Africa’s Aviation Growth Outpaces Global Market, but Cargo Recovery Lags

August 31, 2026 in Business, Trade & Industry, Travel & Tourism by Editor

African airlines recorded passenger demand growth of 6.4pc in July, far ahead of the global 0.2pc increase, but cargo demand rose only 1.1pc, the weakest regional performance, highlighting the uneven recovery of the continent’s aviation market.

 

African airlines continued to record stronger passenger traffic growth than the global aviation market in July, even as the continent’s air cargo sector struggled to keep pace with the broader recovery, according to the latest data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Passenger demand among African carriers increased by 6.4pc year-on-year in July, compared with global growth of just 0.2pc, as airlines across the continent expanded capacity to meet rising travel demand.

However, capacity grew faster than demand, increasing 9.0pc during the month. This pushed the passenger load factor to 74.1pc, 1.8 percentage points below July 2025 and significantly below the global average of 85.2pc.

The figures point to a growing appetite for air travel in Africa but also underline the challenge airlines face in filling the additional seats being introduced into the market.

Africa accounted for 2.2pc of global passenger traffic in 2025, according to IATA’s market-share measure.

The passenger performance contrasts sharply with the continent’s air cargo market, where growth was considerably weaker.

African airlines recorded only a 1.1pc year-on-year increase in cargo demand in July, the weakest performance among all regions. Cargo capacity, however, expanded by 4.1pc, leaving the sector with a cargo load factor of 45.8pc.

Globally, air cargo demand grew 3.9% in July, more than three times Africa’s rate, while capacity increased by 1.7pc.

The disparity was particularly pronounced on the Africa-Asia trade lane, where cargo traffic contracted 14.7pc in July, extending the decline to a second consecutive month.

This compares with strong growth on major global trade corridors. Asia-North America cargo traffic increased 9.2pc, while Europe-Asia grew 3.1pc and Europe-North America rose 2.1pc.

IATA said the global cargo market continued to benefit from stronger trade and manufacturing activity. Global trade increased 7.5pc year-on-year, while export orders reached their highest level in three months.

But the operating environment remains challenging. Jet fuel prices rose 12.2pc month-on-month in July and were 56.9% higher than a year earlier, adding pressure to airline operating costs.

“Air cargo demand grew 3.9pc year-on-year in July,” said Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s Senior Vice President Sustainability and Chief Economist. She noted that Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America accounted for more than 90pc of the overall increase.

She also pointed to a shift towards dedicated freighters, with freighter operations gaining market share as belly-hold cargo declined.

The wider passenger market was also uneven. While African airlines posted 6.4pc growth, Latin American carriers recorded 7.1pc, Europe 3.1pc and Asia-Pacific 0.7pc. North American demand fell 2.3%, while Middle Eastern carriers recorded a 9.5pc decline.

IATA said global passenger demand increased 0.2pc in July, despite declines among carriers in North America and the Middle East. Capacity rose 0.3pc, producing an 85.2pc load factor.

The contrasting passenger and cargo figures highlight a structural challenge for African aviation where passenger markets are expanding relatively rapidly, but airlines are adding capacity even faster, while the continent’s cargo sector remains far less responsive to the expansion in global trade.