FG generates $8.2billion from air transport annually

Nigeria’s Federal government generates about $8.2billion annually from air transport operations across the country, Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika has said.

Sirika spoke on Wednesday at the 15th National Council on Transportation (NCT) in Sokoto. The Minister did not list the components of the $8.2billion, however, governments generate such monies through sources like Landing and parking charges, overflight charges, fuel tax passenger service charge, bilateral air services agreements, among others.

According to the minister, Nigeria has twenty seven functional airports and several privately owned airstrips and helipads. The airports in 2016 handled 15.2 million passengers, ferried over 195, 230 metric tonnes of cargo and 7, 373.0 metric tonnes of mails.

“According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), air transport in Nigeria supports more than 650, 800 jobs including tourism-related employment, while contributing US$8.2 billion to the country’s GDP annually,” the minister stated.

The Minister who was represented by Sabiu Zakari, who is the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transportation said these statistics underscore the importance of aviation in the economy of Nigeria but, that in relation to the country’s population size and geographical location, it has the potential to do much more.

Sirika further said there is no effective inter-modality of air transportation with other modes in terms of infrastructural linkages except road network currently. However, construction works are at advanced stage to connect the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport to rail while master plans of the other International airports have provision for rail linkages, according to him.

He also recalled that the President had approved a robust Roadmap for aviation sub-sector which intends to address some of the infrastructural gaps and challenges with a view to providing long-term solutions.

“Some key component of the road map include. Airport concession, establishment of a National Carrier, establishment of Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility, development of Agro- allied Cargo infrastructure, establishment of Aerospace University, setting up of Aviation Leasing Company and establishment of Aerotropolis or airport cities through Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement,” said Sirika.

The Minister raised the confidence that that the road map will promote efficiency, effectiveness and better service delivery in the aviation.

 

Stella Enenche, Sokoto