Workshop on Airport Cities and Competitiveness in Central America

Workshop on airport cities and competitiveness in central america 31 March – 1 April 2016, San Salvador, El Salvador – UNITAR’s affiliated training centre in San Salvador (CIFAL El Salvador) hosted the workshop “Promoting Airport Cities for Competitiveness and Economic Development,” which aimed at providing a venue for the exchange of best practices on how to transform airports located in world-class airport cities that generate economic development and growth. The workshop took place from 31 March – 1 April 2016 and was jointly organized by CIFAL El Salvador and the Executive and Autonomous Port Commission (CEPA) of El Salvador, with the support of Avianca Airlines and the Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques (SITA).

Airports have become catalysts for economic growth at national, regional and local levels. Airports also play a crucial role in today's multimodal logistics and global supply chains. Multinationals often cite the presence of a major airport as a key criterion when deciding where to locate new subsidiaries, build plants, or start operations. As such, airports should be viewed as an essential driver of economic growth. Over the next two decades, air traffic around the world is expected to double. This will require skilled airport leaders and executives to cope with the challenges, as well as the operational and business aspects, that will come with this reality.

The workshop brought together a group of 30 high-level government officials, airport executives, and business leaders representing airlines, as well as airport services providers from El Salvador, to learn about how to leverage airports for economic competitiveness. Mr. Miguel Southwell, the General Manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), shared his expertise in managing the busiest airport in the world with some 100 million passengers passing through each year. Sessions included topics such as promoting airport cities, smart airports and technology, airport security, and stakeholder engagement.

In this framework, the Executive and Autonomous Port Commission (CEPA) signed a Sister Airport Cooperation Agreement with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) with the objective of strengthening friendship and cooperation, while facilitating the exchange of ideas and best practices between ATL and the International Airport of El Salvador. Through this Cooperation Agreement, both airports will explore ways for promoting traffic and activities between the airports.

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