"This cannot go on ... When you have a continent that is six times worse than the world average, embarrassment is the only word to explain it," IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani told Reuters during a visit to Nigeria.

The airline sector in the world's poorest continent is lagging badly in its freight and passenger traffic as the global aviation industry heads for turbulence this year, its profits hit by soaring fuel costs, Bisignani said.

Improvements in training, technology and infrastructure could make a difference and he urged African governments to act now to improve safety standards.

"It's not a lack of money, because governments are cashing in a lot of money from this industry -- every time we fly over a country we have to pay," he said.

"International organisations are concerned ... I would like to see a bit more commitment from some governments," Bisignani said. IATA represents some 240 airlines comprising 94 percent of scheduled international air traffic.

Africa accounted for only 2 percent of air passengers carried around the world but last year's "hull loss rate" for the continent, which measures the frequency of accidents, stood at 4, compared to 0.7 globally.

The Geneva-based Aircraft Crashes Record Office (ACRO) reported 8 air accidents in the Democratic Republic of Congo alone last year.

"We have situations of old planes, from the Soviet Union, or old cargo planes that have been transformed and are carrying passengers without correct oversight from civil aviation," Bisignani said in an interview late on Wednesday.

Sierra Leone suffered from similar problems, he said.

One of last year's worst disasters occurred in Africa when a Kenya Airways Boeing 737 crashed in heavy rain after takeoff from Douala in Cameroon, killing all 114 on board.

"CONNECT TO THE WORLD"

Bisignani said Nigeria's aviation industry had made significant safety advances after 2005 when air disasters killed several hundred people. There were no major crashes in Nigeria last year.

Twenty African carriers had signed up to the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) registry, which sets a December 31 deadline for obtaining registration otherwise the airlines lose IATA membership.

IATA is providing $10 million for air safety programmes in Africa and is also giving 30 African airlines free access over three years to the organisation's flight data analysis tool to help them improve procedures and monitor compliance.

Bisignani urged African governments to seize the development potential of air transport. "With two runways, you connect a city to the world," he said.

He said this should include freeing up restrictive air traffic accords that still hampered aviation transport across almost the entire African continent.

"Let's try to find a way forward for Africa, through bilateral agreements, a bit more wide open sky between a couple of countries or capitals," Bisignani said.

He recognised African airlines, many with ageing, less fuel-efficient planes, were being harder hit by fuel prices which would saddle the world industry with a $156 billion bill this year -- nearly 30 percent of total operating costs.

Keeping up technical skills levels was also a problem. "In many countries in Africa, there is a drain of skilled pilots to other countries that can afford higher salaries," he said.

Bisignani insisted these handicaps were no justification for cutting corners on air safety in Africa, even in impoverished countries recovering from years of conflict.

"I can understand more informal, but not unsafe," he said.