Following up on our recent piece on supporting the African aviation market to recovery, it is encouraging to read about the development of a possible maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) in Ghana. The U.S. Trade and Development Agency has provided funding for a feasibility study to support the new facility, which builds on previous studies to upgrade KIA.

The continent is in dire need of MRO facilities as only it only represents approximately 4% of the global market currently, so this is a positive step. It would also be the first full-service MRO facility in West Africa. Increasing collaboration and cooperation at a regional level is key to the African aviation market’s recovery and long-term sustainable growth so the presence of an MRO facility in West Africa will contribute to this as well as overall regional economic growth.

The backing of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency for the proposed project supports “Prosper Africa”, a U.S. government initiative to increase two-way trade and investment between the United States and Africa substantially, and is an example of the Biden administration’s “Build Back Better World” pandemic recovery initiative. External support of this kind is also critical to the recovery, building on the recent show of support by Delta, which has restored service to all its pre-pandemic markets in Africa.