All 12 member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have begun implementing the regional bloc\u2019s directive to abolish selected taxes and reduce charges and fees on air transport, a move expected to lower airfares, improve regional connectivity and stimulate trade and tourism.\n<\/p>\n
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The Director of Transport at ECOWAS, Chris Appiah, disclosed the development during the July edition of the AFRAA SkyConnect Dialogue, where he spoke alongside the Chief Executive Officer of ASKY Airlines, Esayas Halilu. The discussion focused on how the removal of aviation taxes could transform regional air travel and economic integration across West Africa.\n<\/p>\n
According to Appiah, ECOWAS introduced the policy after studies revealed that taxes, charges and fees accounted for as much as 60 to 65 percent of the cost of an average airline ticket in the region. The high costs, he said, had reduced passenger demand, weakened airline competitiveness and limited regional mobility.\n<\/p>\n
He explained that improving air transport is central to achieving deeper regional integration, making it easier for people, businesses and goods to move across West Africa.<\/p>\n
To address the challenge, ECOWAS Heads of State directed ministers responsible for transport, finance and foreign affairs to identify and eliminate the taxes and charges driving up travel costs. The resulting decision targets the removal of two taxes and a 25 percent reduction in four major aviation charges.\n<\/p>\n
Although member states were expected to begin implementation from January 1, 2026, Appiah noted that full compliance will take time because changes to national tax laws require legislative approval and consultations across multiple government agencies.\n<\/p>\n
He, however, confirmed that all 12 ECOWAS member states have already started the compliance process.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cC\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire has fully eliminated the targeted taxes, while Sierra Leone has removed the $50 airport security charge imposed on passengers travelling through Freetown. Other countries have also commenced national implementation processes,\u201d Appiah said.\n<\/p>\n
He added that some countries also need to renegotiate airport concession agreements before certain charges can be reduced or removed.<\/p>\n
For SMEs, cheaper and more accessible air travel could strengthen cross-border trade by reducing travel costs for exporters, importers and business owners seeking new markets across the region. Improved connectivity could also enhance access to regional value chains, business partnerships and investment opportunities.\n<\/p>\n
Halilu noted that while reducing taxes would help lower ticket prices, several structural issues continue to make aviation expensive across Africa. These include high jet fuel prices, costly airport infrastructure, expensive maintenance of ageing aircraft and airlines\u2019 dependence on foreign currency for aircraft leasing, spare parts and maintenance.\n<\/p>\n
He also highlighted the fragmented nature of Africa\u2019s aviation market, noting that only about 19 percent of intra-African routes are directly connected, limiting competition and increasing operating costs.\n<\/p>\n
Halilu called for faster implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), as well as stronger collaboration among African airlines through partnerships, alliances and joint ventures to improve efficiency, expand connectivity and reduce operating costs.\n<\/p>\n
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He stressed that reducing aviation taxes alone would not significantly lower airfares unless governments also address fuel costs, infrastructure charges and restrictions on market access.\n<\/p>\n
The ECOWAS initiative is expected to improve regional mobility, support tourism, strengthen trade and create a more competitive aviation sector capable of supporting economic growth across West Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"All 12 member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have begun implementing the regional…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":579420,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[178],"tags":[246487,79,159504,81054,8490,18,236,22857,18421,19,17,249,252,40167,238],"class_list":["post-579419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entrepreneurship","tag-bankit-microfinance-bank","tag-business","tag-business-grants","tag-digital-banking","tag-digital-payments","tag-eire","tag-entrepreneurship","tag-financial-inclusion","tag-fintech","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-msmes","tag-small-businesses","tag-smes","tag-startups"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116898123861537385","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=579419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/579420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=579419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=579419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=579419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}