BY CHUKWUEMEKE IWELUNMO
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, has advised both foreign and local investors to take advantage of Nigeria’s huge population, traffic and thriving aviation market, to invest in the sector.
Keyamo, who spoke at the Africa International Trade Exhibition (AITE 2023), at Hilton Hotel, Midtown, New York, USA, specifically, pointed out that world-class Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facilities would be a good area for investors to consider first.
The Business, Trade and Investment Summit, which is being held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) is themed: “The Imperatives of Trade For African SMEs As A Game Changer For The Continent’s Future Prosperity”.
According to the Minister, there are not many MRO facilities in West Africa, a situation that makes domestic airline operators to ferry their aircraft, only to queue overseas for two months or more for their aircraft maintenance.
Emphasising that aviation sector is a gateway for investments, Keyamo also noted that the aviation sector was the sector that other Ministries have to depend upon.
On the campaign for free trade, Keyamo stated that Africa was not yet mature for promotion of free trade until the continent is able to improve connectivity within the region.
He said, “If you want to go to Central Africa from Nigeria, you first take five to six hours to Addis Ababa before you connect back for another six hours to your neighbour there in Central Africa. How can you promote free trade under that kind of warped aviation connectivity. In Africa today, we have very poor rail and road connectivity between the continents.
“We should quickly connect Africa before we think of trade across Africa like we have in Europe. The airports are there, traffic is there. Why do we have poor connectivity between major African Capitals. It is for us to come together and build a robust Africa’s aviation sector before we think about projecting intercontinental projects.”
Promising to support domestic airlines to grow and sustain their businesses, the Minister assured that he will address factors that hampers the growth of local operators, just as he noted that domestic airlines have had poor survival records over the years.
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He, however, maintained that he will hold them to the highest operating standard, while supporting them to grow.
According to the Minister, he has adopted five Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), which include strict compliance to safety regulations within the sector; support for the growth and sustenance of local operators; improvement of infrastructure within the sector; human capital development and optimisation of revenue generation within the sector.
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