Lome - Togo — Directors General of civil aviation, airports, air navigation services providers and airlines have called on the ECOWAS Commission to work with various stakeholders to enforce best practices and ensure safety in the West African aviation sector.

At the end of their 2nd meeting 17-19 May 2011, at the ECOWAS Secretariat in Lome, Togo, the Directors General also recommended that the menace of bird strikes and wild fires should be curbed. The called for regular meetings of Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs) while necessary efforts should be made to reduce delays in the operations of airlines in member states. Member states and Airport operators were also urged to reduce taxes and charges so as to bring down the operational costs of airlines and stimulate traffic in the ECOWAS region.

A Bureau chaired by Mr. K.S Dobou highlighted five priority areas - Institutional and Regulatory Framework of Air Transports; Construction and Management of Airports; Coordination between the Air Navigation Services Providers in ECOWAS space; Creation of Regional Airline(s), Facilitation of Operations and Cooperation among Airlines from ECOWAS space and Review and update of 2009 Action Plan. The meeting was attended by representatives of ECOWAS Member States, Airlines, Airport authorities, Air Navigation Service Providers and other aviation operators.

The opening session was addressed by Togolese Minister of Transport Mr. Ninsao Gnofam and the Director General of the National Civil Aviation Agency for Togo (ANAC), Colonel Latta G. Dokissime. The Commissioner for Infrastructure at the ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Celestin Talaki, represented the President of the Commission H.E. James Victor Gbeho .