Govt. committed to enhance aviation safety

Minister of Transport and Logistics, Frank Tayali says government is committed to promote and enhance safety in the aviation industry.

Mr Tayali said the hosting and implementation of the Safety Information Monitoring System project by the Zambia Civil Aviation Authority is meant to ensure that there is increased capacity in providing safe and accurate information systems monitoring and performance indicators for the enhancement of the safety of civil aviation.

The minister said this in a speech read on his behalf by Ministry of Transport and Logistics Director Nkumbu Siame during the Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Eastern and Southern African Office (ESAF) Safety Information Monitoring Systems and Safety Performance Indicators workshop in Lusaka .

He said the International Civil Aviation Organisation places great emphasis on the exchange of information as a fundamental tenet of a safe air transportation system.

Mr Tayali stated that appropriate tools, systems and legal frameworks need to be available to enable countries and organisations to effectively use shared information.

He added that the development of safety initiatives and implementation strategies should be built on the collection, analysis and sharing of information between states and aviation stakeholders.

“Zambia as part of the ICAO member states, has been working towards developing and building programmes in the country that are focused on improving safety in information sharing through the strengthening of safety information monitoring systems and safety performance indicators. Therefore, this particular workshop is a milestone towards ensuring that information sharing is achieved between the Civil Aviation Authorities and the Aviation Industry,” he said.

Speaking at the same event, the International Civil Aviation Organisation Eastern and Southern Africa Office Regional Director, Barry Kashambo said SIMS is an ICAO web-based information system comprising different applications, which generates indicators in support of the State Safety Programme (SSP) and Safety Management System.

Mr Kashambo stated that SIMS is also a platform for States to exchange and share safety data and information.

“This workshop is organized for the second time in our region which shows ICAO commitment, leadership, and support in building data-driven capacities in our region,” he said.

He urged the participants to take full advantage of the opportunity to enhance their knowledge of data related aspects, including the SIMS applications in support of the State Safety Programme (SSP) and the Safety Management System (SMS).

And Civil Aviation Authority Director General, Gabriel Lesa said the training is an important component in aviation due to the nature of the sector.

Mr Lesa said aviation being a global industry needs to have safe monitoring systems.

He explained that the participants will have access to in-depth information about specific developments in safety information monitoring systems and safety performance indicators, as well as receive expert training from ICAO facilitators from Canada and Kenya who are at the training.

Mr Lesa thanked ICAO for facilitating the training that will be a game changer in their quest to continue making the aviation industry safe and secure.

The workshop has seen participants from twelve African countries which include South Sudan, Lesotho, South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda, Eswatini, Comoros, Tanzania and Zambia, the host country and will run from 6^th to 9^th December 2022.