Launch will spur opportunities to promote trade and create jobs

The African Union is set to launch the first AU Agenda 2063 flagship project, the Single African Air Transport Market, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The announcement was made at the ongoing AU Summit.

The AU has been playing a key coordinating role in the establishment of market, abbreviated as SAATM, and advocacy to AU member states who have not yet made a commitment to do so, said te AU commissioner for infrastructure and energy, Amani Abou-Zeid, in a statement released by the pan-African bloc on Monday.

ADDITIONAL JOBS

The launch of SAATM, expected on January 28, will spur opportunities to promote trade and cross-border investments in the production and service industries including tourism, resulting in the creation of an additional 300,000 direct and two million indirect jobs, said the commissioner.

Abou-Zeid said the launch of SAATM would contribute immensely to the integration and socio-economic growth of the continent.

The aviation industry currently supports eight million jobs in Africa and SAATM was created with the aim of enhancing connectivity, facilitating trade and tourism, and creating employment.

It is also aimed at ensuring the industry plays a more prominent role in the global economy and significantly contributes to the AU's Agenda 2063, according to Abou-Zeid.

As the first of the AU's 12 Agenda 2063 flagship projects to be launched, the implementation of SAATM will pave the way for other flagship projects such as the African passport, enabling the free movement of people, and the Continental Free Trade Area, said the commissioner.

The summit will also see the adoption of the regulatory text of the Yamoussoukro Decision, the competition and consumer protection regulations safeguarding efficient running of the market.