Bush Administration Continues Safe Skies Effort with EAC Signing

(Technical assistance package to strengthen air navigation systems)
(420)
By Jim Fisher-Thompson
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The Bush Administration is continuing a U.S.-African
partnership begun five years ago to make air travel on the African
continent safer and more secure, with the June 10 signing of an
agreement with the East African Community (EAC) that will assist
member states in upgrading their navigational systems.
The agreement, signed in Arusha, Tanzania where the EAC is
headquartered, will fund a technical assistance consultancy to support
the implementation of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) in
Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
According to a document provided by the U.S. Embassy in Tanzania, the
first step toward this objective will be "to assess the current state
of 10 airports in the EAC region and then work with local authorities
to develop an operational road map to guide the region as it
transitions from a ground-based to a satellite-based air navigation
system." The technical assistance agreement has a value of
approximately $200,000.
The Global Navigation Satellite System is based on a global network of
satellites that transmit radio signals from approximately eleven
thousand miles in high earth orbit. The International Civil Aviation
Organization and the International Maritime Organization have hailed
GNSS' benefits as "enormous."
The Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam,
Michael S. Owen, signed the grant agreement for the U.S. Government
while Deputy Secretary of the EAC Secretariat Dr. Kipyego Cheluget
signed on behalf of the community.
After the ceremony, a spokesperson for the American Embassy said, "We
believe that safe skies are a prerequisite for increased trade and
investment and long-term economic development in Africa." The
initiative complements the U.S. Government's "Open Skies" agreements
with a number of African countries aimed at promoting code-share
agreements between U.S. and African airlines.
The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) funds the technical
assistance program in partnership with the U.S. Department of
Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
USTDA is an independent agency of the U.S. Government that helps
expand trade between the United States and developing and
middle-income countries.  It supports sound investment policy and
decision-making in host countries by creating an enabling environment
for trade, investment and sustainable economic development.
USTDA has teamed up with the U.S. Department of Transportation's
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to help implement the GNSS
strategy as part of the U.S. "Safe Skies for Africa" initiative.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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Bush Administration Continues Safe Skies Effort with EAC Signing
