AMSL, Aero maintenance facility, others take centre stage as Kagame declares AVAF25 open

L-R: Tony Ugwuanyi, a participant, Kemi Olubadewo, General Manager, AMSL; David Jones, Director of Sales, EMEA, Dunlop Aircraft Tyres, Clayton Redhead and David Olubadewo, CEO of AMSL, at AMSL stand during the 9th edition of Aviation Africa Summit and Exhibition (AVAF25), ongoing in Kigali, Rwanda.

Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda, on Wednesday declared open, the the 9th Aviation Africa Summit and Exhibition (AVAF25), scheduled for September 4-5, 2025, at the Radisson Blu Hotel and Convention Center in Kigali.

Major aviation companies that represented Nigeria at the International event include: Airline Management Support Limited (AMSL), a Nigerian company primarily focused on supplying aircraft parts like tires, consumables, and expendables.

Aero MRO, a subsidiary of the oldest airline in the country, Aero Contractors, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON)and another aviation related group, Women In Aviation (WiA) were also in attendance.

Others are: Airbus, Dunlop, Rolls Royce, AFRAA, AFBAA, Diamond Aircraft, Aeroworld, Ethiopian MRO, Embraer, Flyco Training Services, NAVPASS, Mediterranean Aviation Services, Etam Aviation Services Ltd etc.

Speaking at the opening Ceremony of the event with theme: “Collaborating To Unlock Afr Aviation Growth; How Can Africa Deliver Sustainable Aviation Industry?”, President Kagame thanked the organisers of the event-Times Aerospace Events Ltd, for once again, bring it to Rwanda, emphasising the his government is honoured to host the event.

According to the President, Aviation Africa Summit and Exhibition (AVAF25) has been pivotal in the growth of Aviation in Africa.

Kagame emphasised the importance of drones in the areas of time management and saving lives, saying “Today, a self-flying Air Taxi will take to the skies. It is the first time in the African Continent”.

Assuring that, in coming years, Air Traffic is expected to double, Kagame said efforts have been made by the Rwandan government to open up the skies, commending AFCFTA for its enabling role in economic prosperity.

He announced that Rwanda has removed visa restrictions for all African Citizens, adding that RwandAir is also expanding it’s fleets. He equally noted that African airline operators face high operational costs and infrastructural gaps in Africa.

Noting that travel should not be exclusively for the rich, the President advised that Africa can achieve much more if they are together as they have all the resources and capabilities.

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Also speaking, Alan Peaford, Chairman, Aviation Africa Summit, commended the Rwandan government for the successes recorded by the Summit over the years,adding that Rwanda is a global leader in collaboration.

He observed that Africa’s Aviation sector is affected very expensive fuel and airport taxes, just as there is shortage of security workers.

“Rwanda was the torchbearer for change and in 2017, with thanks to President Paul Kagame and the commitment and support of RCAA, the Ministry of Infrastructure and other Rwandan departments, we were able to bring Aviation Africa into Africa with the industry free to access Kigali without hindrance”, Peaford said.

“While Rwanda may have been slow to embrace the openness that Rwanda offered then, it is gradually happening. The African unions flagship initiative to create a Single Unified Air Transport Market in Africa (SAATM) ”

The event scheduled for 4th to 5th September, 2025 attracted exhibitors, comprising of}} manufacturers, Civil Aviation regulators, Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO), Ground Service providers, Aviation Insurance providers, Aircraft Tyre makers, etc.

Speaking at the AMSL Stand in Kigali,
David Olubadewo, the Chief Executive Officer of AMSL, said the Summit is unique in the sense that it is a big one.

Olubadewo who described the Summit as a success pointed out that, there were no hitches as recorded in other places in past, adding that coming to the Summit was easy enough.

He noted that, though, the Summit was a success, not many Nigerians attended the summit as expected.

Also speaking, Kemi Olubadewo, General Manager of AMSL, confirmed the success of the summit, adding that AMSL came to break new frontiers.

She said “As the industry is growing, AMSL is also growing in terms of consumables like tyres, oil, etc needed for easy operations of the industry”.

“We are here in Kigali to create more awareness as well as sales. So far, the feedback has been encouraging”.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.