MEDIA ADVISORY

The Fourth Meeting of the Ministerial Working Group on the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM)

INVITATION TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA

What: The Fourth Meeting of the Ministerial Working Group on the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM).
When: Monday, 28th May 2018 from 9:00 a.m..
Where: Hôtel 2 Février Lomé, Togo.

Who: Department of Infrastructure and Energy at African Union Commission (AUC) in collaboration with the Togolese Republic.

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Objective: The objectives of the meeting are the following:
1. Harmonization of Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs) among the members of the Single African Air Transport Market;
2. Review of implementation of the prioritized Action Plan for the operation of the SAATM;
3. Adoption and signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the operationalization of SAATM;
4. Dissemination and capacity building on the Yamoussoukro Decision Regulatory Texts; and
5. The election of the next Bureau of the Ministerial Working Group.

Background:
The Ministerial Working Group is composed of African Member States that have signed the Solemn Commitment and it is responsible for three main functions:
(i) following up implementation progress on the establishment of the single market;
(ii) provide guidance; and
(iii) spearhead an advocacy campaign to urge the rest of the Member States to join the single market.
In particular, each Minister of the Working Group has responsibility to enable a conducive environment for the full implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision in their respective countries. This includes raising awareness within their State among other Ministers and facilitating the establishment of the Single Market.

The Working Group is open to those States that may wish to join the single market later. The Ministerial Working Group is technically supported by Experts from the air transport sector from their respective countries, the AUC, AFCAC and RECs as well as other key stakeholders, who are responsible for the preparation of its meetings. The Group has since adopted its Rules of Procedure and has developed a Roadmap of specific activities for both the implementation of the Yamoussoukro Decision and the establishment of the Single Market and the establishment of the Dispute Settlement Mechanism.

The current Member States that have subscribed to the solemn commitment are: Benin, Burkina Faso, Botswana, Capo Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Togo and Zimbabwe.

Media representatives in Togo are invited to take part and cover the Ministerial Working Group Meeting.

For any interview requests please contact:
Mr. Gamal Ahmed A. Karrar| Directorate of Information and Communication| Email: gamalk@africa-union.org|