Advocacy has a long way to go before Africa-based business-jet operators gain the required acceptance, an official told Aviation Africa 2015 in Dubai last month.

“The view that most governments have throughout Africa is that private aviation is for rich people,” said Tarek Ragheb, founding chairman of the African Business Aviation Association (AfBAA). “Unfortunately, some parts of Africa, especially my own country, Egypt, view it as the devil’s tool, associated with fat cats and businessmen.”

AfBAA is working with the African Union and the African Civil Aviation Commission to broaden acceptance of the sector. “There is still a lot of work to be done so that member states understand that [nongovernmental organizations] are there to help. We don’t have an axe to grind.”

One of the main obstacles facing business aviation is managing public perception of the industry. “There is always an ‘us against them’ philosophy in developing economies,” said Achuzie Ezenagu, CEO of Toucan Aviation, which provides charter services to Nigeria’s oil-and-gas industry.

Across the continent, he said, more needs to be done to explain bizav’s benefits. He said regulators are often ex-pilots who understand business aviation in general terms, but the industry nonetheless faces the constant threat of higher levies and taxes. Representatives, he said, need to drive home the point that “the growth of general aviation actually goes hand-in-hand with your GDP and your economy.”

“When you have a jet worth $50 million sitting on the ramp, it means someone worth at least $1 billion is doing business, [promoting] jobs and GDP growth,” said Nuno Pereira, managing director of Bestfly Flight Support in Angola. “One person can affect a million people.”

Ragheb said business aviation is “the nuts and bolts of an engine that drives growth in any economy. That is especially true in Africa where alternatives do not exist for us.”

Finance–in particular the ability to obtain credit–represents another challenge for business aviation in the region. AfBAA is working to bring banks and governments together to drive the industry forward. “Every African businessman or woman knows how hard it is to finance aircraft through traditional banking channels,” he said.

He also drew attention to the ‘Northern Corridor Initiative,’ which links landlocked countries Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan and Burundi to Kenya’s Maritime Port of Mombasa. The corridor also serves the Democratic Republic of Congo and Northern Tanzania.

“What is most exciting for us is that within that framework, Rwanda is spearheading airspace management, which could prove to be a useful tool for business aviation in particular and commercial aviation in general,” he said.

The third AfBAA Regional Symposium takes place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on September 24 and 25.

Business Aviation in Africa

At last month’s Aviation Africa 2015, Tarek Ragheb, founding chairman of the African Business Aviation Association (AfBAA), provided an update on the continent’s bizav fleet. As of the end of last year, there were 1,336 aircraft in the business aviation fleet (507 business jets and 829 turboprops). South Africa has the largest fleet (172), followed by Nigeria (80) and Egypt (42).

“Two-thirds of the business-jet fleet based in Africa is operated within Africa, with an additional 20 percent flying to the Middle East,” said Ragheb, who also noted that African operators have recorded annual growth of 8.2 percent in turbine-powered airplane operations.