International Civil Aviation Organization Regional Cooperation for Enhancement of Safety Oversight BENEFITS OF REGIONAL COOPERATION Presented by Emmanuel Akatue Executive Director 26 th October 2011 Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

2 Regional Cooperation Regional Cooperation refers to agreements among States within a common geographical boundary to the pooling of resources in a synergy for the common and individual good of participating States. Pooled resources would include services of technical experts, funding, common administration, common technology etc Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

3 The Principal Objectives To enhance the safety oversight capability of participating States To facilitate harmonization of standards and practices To standardize outputs or service delivery among states To achieve diseconomies of scale or cost effectiveness through the shared use of resources To provide a platform for collective resolution of common civil safety concerns across the region To create an enabling environment towards the attainment of any future initiative for a commonality of practices To accelerate the establishment of closer ties among States To promote possible regional integration Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

4 The need for Regional Cooperation in Aviation Cooperation is necessitated by challenges usually faced by some states – Lack of or Inadequate Regulatory Framework – Lack of or Inadequate Regulatory Guidance Materials and Procedures for industry and inspectors – Lack of resources to attract, recruit and retain qualified technical personnel due the relatively low remuneration package offered by many government regulatory bodies compared to industry – Low aviation activity, unable to support the full time services of qualified aviation safety inspectors in the conduct of certification and surveillance activities Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

5 Some Benefits of Regional Aviation Cooperation SUMMARY Shared use of resources at the secretariat Joint use of Technical infrastructure Shared use of Information Resource Shared Use of National Inspectors Better Harmonization Assistance in Resolution of State-Specific Concerns Improved Resolution of Common Safety Concerns Better Collaboration Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

6 Shared use of resources at the secretariat Technical experts at the secretariat may provide experts services such as certification, surveillance, training and audit functions at the request of States. A long term benefit is often knowledge transfer to national inspectors Shared Expertise also means shared cost benefits i.e. efficient and effective use of experts and administrative staff Cooperation results in the common use of a Infrastructure and utilities, often provided by the host state Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

7 Joint Use of Technical Infrastructure Infrastructures such as training facilities either at the Secretariat or of member states are usually shared at marginal cost or for free. The BAGASOO Secretariat incorporates a training facility capable of supporting 30 trainees. Other facilities that have been made available for joint use include the Ghana CAA Academy and the Cape Verde CAA Academy. Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

8 Shared use of Information Resource Regional cooperation enables the establishment of a common information warehouse to which members states could have unrestricted access For instance, a website could be tailored to contain information that would most likely serve the primary interests for which the regional cooperation was forged Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

9 Shared use of Information Resource The BAGASOO website offers access to : – Aviation safety information – Secure access to selected BAGASOO files – Links to Homepages of member CAAs and other aviation agencies – ICAO FSIX website – ECCAIRS, ICAO ADREP. – Links to the various regional databases Regional Aircraft Register Regional Register of Leased Foreign Aircraft Regional Register of Air Operator Certificate (AOC) holders Regional Register of Approved Maintenance Organizations (AMOs) 5. Regional Register of Aviation Training Orgs (ATOs) Such database will help identify in an objective manner critical areas of safety concerns within BAG States enabling informed decisions and provision of assistance Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

10 Shared use of Information Resource Work Tracking System BAGASOO is also developing a common Inspector Works Tracking System, to be hosted by the secretariat, as a tool to plan and monitor activities of national inspectors assigned under the Cooperative Inspectorate Scheme (CIS) The work tracking system would permit, for example, reports on certification and surveillance functions, conducted by national inspectors participating under the CIS to be recorded, tracked for closure and readily available and accessible to designated users Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

11 Shared use of Information Resource Inspector Training System The BAGASOO ITS establishes the criteria for the qualification of national inspectors and subsequent selection to the CIS and is based on a common training policy for the region. It is designed especially for Flt Ops/Air/PEL and places emphasizes on certification and surveillance functions The ITS is supplemented by an on-line BAGASOO common training database and planning and recording, and through which priority areas of training needs of inspectors of member States' can be identified and training assistance directed for optimum results. Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

12 Shared Use of National Inspectors BAG Cooperative Inspectorate Scheme (CIS)  The BAG CIS would provide the for the creation of a larger and more stable pool of Inspectors for certification and surveillance duties under the coordination of BAGASOO thus facilitating the implementation of BAGASOO objectives, programmes and activities  The CIS activities would further boost confidence in aviation activities among member states and ensure mutual acceptance of certification, authorizations and approvals Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

13 Harmonization Objective Cooperation promotes harmonization of safety oversight through the production of generic regulations and procedures and provision of assistance to States in their adoption States lacking the expertise to develop their own regulations and procedures have relied on cooperative arrangement which comes at a relatively lower cost compared to one from independent consultancy services The adopted documents are easily kept up-to-date by ensuring that amendments are promptly made in line with amendment from source documents Considerable harmonization within BAG has been largely achieved through BAG generic regulations and guidance materials produced by COSCAP-BAG Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

14 Resolution of State-Specific Concerns ICAO USOAP Audit Preparations– Member States preparing for the USOAP audit can utilise regional expertise. Some BAG member States have benefited in this regard (Nigeria, Ghana, Cape Verde) Under BAGASOO work programme, provision is made for the audit of member states to monitor progress made in addressing corrective actions originating from USOAP audit findings and help close open items BAGASOO and ACIP – Collaborating to assist Sierra Leone address some of its technical difficulties. BAGASOO is hosting domain for SL – BAGASOO is also assisting SL develop a website for the CAA that should be available soon Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

15 Resolution of Common Safety Concerns The regional body could serve as a forum for deliberating and monitoring implementation of recommendations on how to address common concerns threatening safe flight operations within the region. BAGASOO’s Aviation Safety Committee (BAGRAST), comprising representatives from BAG member States, is entrusted with similar responsibility Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

16 Collaboration A regional organisation is often better placed to collaborate with other international organisations in obtaining technical support and assistance on behalf of Member States Such assistance have come maining in the area of training, through the provision of training instructors, material or funds BAGASOO is presently collaborating on behalf of States with ECOWAS, Safe Skies Africa, EASA, FAA, Luxemburg CAA etc Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation

17 THANK YOU Banjul Accord Group Safety Oversight Organisation