About the EU-ASSP II-Z

 Developing a reliable and effective aviation sector in Zambia

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1. Project Background

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Over recent years Zambia has experienced stable economic growth and the aviation sector has shown the potential to grow and contribute towards economic growth in the country. Nevertheless, the sector remains underdeveloped and faces significant institutional and financial challenges that now require urgent attention. These challenges include a policy and regulatory framework which does not conform to the operational requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), as well as insufficient capacity of staff across various institutions to ensure the required performance level according to international standards.

This is particularly true in terms of air safety and security - Zambia recently got off the European Community list of air carriers which are subject to operating restrictions within the Community meaning that all air carriers certified by the authorities with responsibility for regulatory oversight of Zambia are unable to operate in Europe's skies. The EU has been supporting the sector - and in particular the former Department of Civil Aviation /Civil Aviation Authority - through a 10th EDF project which has now concluded but considerable institutional improvements remain to be made.

The new Aviation Act is expected to be enacted in the coming months and further structural reforms are foreseen for the near future to improve the institutional and regulatory setup of the sector. These include the strengthening of the self-funded Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), establishment of an independent aircraft accident investigation entity, the empowerment of Zambia Airport Corporation Ltd (ZACL) as an autonomous air navigation service provider and the line Ministry’s goal of developing a programme for mainstreaming Gender and other cross cutting issues in Ministry programmes . In addition, infrastructure and air traffic management have also been below standard and upgrades are necessary, especially in Air Traffic Control (ATC) equipment.

Thus, the 11th EDF funded project is intended to offer additional institutional and capacity building support in the above mentioned areas to allow the key players to manage the expected structural changes and sector growth effectively.   

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2. Project objectives

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The overall objective of this project is to develop a reliable and effective aviation sector capable of contributing to economic growth in Zambia. The specific objective is to improve compliance with international aviation standards, especially in terms of both air safety and security oversight.

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The expected results of this project are:

• Result 1: Improved policies, institutional and regulatory framework of the aviation sector, including air safety and security and gender sensitivity (in as compliance with Objective 5.5 of the National Gender Policy Implementation Plan);

• Result 2: Better performing institutions with greater know-how and capacity for planning of sector development and fulfilling their mandates, as well as air traffic and airport management in accordance with the ICAO international standards; and

• Result 3: Aviation safety and security oversight system strengthened.

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To know more about our activities, please see our list of future activities and past events.

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