Air transportation liberalisation across Africa has been shaped by the following 4 events:

1998 – The Yamoussoukro Declaration

1999 – The Yamoussoukro Decision which was endorsed by 44 African Heads of State and Government in July 2000 and was entered into force in 2001.

2015 – The Declaration on the establishment of a Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) and the Solemn Commitment towards advancing concrete and unconditional implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision which was adopted by 11 African Member States.

2018 – The official launch and commitment of 23 States to implement the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) at the African Union Summit.

The objectives of the Yamoussoukro Decision were to:

Integrate – traffic rights, tariffs, and overall management of African airlines within 8 years.

Define – a common African position regarding the reservation system and all new decisions on noise standards.

Establish – an African aircraft financing and leasing company to facilitate the procurement of aeronautical equipment.

In 1999, to accelerate the implementation of the Yamoussoukro Declaration, the Yamoussoukro Decision, which outlines different levels of air transport development in Africa, was established. The YD covers the need to adopt transitional provisions in order to achieve full liberalisation including centralisation, harmonisation, and coordination of air transport in Africa.

During the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the OAU/AU in 2013 while elaborating on the African Union (AU) Agenda 2063, the African Union (AU) leadership advocated for more ambitious undertakings to advance the continent’s socio-economic development and integration. To support this development, the Single African Air Transport Market was announced as one of the flagship projects due to its potential to increase socio-economic integration and the standard of living for all Africans. In 2015 a “Solemn Commitment” was declared by AU Member States towards the Implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision and the establishment of SAATM.

The Decision emphasised the need for Member States to abolish any provisions in their Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASAs) for intra-African air services that were contrary to the provisions of the Yamoussoukro Decision with the expectation that the intra-African market should operate without the need for bilateral air service agreements between Member States when the SAATM becomes fully operational.

Since the launch of the SAATM in 2018, under the leadership of AFCAC acting as the Executing Agency, all the key activities mentioned in the AU Decision (and more) are being addressed in collaboration with industry stakeholders.