Ghana’s latest attempt to establish a national airline may be following the same failed pattern that has collapsed every previous effort, according to a Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) Ghana Fellow who argues the country should support an existing Ghanaian carrier rather than starting from scratch.
Dr Hene Aku Kwapong says successive governments have repeatedly launched national airlines only to watch them collapse under bureaucratic control, political appointments and unrealistic state-led commercial management. He believes the solution is already operating in Ghana’s skies.
President John Dramani Mahama inaugurated a 10-member task force in May to work toward establishing a new national carrier. Transport Minister Joseph Bukari Nikpe told Parliament the task force has submitted a business model and operational framework to guide government engagement with potential strategic partners.
Ghana Airways ceased operations between 2004 and 2005. Since then, multiple governments have attempted to revive a national carrier without success. Ghana International Airlines collapsed in 2010, and several subsequent proposals have failed to materialise.
Dr Kwapong argues that Ghana’s pattern is predictable with thick layers of bureaucracy, political appointments lacking commercial logic, and a mindset treating airlines as government departments rather than businesses that must compete and survive.
He notes even countries with far stronger state institutions have accepted that aviation requires private sector discipline, performance contracts and targeted state support rather than full state ownership.
The CDD Ghana Fellow points to Africa World Airlines (AWA) as the practical solution government is overlooking. Founded by Ghanaian entrepreneur Togbe Afede XIV in 2010, AWA launched its first revenue flight in September 2012. The airline has since transported five million passengers and become West Africa’s longest surviving domestic carrier.
AWA became a full member of the International Air Transport Association in 2017 following completion of its second IOSA audit, making it the only IATA member airline in Ghana. The carrier operates routes across Ghana and to destinations including Lagos, Abuja and Ouagadougou.
Dr Kwapong says in any country serious about development, existing success becomes the starting point for national strategy. He believes Ghana should build a transparent, performance based partnership with AWA rather than create another government controlled airline destined to fail.
The analyst describes the problem as a deep psychological barrier rooted in national distrust of local success. Many Ghanaians, he says, unconsciously believe that if a local entrepreneur achieves something significant, it must be because of political influence rather than competence.
This suspicion paralyses policymakers and clouds public judgment. Instead of asking whether AWA can deliver a strong national carrier, public debate focuses on whether supporting the airline would be favouring Togbe Afede.
Dr Kwapong insists that mindset wastes national potential. Ghana keeps pouring money into new airline dreams complete with branding, feasibility studies and government controlled management structures while a fully functioning Ghanaian airline proves itself daily.
He draws parallels with South Korea, which faced similar dilemmas with its early business leaders. The state made a bold philosophical decision to trust performance over perception and support competence even when public opinion was divided.
That courage, Dr Kwapong notes, produced global giants like Samsung and Hyundai and transformed a fledgling domestic airline into Korean Air. South Korea’s business founders were far less experienced than Togbe Afede, yet the government chose to support them.
At a recent ceremony marking AWA’s five millionth passenger milestone, Togbe Afede said the airline had developed ambitious expansion plans before COVID-19 disrupted operations. He revealed aspirations to support creation of a national carrier, suggesting AWA’s operational experience positions it to contribute expertise.
Deputy Minister for Transport Dorcas Affo-Toffey said government remains committed to creating an enabling environment that fosters safe, efficient and sustainable aviation operations. She said the Ministry of Transport is embarking on various initiatives to make Ghana an aviation hub within West Africa.
Dr Kwapong says Ghana’s situation is not about lacking innovators or ambition. What the country lacks is courage to mobilise its own people and trust proven local success.
He insists the Mahama administration should abandon the national airline fantasy and instead adopt a transparent, measurable, performance based partnership with Africa World Airlines. Otherwise, Ghana risks repeating the same pattern of failure that has defined decades of aviation policy.
The debate highlights broader questions about how Ghana engages with local businesses and whether government can overcome deep seated mistrust to support homegrown enterprises that have already demonstrated success.
