The grandiose city of Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, was the scene of a major event which marked the aviation sector in West Africa in recent days. Indeed, on Monday June 3, 2024, a training session of crucial importance opened on the surveillance of air operators, under the aegis of Natasha Bolombo Emmanuella, Deputy Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority (AAC) .
This initiative is part of a dynamic aimed at strengthening the capacities of regional aviation safety agencies and the main players in air transport in West Africa. The main objective of this training is to contribute to maintaining and strengthening the skills of the various stakeholders in the aeronautical sector in the Central and West regions of Africa.
During her opening speech, Natasha Bolombo Emmanuella highlighted the importance of this initiative for improving the supervision of regional aviation safety agencies and key air transport stakeholders. She also encouraged all participants to take full advantage of this additional and in-depth training opportunity offered to them.
This training session, which brought together representatives from 7 African countries in addition to AAC agents, is the result of the project to support the air transport sector in Central and West Africa, implemented by the Air Transport Project. technical assistance for civil aviation safety (PASTA-CO). This project, benefiting from financial support from the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) and the Development Bank of Central African States (BDEAC), aims to optimize security of civil aviation and the efficiency of air navigation in the unified airspace of the Central and West African sub-region, thus promoting trade and regional socio-economic integration.
Alongside this training, the AAC – DRC also launched a training workshop in partnership with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), focused on the implementation of AIMRBIS quality management, bringing together experts from the Directorate of Air Navigation Safety, RVA and METTELSAT.
In conclusion, this training on the surveillance of air operators in West Africa, orchestrated in Kinshasa, constitutes a crucial step forward for the aeronautical sector in the region. It demonstrates the commitment of local and international actors to strengthening safety and efficiency in the field of civil aviation, thus contributing to the socio-economic development of this part of the African continent..
In this context, cooperation and pooling of efforts prove essential to guarantee the safety of air operations and promote the emergence of a promising common sky for all the countries concerned.