African Aviation Outlook Positive Despite Policy Flaws, Says Vivajets

Vivajets, a prominent business aviation company, expresses significant optimism regarding the future of the African aviation industry, despite acknowledging persistent policy flaws that impede its full potential. Chukwuerika Achum, Vivajets' Chief Executive Officer, conveyed this outlook at the Africa Financial Summit (AFIS 2025) in Morocco. Achum highlighted notable advancements in technology and regional cooperation within African aviation, asserting that sustainable progress hinges on policy harmonization, financial trust, and robust regional collaboration.

Achum detailed several structural flaws currently plaguing regional aviation across the continent. These include complex regulations, restrictive visa requirements for airline crews—citing the example of Nigerian crews still needing visas for some African countries like Morocco, despite International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annex 9 provisions for facilitation. Furthermore, low trust among African businesses, high insurance premiums, and inconsistent regulatory processes, such as protracted 72-hour landing permit requirements without clear criteria, consistently delay operations and incur avoidable costs for operators.

These systemic issues significantly slow down the sector's activities and inflate operational expenses. Achum pointed out the disparity in credit terms, where African vendors often demand upfront cash, unlike the 30-day credit terms extended to European operators. He emphasized the urgent need for unified aviation reform, advocating for a strategic partnership between African governments, regulators, and financial institutions. This collaboration is essential to standardize aviation regulations and permit processes, enforce ICAO Annex 9 to ease crew movement, build stronger local insurance capacity, establish better credit and trust systems for African operators, and simplify cross-border payments and currency exchange. Africa's aviation industry possesses the resources and passion for connectivity, requiring only trust, coordination, and the courage for reform to truly flourish.