airlines operating to Ghana has also increased, from 13 in the 1990s to 28 in recent years. Encouragingly, some of the airlines already operating into Ghana are requesting for increased frequencies.
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