ECOWAS‘S INFRASTRUCTURE: A REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE There is also a growing presence in the subregion of major carriers from East Africa. It is noticeable that Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways are taking over some of the routes discontinued after the collapse of Air Afrique and Ghana Airways; as a result, east-west traffic is slowly growing. For example, Ethiopian Airlines‘ share of the ECOWAS air transport market doubled from 3.4 percent in 2004 to 7.0 percent in 2007. Over the same period, Kenya Airways went from holding 0.2 percent of the market to 5.1 percent.

By contrast, European carriers have largely disappeared. Whereas Air France and SN Brussels together accounted for 12.1 percent of the ECOWAS market in 2001, this share had dwindled to no more than 0.5 percent by 2007. Two reasons may account for the change. As noted, WAEMU and BAG are the most liberalized air zones in Africa, in terms of the Yamoussoukro Declaration. Yamoussoukro, however, applies only to Africa carriers, and to traffic within Africa. This could be giving African carriers the edge. Additionally, the market in ECOWAS is just too thin to entice many European carriers.

**Table 2.11  Frequency and velocity of services**

||No. of flights per<br>week|Average<br>velocity of<br>trips<br>(kms/hour)|
|---|---|---|
||Direct<br>All||
|Benin|22<br>28|450|
|Burkina Faso|22<br>32|361|
|Cape Verde|8<br>9|444|
|Côte d'Ivoire|70<br>88|463|
|Gambia, The|18<br>27|430|
|Ghana|91<br>92|454|
|Guinea|17<br>24|425|
|Guinea-Bissau|9<br>9|360|
|Liberia|20<br>31|431|
|Mali|38<br>38|566|
|Niger|8<br>10|487|
|Nigeria|55<br>65|415|
|Senegal|59<br>80|496|
|Sierra Leone|18<br>25|549|
|Togo|17<br>28|346|
|Source: Derived fr|om Bofinger 2009.||

**Table 2.12  Grading of the level of the implementation of the Yamoussoukro Declaration**

|**Community**|**General status of YD implementation**|**Status of air services liberalization**|**Overall**<br>**implemen-**<br>**tation score**|
|---|---|---|---|
|Arab Maghreb Union|No implementation.|No liberalization within the AMU has been<br>initiated, but the need is recognized.|1|
|Banjul Accord Group<br>(West Africa)|Principles of the YD agreed upon in a<br>multilateral air services agreement.|Up to fifth freedom granted, tariffs are free,<br>and capacity/frequency is open.|4|
|Economic and<br>Monetary Community<br>of Central Africa.|Principles of the YD agreed upon in an air<br>transport program. Some minor restrictions<br>remain.|Up to fifth freedom granted, tariffs are free,<br>and capacity/frequency is open. A maximum<br>of two carriers per state may take part.|5|
|Common Market for<br>Eastern and<br>Southern Africa|Full liberalization agreed upon (―legal Notice No.<br>2‖), but application and implementation remain<br>pending until a joint competition authority is<br>established.|Pending. Operators will be able to serve any<br>destination (all freedoms), and tariffs and<br>capacity/frequency will be open.|3|
|East African<br>Community|The EAC council issued a directive to amend<br>bilateral agreements among the EAC states to<br>conform with the YD.|Air services are not liberalized, as the<br>amendment of bilateral agreements is<br>pending.|3|
|Southern African<br>Development<br>Community|No steps taken toward implementation, although<br>the civil aviation policy includes gradual<br>liberalization of air services within SADC.|No liberalization has been initiated.|2|
|West African<br>Economic and<br>Monetary Union|The YD is fully implemented.|All freedoms, including cabotage, granted.<br>Tariffs have been liberalized.|5|

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