African airlines cannot thrive under fragmented markets, policies

Africa’s airlines face rising demand but are held back by high costs, thin profits and restrictive policies.

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The story of Africa’s air transport sector remains one of the great paradoxes of our time. A continent that hosts 18 percent of the world’s population accounts for barely 3 percent of global air passenger traffic.

Even more telling, three quarters of international passenger traffic into Africa is carried not by African airlines but by foreign carriers. This imbalance is not simply a market curiosity but a sign of deeper structural challenges.