Mutharika keeps dreaming: promises state of the art airport in Mangochi

Malawi President Peter Mutharika has said his government will construct a state of the art airport in Mangochi as one way of boosting tourism in the district.

Mutharika said this at Chikoko Bay in Mangochi during an audience with Dr Olumuyiwa Bernard Aliu who is president of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

The Malawi leader told Aliu that Malawi needs a beautiful airport along Lake Malawi.

“Lake Malawi is a unique tourist destination in the world. This lake has most beautiful and greatest number of species of fish in the world. And along this Lake, we have some of the most beautiful sceneries in Africa. What we need now is state of art airport to open Lake Malawi to the world,” he said.

According to Mutharika his government is committed to the aviation sector as it is already upgrading airports in Mzuzu, Blantyre and expanding the Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe.

“We need to get connected to the world. We want to turn Malawi from being landlocked country to an air linked country,” Mutharika disclosed.

He also said Malawi is making sure that it continues complying with the standards and recommended practices of ICAO.

“This is why we are doing everything possible to reverse the issues in the 2009 audit about Malawi. Among others, the audit revealed a high level of Lack of Effective Implementation (LEI) of 66 percent of the eight Critical Elements (CEs).

“Further, the audit identified a Significant Safety Concern (SSC) in the area of aircraft operations. I am pleased to report that Malawi developed a Corrective Active Plan aimed at resolving the identified findings, and we have made tremendous progress,” he said.

Mutharika also said Malawi is done reviewing aviation recommendations.

“We completed the process of review and promulgation of Specific Operating Regulations. We developed and issued technical guidance material for safety oversight inspectors and the industry. With assistance from the European Union, we also established an Air Operator Certification System,” Mutharika said.

He further said that his government has started the process of regulating the aviation sector by establishing an autonomous Civil Aviation Authority whose draft legislation is already before Parliament and will be passed soon.

The Malawi leader then asked for financial and technical support for all this to happen saying government has already trained technical personnel and inspectors in various specialized fields.