How has Corona affected passenger air transport flights in the Arab region?

A recent study found that the spread of the ‘Covid-19’ pandemic in the Arab region led to a decrease in the number of air passenger flights by more than half in the first half of 2020, compared to the same period there is one year old.

According to the study published by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), in cooperation with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), entitled “Effects of the pandemic” Covid-19 “in the Arab region: transport”, the goods transport sector has not been greatly affected With the pandemic in the region, show flexibility vis-à-vis the various factors of imbalance, with an impact variable at country level.

And he expects the total number of passengers on flights to, from and within the Arab region to decline in 2020, to around 154 million passengers, bringing the number of passengers down to levels of. 2009.

The study estimated the region’s total airline revenue losses in 2020 at around $ 38 billion, or about 53% of last year’s revenue. International air travel is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2023.

The study also predicted a drop in revenue from the land transport sector in the region by 22% in 2020. In contrast, the number of visits by commercial freighters to the region fell by only 1% in the first 31 weeks. of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, and the number of visits remained The container ships for the ports are stable, while the number of port visits by passenger ships has been strongly affected, as it has decreased by 40.1%.

ESCWA Executive Secretary Rola Dashti urged governments in Arab countries to adopt support programs for the transport sector and logistics services, including financial support and tax cuts, fee exemptions and exemptions, and support for workers’ wages and training.

She added:< Les gouvernements devraient renforcer la coopération internationale et régionale afin de prendre des mesures concertées et concertées pour faire face à la pandémie et à son impact sur les transports et la logistique, comme l'échange d'informations, la reconnaissance mutuelle des certificats et des documents de conformité et la coordination de la gestion des frontières >>.