Rwanda is now a member of the Agency for the Safety of Air Navigation in Africa and Madagascar (ASCENA), after the Minister of Infrastructure, Ernest Nsabimana, and the President of organisation’s Committee of Ministers, Oumarou Malam Alma, on Thursday, March 30, signed the membership agreement. Alma is also Niger’s Minister of Transport. On behalf of Government of #Rwanda Minister @Dr_ENsabimana today signed Legal ACT of the Agency for Safety of Air navigation in #Africa & Madagascar (ASCENA) to become the active member. @RwandaAirports @RwandaCAA @FlyRwandAir pic.twitter.com/ljdPhlN4NI — Ministry of Infrastructure | Rwanda (@RwandaInfra) March 30, 2023 The Agency for the Safety of Air Navigation in Africa and Madagascar is an international public institution that has been managing airspaces collaboratively for over half a century. It was established on December 12, 1959, in Saint Louis, Senegal, and is governed by the 2010 revised Dakar Convention. “This is a remarkable milestone for Rwanda as a nation, the business community and Aviation industry at large. Let’s embrace this achievement and smoothen our operations in line with the African Union agenda 2063 of liberalizing the African skies to facilitate the movement of people and goods between African countries,” Nsabimana said. “Rwanda believes that joining ASECNA member states contributes towards achieving the goal of liberalization, collaboration, and partnership to reach the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) objectives.” The Minister said the partnership will solicit innovation and structuring projects championed by ASECNA such as the Satellite Based Augmentation System services (SBAS), Automatic Dependent Satellite-Based (ADS-B) and the Single Sky for Africa. Rwanda believes that joining ASCENA member states contributes towards achieving the goal of liberalization, collaboration and partnership to reach the Single African Air Transport Market ( SAATM) objectives. Minister @Dr_ENsabimana pic.twitter.com/IFru1w1UbL — Ministry of Infrastructure | Rwanda (@RwandaInfra) March 30, 2023 With the world increasingly relying on satellite-based navigation systems, applications that are safety-sensitive, such as air navigation, require a more enhanced satellite-based navigation system known as Satellite-Based Augmentation System services (SBAS). While Europe, the USA, and other developed countries have fully adopted SBAS, Africa is still exploring the possibility of adopting it. ALSO READ: Rwanda signs key global space deal A cost benefit analysis conducted by the African Union has demonstrated the advantages of relying on SBAS for air navigation services. Currently, ASECNA is the only organization on the African continent that has advanced in the implementation of SBAS. According to Alma, the satellite based augmentation system will provide an integrity service allowing the safe use of GPS signals for air navigation during all phases of flight, from en route to aircraft landings. “It will improve the safety and efficiency of flights, while reducing their environmental impact,” Alma said. The organisation, he noted, is recognized by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as one of the seven providers in the world of this type of service which is certainly the future of international aviation. Alma added: “The ASECNA that we are building is a modern organization, open to the most advanced technologies in the field of civil aviation and with the vocation of achieving a uniform sky for the entire African continent. “To carry our pan-African ambitions, we place particular emphasis on the training of human resources and the construction of high-quality infrastructure and equipment.” In May 2021, the Director General of ASECNA, Mohamed Moussa, confirmed the extension of SBAS services to enhance precision aircraft navigability within Rwanda's airspace and advocated for Rwanda to host a Satellite Monitoring Control Centre (MCC) infrastructure. The MCC is considered the brain of SBAS, while the Navigation Land Earth Stations (NLES) is the satellite Earth station that uplinks the augmented signal to the satellite. At the time, however, Rwanda was informed that only Member States of ASECNA can host such an MCC infrastructure. ALSO READ: RwandAir set to join global alliance of commercial airlines All concerned institutions, namely the Rwanda Civil Aviation Authority, Rwanda Space Agency, and Rwanda Airports Company, assessed the benefits of Rwanda joining ASECNA and SBAS technology in Rwanda and recommended that Rwanda joins ASECNA. On December 1, 2021, ASECNA and the Ministry of Infrastructure signed a Memorandum of Cooperation covering services and facilities that will enable both parties to enhance cooperation in air navigation services. Rwanda's application for ASECNA membership was unanimously approved by the Committee of Ministers in Niamey, Niger, on July 29, 2022. The organisation has delegated a representative based in Kigali to oversee the Rwanda membership process. In January, three Rwandans were nominated to participate in a capacity building program on SBAS provided by the European Space Agency. ALSO READ: Rwanda among countries to pilot single air space market The visiting ASECNA delegation visited the Kigali Genocide Memorial on March 29, where they paid homage to the more than 250, 000 genocide victims buried there, and gained insight into the cause of the 1994 genocide against Tutsi and the measures taken to end it.
