The Agenda for Freedom is a process launched by Mr Giovanni Bisignani, Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), to give airlines the commercial freedom to operate like any other global business.
Out of date rules
The commercial aspects of international aviation are governed by a set of antiquated rules. They limit market access and close the door to international equity capital. As a result, airlines cannot use, for instance, tools like cross border mergers and acquisitions to structure themselves for optimum commercial efficiency, nor can they tap foreign private equity. Other global industries do not face such restrictions.
As an industry, airlines have traditionally failed to recover the cost of their capital, let alone produce interesting returns. At a historic return rate of 0.3%, the industry is anything but profitable. And yet, it is the lynchpin of globalisation and a fundamental factor of economic growth and job creation. A financially healthy airline industry can only benefit both national and the global economies.
Sounding the alarm
At the IATA Annual General Meeting in June 2008, Mr Bisignani sounded an alarm bell. Against the backdrop of an unprecedented surge in fuel costs, he warned that such commercial restrictions could represent a threat to the very survival of many airlines. The time had come to grab the bull by the horns and address this issue. The ensuing financial crisis and resulting drop in passenger demand, as well as its devastating effects on the industry, only confirm the urgent need to remove these barriers.
He therefore called upon liberal-minded governments to get together at an Agenda for Freedom Summit to find ways of actually breaking down the barriers that stand in the way of allowing such commercial freedom to become a reality. The first Summit was held in Istanbul on 25-26 October 2008 and was attended by 14 States and the European Commission.
Looking to the future
In light of the progress made in the drafting of the Statement of Policy Principles, IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani called for a second Agenda For Freedom Summit, to be held in Montebello, Canada on November 15-16, 2009. Only governments indicating their willingness to endorse the Statement of Policy Principles were invited to participate in this Summit. Those Governments were: Chile, the European Commission, Malaysia, Panama, Singapore, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates and the United States. They signed and/or endorsed the Statement.
Currently, IIATA, along with a number of the signatory countries, is promoting the Statement of Policy Principles with liberal governments around the world. IATA is prepared to hold regional workshops during 2010 to promote this initiative and secure additional endorsements of the Statement. Initial workshops are being planned in the Middle East/North Africa as well as Latin America based on indications of support from those regions.