ICAO - International Civil Aviation Organization

ICAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations and was created in 1944 to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world.

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a UN specialized agency, established by States in 1944 to manage the administration and governance of the Convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention).

ICAO works with the Convention’s 192 Member States and industry groups to reach consensus on international civil aviation Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) and policies in support of a safe, efficient, secure, economically sustainable and environmentally responsible civil aviation sector. These SARPs and policies are used by ICAO Member States to ensure that their local civil aviation operations and regulations conform to global norms, which in turn permits more than 100,000 daily flights in aviation’s global network to operate safely and reliably in every region of the world.

In addition to its core work resolving consensus-driven international SARPs and policies among its Member States and industry, and among many other priorities and programmes, ICAO also coordinates assistance and capacity building for States in support of numerous aviation development objectives; produces global plans to coordinate multilateral strategic progress for safety and air navigation; monitors and reports on numerous air transport sector performance metrics; and audits States’ civil aviation oversight capabilities in the areas of safety and security.

It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency, capacity and environmental protection, amongst many other priorities. The Organization serves as the forum for cooperation in all fields of civil aviation among its 191 Member States.

AFCAC coordinates civil aviation matters in Africa and cooperates with ICAO and all other relevant organization and other bodies which are involved in the promotion and development of civil aviation in Africa.
AFCAC has put in place mechanisms to foster the implementation of ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) for the safety, security, environmental protection and regularity of the aviation sector.
AFCAC and ICAO Regional Offices conduct their respective missions in Africa in close cooperation. ICAO Regional Offices provides technical guidance and support to AFCAC and the latter supplement ICAO in developing and coordinating regional initiatives in safety and security for its member States.
In addressing the international community’s concerns and doubts regarding the ability and capability of Africa to improve the level of Effective Implementation (EIs) of ICAO SARPs, AFCAC needs ICAO’s technical assistance.
The adoption of Abuja Declaration on aviation safety by the African Union Conference of African Ministers of Transport in April 2010 illustrates the importance of the cooperation between AFCAC and ICAO that led to the establishment of the Roadmap on Aviation Security (AVSEC) in Africa.
AFCAC and ICAO succeeded to ensure the political will and support, at the highest level of Government, in setting and implementing the Abuja Safety Targets.
Cooperation between AFCAC ICAO is paramount for the implementation of the Africa and Indian Ocean – Cooperative Inspectorate Scheme (AFI-CIS) Programme, the Human Resource Development Fund and Training Programmes established to assist the AFCAC member States in improving their safety oversight capacities.