Twelve countries, including South Africa, signed up for the creation of a single air-transport market on the continent within two years at the African Union (AU) Summit in Sandton this week. The African Union Commission (AUC) is now calling for more AU member states to sign up for the project which officials say could lead to fewer restrictions on routes and cheaper fares for passengers across the continent. Speaking to SANews. gov.za on the sidelines of the 25th AU Summit, AUC Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Dr Elham Ibrahim, said the countries that had agreed in principle to the project were South Africa, Zimbabwe, Congo, Benin, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Egypt, Rwanda, Kenya, Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire. Ibrahim said at the moment there were instances when passengers from Africa had to fly to Europe in order to connect to another African state, adding that this was not acceptable.
