RwandAir chief executive Yvonne Manzi Makolo has called on African governments to move beyond open-skies commitments and set clear timelines for implementation, linking the effort to lower fares, better connectivity and the release of blocked airline funds. Her message, published ahead of the Africa Mindset Reset Forum in Kigali, cast aviation as an economic necessity and backed a coalition of willing states to push reform forward.
Makolo argued that Africa’s main challenge is no longer policy design but execution, with progress to be measured by practical outcomes rather than formal agreements. She highlighted three priorities: freeing blocked airline revenues, expanding interline agreements and fifth-freedom operations among African carriers, and aligning the Single African Air Transport Market with the African Union’s Free Movement Protocol.
The remarks place pressure on governments to translate long-running liberalisation pledges into commercial benefits for passengers and airlines. They also tie open-skies reform more closely to intra-African trade and mobility, reinforcing the case for faster implementation at a time when fragmented markets continue to hold up network growth and keep travel costs high.