ECOWAS to slash flight costs January 1, 2026

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00:00in a move described as a competitiveness shock for the region of the economic community of

00:05west african state ecoas has officially announced the sweeping fiscal reform to dismantle the high

00:12cost of air travel effective january 1 2026 all member states are mandated to eliminate

00:20non-aviation taxes and significantly reduce service charges for decades west africa has

00:27held the unenviable title of the most expensive region for air travel globally where taxes can

00:34account for up to 70 percent of a single ticket price the decision follows a decade of research

00:41confirming the prohibitive costs have stifled the ecoas mission of free movement under the current

00:48system a trader traveling from lagos to dakar might pay up to three thousand dollars for a ticket

00:56much of which is comprised of disguised taxation like solidarity fees and tourism levies

01:02director of transport and telecommunications chris appier noted that these charges violate

01:08international civil aviation organization icao guidelines by removing these barriers

01:16echoes aims to treat aviation not as tax rent for struggling treasuries but as a commercial engine

01:22for tourism health and education the strategy codified and supplementary act adopted in december 2024

01:31is two-pronged total abolition all taxes not directly related to air transport such as security and

01:40solidarity taxes will be scrapped entirely 25 reduction passenger service and security charges will be

01:49slashed by a quarter across the board industry experts project that these measures will trigger a 20

01:57percent to 40 percent drop in ticket prices potentially boosting intra-regional passenger traffic

02:04to 15 million annually within three years to ensure these savings aren't swallowed by airline profit

02:12ecoas is establishing a regional air transport economic oversight mechanism these body will monitor

02:19compliance country by country however the reform highlight a growing two-speed sky in africa while

02:28coastal hubs like lagos acra and abida prepare for a travel boom the alliance of sahel states mali burkina

02:38faso and nije remains outside this current framework raising concerns about further isolation for those capitals

02:47as we approach january 2026 deadline the message is clear the high cost of flying was a man-made

02:55barrier and tools to dismantle it have finally been deployed