The African Airlines Association (AFRAA) and AfriSAF have signed “a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that establishes a comprehensive framework for collaboration to accelerate the deployment and production of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) across Africa.” The signing took place on the sidelines of the recently concluded 57TH AFRAA AGA in Luanda, Angola.
Under the terms of the MOU signed by Mr. Abderahmane Berthé, Secretary-General of AFRAA, and Mr. Kwame Bekoe, Chief Executive Officer of AfriSAF, the “parties will work together to support SAF adoption, develop bankable SAF production projects, strengthen feedstock supply chains, and promote policies that enhance aviation safety, security, efficiency, and environmental sustainability.”
The partnership envisages collaboration between the parties in the areas of Advocacy and Policy Support; Capacity Building and Training; SAF Project Development; Resource Mobilisation; and Feedstock Mapping and Sustainability.
Mr. Abderahmane Berthé, Secretary-General of AFRAA, said the “collaboration with AfriSAF marks a major step in supporting African airlines on their decarbonisation journey. SAF is essential to the future of sustainable aviation, and Africa has immense potential to become a competitive global supplier. Through this partnership, AFRAA will lead African airlines agenda on decarbonisation, ensuring the region’s maximum contribution towards global carbon neutral growth by 2050.”
According to Mr. Kwame Bekoe, CEO of AfriSAF, “Africa has one of the world’s largest untapped volumes of sustainable biomass suitable for SAF production. By combining AfriSAF’s feedstock intelligence, project development capabilities, and digital traceability tools with AFRAA’s industry leadership, we are creating the conditions for Africa to lead in global aviation sustainability. This MOU catalyses a new era of SAF development on the continent.”
There is a palpable fear that Africa may be left out of the SAF ecosystem unless governments make intentional intervention through policy and financing to help the aviation sector on the continent.