A meeting of the Council of Directors of the Pacific Aviation Safety Office (PASO) on 24 November provided a forum for Pacific Island States, Australia and New Zealand to review with ICAO the unique challenges and circumstances faced by governments in the region as they restart their aviation sectors.
At the meeting, ICAO Secretary General Juan Carlos Salazar highlighted key initiatives to enhance ICAO's efforts to support the governments of the region in their implementation of ICAO safety, security, and sustainability guidance, and in particular those provisions that pertain to the pandemic recovery.
The Secretary General acknowledged the crucial contributions of donor States, including Australia, Indonesia, and New Zealand, toward enabling these initiatives. He pointed notably to the provision of "i-Packs" which contain a variety of tools, expertise and resources tailored to helping States assure a smooth restart and recovery of their air operations, covering topics such as public health corridor establishment.
Mr. Salazar's remarks were welcomed by the PASO Council Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Works, Transport and Infrastructure of Samoa, Mr. Magele Hoe Viali. He underscored the dramatic impact of resource shortages on the region's ability to fully benefit from ICAO's pandemic recovery efforts, and to meet their commitments, particularly under the Port Moresby Declaration on Aviation Safety and Security for the Pacific Islands.
ICAO Asia Pacific Regional Director Mr. Tao Ma also outlined a variety of avenues for ICAO to support closer cooperation and provision of targeted assistance within the region.
