ACI - Airports Council International

07/26/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 07/26/2021 07:28

ACI World and Duty Free World Council forge new training partnership

New opportunities for training front-line and management staff

Montreal, 26 July 2021 - Airports Council International (ACI) World and the Duty Free World Council (DFWC) have today signed a Memorandum of Understanding fostering a closer strategic partnership for training of front-line and management staff.

The strategic cooperation will include the hosting of DFWC Academy online training courses in ACI's Online Learning Centre to provide new staff training and advanced training for professionals in the aviation sector and also in the maritime sector and across the broad sweep of brands found in travel retail - all accessible through the same platform.

ACI Global Training and the DFWC Academy will apply advanced training methods and modules to develop other future joint education programs that will benefit both organizations' members.

The partnership will provide more opportunities for industry employees to access professional development and education, executive leadership, professional accreditation, subject-matter competency, and training courses.

'Around 60% of aviation jobs are at airports and airports recognize the importance of commercial activities as job generators, such as retail and duty free,' ACI World Director General Luis Felipe de Oliveira said. 'The airport community recognizes that learning and development - how staff are developed, how they work, and how they are supported in their professional goals - is a key contributor to success and this partnership will help enrich this work. Working together with other organizations in our ecosystem will improve cooperation among the stakeholders and will help not only on the recovery of the industry but in forging the way forward into the future.'

DFWC President Sarah Branquinho said that learning and development will be more important than ever in the near future as our industry recovers from the enforced closures and disruptions of the last twelve plus months.

'A lot of retail experience and expertise has, unfortunately, been lost and our industry will welcome many new staff members as stores re-open across all travel sectors, aviation and maritime,' Sarah Branquinho said.

'The provision of high-quality training programmes that will enable retail staff to deliver the best possible in-store experience for travellers and optimise revenues for our industries will be critically important. Our partnership with ACI on online training recognises the key role the duty free and travel retail industry plays in the broader aviation sector and reinforces an already strong and valuable co-operation.'

Notes for editors

  1. See the ACI Online Learning Centre.
  2. Airports Council International (ACI), the trade association of the world's airports, was founded in 1991 with the objective of fostering cooperation among its member airports and other partners in world aviation, including the International Civil Aviation Organization, the International Air Transport Association and the Civil Air Navigation Services Organization. In representing the best interests of airports during key phases of policy development, ACI makes a significant contribution toward ensuring a global air transport system that is safe, secure, customer-centric and environmentally sustainable. As of January 2021, ACI serves 701 members, operating 1933 airports in 183 countries.
  3. The Duty Free World Council, the DFWC, is the industry association representing the interests of the global duty free and travel retail channel and has the overall objective of creating the optimal operating environment for the industry that will allow it to achieve its full potential.

Media contacts

David Whitely
ACI World
Telephone: +1 514 373 1200
Email: [email protected]

Gerard Murray
DFWC
Telephone: +32.2.354.73.21
Email: [email protected]