Ghana to become the aviation hub of West Africa – MP

Ghana is expected to become the aviation hub of West Africa, Daniel Okyem Aboagye, Member of Parliament for Bantama, has said.

This follows the passage of the Accident Investigation & Prevention Bill.

Speaking on the floor of parliament on Thursday July 23, Mr Okyem Aboagye said : “As we speak it exists except that it is an administrative unit within the Ministry of aviation so trying to make it an independent autonomous body is basically improving what we already have.

“I believe that even the fact even though we are going through Covid and effects this is the right opportunity for us to be able to work on this bill and I encourage the rest of my colleagues to support it because I belie this will help us to achieve the vision of making Ghana the aviation bub of West Africa.

Last week, Aviation Minister, Joseph Kofi Kowe Addah revealed that cabinet has approved Accident Investigation and Prevention Bill, 2020 which will help ensure safety in air travel.

Speaking at the inauguration of the National Aviation Safety Coordination Group, (NASCG), the Minister of Aviation, Joseph Kofi Addah, said the Act will improve transport safety and increase the public’s confidence in Ghana’s aviation sector.

“I am happy to announce that the Ministry has received approval from cabinet for the establishment of an Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau.

“Accordingly, the Ministry is working with the Attorney General and Ministry of Justice to prepare the Bill which has been laid in Parliament for consideration and passage.

“We are going to have a committee meeting under a certificate of urgency to see if we can pass this within the two weeks because considering the importance of this Bill and the way Ghana has performed globally, it is important we pass this Bill this year,” he said.

For his part a Deputy Director-General of the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), Charles Krakue, expressed the need for more collaboration with other stakeholders to ensure a safe air space.

“A framework which will allow GCAA and the identified State agencies in attendance here to interact more effectively in the resolution of safety concerns, I am pleased to announce that the SSP will combine prescriptive and performance-based approaches to safety rulemaking, safety policy development and safety oversight in our industry,” he stated.