The African Union's Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) project has gained momentum with 39 African countries joining the project so far, outgoing African Union (AU) Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Amani Abou-Zeid said on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference on the sidelines of the AU Summit, she said the SAATM was becoming the backbone of Africa in terms of facilitating the African Continental Free Trade Area and the mobility of people.
"I am happy to say that today we have 39 African countries that have joined a single African air transport market, representing about one billion Africans. The market aims to reduce the cost and waiting time of travellers by almost 20 percent," Abou-Zeid said.
The SAATM is one of the AU's flagship projects to create a single market for air transport in Africa. Once fully operational, the Single Market is expected to provide significant freedom of air transport in Africa, thereby advancing the AU's Agenda 2063. She said the 38th Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Assembly of Heads of State and Government endorsed the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) from renewable sources. SAF is expected to help reduce gas emissions by between 60 and 100 percent compared to normal jet fuels.
According to the outgoing commissioner, the AU continues to drive transformative initiatives in the energy sector, reinforcing Africa's commitment to energy security, market integration and sustainability.
"To position Africa as a leader in the emerging green hydrogen market, the AU has developed a Green Hydrogen Strategy and Action Plan, outlining policy and technical priorities for establishing a competitive green hydrogen sector," she said.
According to Abou-Zeid, the plan supports energy security, intra-African trade, and global exports, with a strong focus on decarbonising industries such as transport, manufacturing and agriculture.
