High Level Conference on COVID-19
Published: Tuesday, 19 October 2021 12:57
Under the theme "One Vision for Aviation Recovery, Resilience and Sustainability in the Beyond of the Global Pandemic", this conference is organised by the International Civil Aviation Organisation via videoconference and started on 12 October 2021.
All 193 ICAO Members are participating in this conference, which aims to build a global consensus on a multilateral approach, supported by the political will and commitment of States, to ensure the safe and efficient recovery of aviation from the COVID-19 crisis and to lay the foundation for strengthening its resilience and sustainability in the future. It will address a wide range of issues, but will place particular emphasis on safety and facilitation objectives, taking into account the economic impact of COVID-19 on the sector. The conference will also promote and support collective efforts to harmonise risk management measures and strategy through the implementation of the recommendations of the ICAO Council's Aviation Recovery Task Force (CART).
In his statement, the Minister of Transport, who is leading the Cameroonian delegation to this important meeting, said that the recommendations and guidelines of CART have helped Cameroon to ensure the resumption of flights after the total closure of the airspace at the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. These guidelines have enabled the Government to issue directives for air transport in the context of COVID-19 and to launch the gradual resumption of flights. The feedback from the handling of each flight has helped to improve the health arrangements at international airports.
In addition, MINT stressed the importance of States harmonising measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by implementing CART's recommendations. Furthermore, he noted that imposing the vaccine passport as a prerequisite for international travel will hinder the economic recovery, due to the low vaccination rate against this disease in some parts of the world, particularly in Africa.
Finally, MINT said that to restore public confidence in travel, states should, at least on a regional basis, work to harmonise their health protocols for the management of COVID-19 and continue to educate travellers on compliance with barrier measures against this disease throughout the air travel circuit.
The conference, which will end on 22 October 2021, will be organised into three ministerial sessions and technical sessions covering security and facilitation. The ministerial sessions, apart from the opening and closing sessions, will be in the form of roundtable discussions around two themes, namely driving economic recovery, building resilience and sustainability and shaping policy responses to the challenges posed by COVID-19.