COVID-19 and Facilitation
In response to the pandemic, ICAO has issued several State letters, Electronic Bulletins and news releases providing updated information and advice to States on various topics including the establishment of national air transport facilitation committees, facilitation of cargo operations, humanitarian flights, relief and repatriation flights as well as COVID-19 Contingency-Related Differences (CCRD) and Public Health Corridors (PHC).
ICAO continued its outreach activities in support of the UN Crisis Management Team (COVID-19) regular meetings, chaired by the World Health Organization (WHO). Upon their specific request, ICAO provided in December 2020 an update on test and vaccine certification, emphasizing that while COVID-19 vaccination is being rolled out worldwide and vaccination certificates developed, there is a need to facilitate safe and uninterrupted movements during the pandemic.
In parallel, ICAO increased its cooperation with the WHO on matters of common interest within the period. In particular, experts from the Secretariat were assigned to the WHO group on Smart Vaccination Certificate technical specifications and standards, while the involvement of State experts from ICAO’s Technical Advisory Group on the ICAO Traveller Identification Programme (TAG/TRIP) is currently being considered by the WHO.
Since March 2020, ICAO has been organizing weekly or bi-weekly technical meetings gathering UN, international and regional organizations, as well as industry stakeholders. Presentations were notably provided in relation to the reliable distribution of the vaccines by air cargo across borders in a manner that ensures the safety of the products and protects people from counterfeit medical products. In addition, several stakeholders proposing different solutions allowing the fast screening of travellers’ health documents were invited to present them and their status of implementation. The importance of ensuring their interoperability and connection to other solutions and data-sharing frameworks was highlighted, stressing notably the availability of the ICAO specifications for the Visible Digital Seal.
The ICAO Task Force on Health Issues Outbreaks in Aviation established four working groups, covering four chapters of Annex 9 − Facilitation, i.e. entry and departure of aircraft, entry and departure of persons and their baggage, international airports – facilities and services for air traffic, and facilitation provisions covering specific subjects. The TAG/TRIP approved the Digital Travel Credential (DTC) technical specification for the extraction of the Virtual Component of the ePassport to an interoperable mobile device, which supports contactless travel within the digital space.
A facilitation webinar on strengthening international and inter-agency cooperation in response to COVID-19 was held in November 2020 in the Russian Language in the European and North Atlantic region. Similar webinars were conducted in English for all the regions, in French for Western and Central African regions and in Spanish for North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACC) and South American regions.
As one of the many actions taken by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to address the novel coronavirus pandemic, both in the short and long-term, the ICAO Council, during its Third Meeting of the 219th Session, requested the Secretary General to establish a dedicated ad hoc task force to review the Annex 9 health-related provisions. The ATC approved the Terms of Reference of the Task Force on Health Issues Outbreaks in Aviation (TF-HIOA) on 15 April 2020.
The mandate of the TF-HIOA is to review all the health-related Annex 9 Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) and corresponding guidance material, which are designed to provide the effective measures for States to implement through aviation authorities with requirements for aircraft and airport operators as well as other stakeholders. The implementation of these procedures is aimed at protecting the health of the passengers, aviation staff and public by mitigating the risk of spread of communicable diseases through air travel and by minimizing the impact of negative effects on the aviation industry, while maintaining safety and security of air transport operations. Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) for the TF-HIOA, were nominated by 53 States and by nine international organizations.
The Air Transport Committee, during its First Meeting of the 222nd Session, considered a Progress Report of the TF-HIOA. The Committee emphasized the importance of continuing the on-going discussions on potential recommendations for new health-related Annex 9 provisions while avoiding a fast-track amendment to Annex 9 and ensuring States’ capability to implement the new provisions. The Committee concluded that most recommendations relate to a better response to the next communicable disease crisis rather than a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Committee requested the Secretariat to ensure that the recommendations of the Task Force are discussed during the Twelfth Meeting of the Facilitation Panel (FALP/12) planned in July 2021.
The recommendations of FALP/12 will be presented to the ATC during its 224th Session, for consideration, and subsequently sent to Member States for their comments. Comments received from States together with the Secretariat recommendations will be presented to the ATC during its 225th Session for consideration. The ATC recommendations will be presented to the Council, during its 225th Session, for consideration.
