How Africa’s Airport Boom Is Gaining Altitude

Forbes Africa
Freddie Hiney
21 August 2026

Airport construction is accelerating across Africa, but infrastructure alone will not create a seamless continental aviation market.

The scale of Africa’s aviation disconnect is striking. A 2021 International Air Transport Association (IATA) study commissioned by the African Union (AU) found that out of 1,431 possible connections between the bloc’s member states, only 19% had a direct weekly flight. 

Octavio Oliveira, a Competition Regulation Expert at the African Civil Aviation Commission, an agency of the AU, tells FORBES AFRICA that although the continent represents “nearly 18%” of the world’s population, it accounts for only “about 2.2% of global air traffic”. That disconnect carries economic consequences. Limited connectivity hinders trade, suppresses tourism, restricts labor mobility, and raises the cost of business across the continent...

How Africa’s Airport Boom Is Gaining Altitude - Forbes Africa - 21 August 2026