Maputo — Addis Ababa, 29 Apr (AIM) - Mozambican President Daniel Chapo says that his government is determined to transform civil aviation into a strategic sector to support the diversification of sources of growth in the economy.
According to Chapo, who was speaking to reporters on Tuesday, summarizing his three-day working visit to Ethiopia, one of the sectors that the government has been concentrating on for the diversification of the economy is tourism.
"For tourism development, air connectivity is extremely important', he said, responding to a question posed by AIM, following concerns raised by the chairperson of the Ethiopian Airlines Group, Mesfin Tasew, regarding the lack of incentives for the company to expand the number of flights and destinations in Mozambique.
Tasew pointed out three main constraints: the transfer of foreign currency (particularly US dollars) to Ethiopia, high taxes, and double taxation.
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Regarding the export of foreign currency, Chapo stated that this was a matter already known to the Mozambican authorities and assured that, after interactions with the financial sector, it became clear that the issue would be solved. "We believe this issue will be overcome at any moment', Chapo said.
As for the allegedly high airport taxes, the President guaranteed that the Mozambican Civil Aviation Institute (IACM) is at an advanced stage of an in-depth study to understand the basis of the complaint, taking into account regional and international realities.
"The objective is not only to solve Ethiopia's concern, but also that of all airlines that fly to Mozambique. Regarding the alleged double taxation, we need details', he said.
To that end, he explained, institutions linked to the civil aviation and tax sectors are forming a joint team that will work with their Ethiopian counterparts to discuss the matter.
Despite the identified constraints, Chapo expressed confidence in strengthening the Ethiopian company's operations in the country.
"I want to assure you that despite these three concerns, Ethiopia has taken immediate decisions, such as increasing flights to Beira from five weekly flights to seven, as they have verified that Beira is a promising market', he said.
He added that the authorities also presented a proposal for the company to start operating flights to the northern port city of Nacala.
"It was agreed that if all goes well, the company will start flying to Nacala on 1 July,' Chapo said.
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Currently, Ethiopian Airlines operates seven flights a week between Maputo and Addis Ababa.
In the past, the company also provided domestic connections within Mozambique.
