Building Air Traffic Capacity in Africa: Options for Improving Security and Governance

Air transport development programmes in Africa have the potential to significantly improve security and governance in regions affected by conflict and transnational organized crime.

The case of eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the surrounding region shows how the establishment of effective air traffic and safety management systems would lead to better controls on the transfer by air of weapons, valuable raw materials and other strategic commodities which may be smuggled or subject to illicit taxation.

Tailored air safety and traffic management programmes draw on synergies involving disarmament and peacekeeping. They can save lives, build infrastructure, foster regional integration and stimulate investment. Such cross-cutting initiatives can involve multi-stakeholder projects with a number of African Union (AU) and European Union (EU) partnerships and organizations.

This Policy Brief is part of an ongoing study into weapon transfers and raw material flows in the DRC funded by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.