The Federal government of Nigeria has called on other African countries to evolve new strategies that would make their airports achieve sustainable and profitable revenue generation.
Speaking through the Secretary to the Government of Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha who formally declared open the ongoing 59th Airports Council International (ACI-Africa Board and Regional Committees Meetings and Regional Conference and Exhibition, at Oriental Hotels, Lekki, Lagos, the Federal Government said the role of partnership with the private sector cannot be over-emphasised in the strategies.
Mustapha said that Africa must evolve new strategies if its airports must witness sustainable development even as he insisted that the role of private sector partnership in airport infrastructural development must not be played down.
“For sustainable development of African airports, new strategies must also evolve. These strategies include holistic planning for defined development targets; effective and efficient financing plan and successful implementation. The role of partnership with the private sector cannot be over-emphasised,” He said.
The SGF also added, “All these would be complemented by a reliable legal, institutional and regulatory framework to institutionalise policy.”
Mustapha noted that most of the airports infrastructure are public owned, stated that the federal government in its bid to ensure sustainability of its airports, has embarked on promoting infrastructural development facilities renewal and the implementation of policies aimed at facilitating the growth and sustainability of the Sector.
Towards this end, he said the federal government has undertaken some key steps such as hosting the lnternational World Aviation Forum (WAP) in Abuja the first of its kind to be held outside the Montreal Headquarters of International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO); Certification of two of the Nation’s key Airports namely; Murtala Muhammed lnternational Airport Lagos and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Abuja; Construction of five new lnternational Terminals (Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Enugu) to expand passenger handling capacity to 15 million annually; Implementation of Aviation Sector Roadmap which was approved by the President in 2016 aimed at opening opportunities for investment;
Implementation of Aviation Sector Roadmap which was approved by the President in 2016 aimed at opening opportunities for investment;
Others steps taken according to the SGF included the concession of four International Airports as well as the establishment of Search and Rescue Unit to be implemented through Public and Private Partnership;
Establishment of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) with the mandate to remove bureaucratic bottlenecks and constraints to doing business in Nigeria;
Issuance of Executive Orders aimed at facilitating and easing entry experience of investors, visitors and travellers at the nation’s ports.
Reiterating the commitment of the present administration to attracting investors and investments into Nigeria and is providing appropriate legislation , infrastructure and security to protect them, he said apart from the earlier synergies it had with the ACI, the federal government eagerly awaits the outcome of the deliberations and actionable points of the conference
In his welcome speech at the event, the Managing Director of Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the President of ACI Africa, Engr. Saleh Dunoma
The president of ACI -Africa who recalled that FAAN’s relationship with ACI Africa spans over a decade has been a worthwhile and mutually benefitting one, said the council in conjunction with other international bodies, has worked with FAAN to ensure improved human capacity development by providing various standard and customised trainings in different skill areas to ensure safe, secure and efficiently managed the nation’s airports.
Noting that Nigeria has been in the forefront in striving to attain the highest levels of safety standards, he said the nation was able to get two of its busiest airports certified with the assistance of the APEX in safety programme which he said would soon be applied to other gateway airports in the country.
He therefore urged the nation to look into how to transform its airports from social services provider to ones that generate sustainable revenue.
“The evolving nature of airport management demands a transformation of airports which now mostly serve as public service providers and not commercial enterprises that are efficiently managed to generate more revenues and subsequently declare profits,” Dunoma said.
