Reports on Enugu airport concession duration untrue, baseless - FG

The Federal government through Festus Keyamo, the minister of aviation and aerospace development has said online report and stories suggesting that a certain lengthy period of concession has been agreed upon regarding the Enugu International Airport are utterly baseless and untrue.

In a statement by Tunde Moshood, Special Adviser on Media and Communications to Kayamo, he stated that whilst it is true that the Federal Government is considering proposals for the concession of five major airports, this is a proactive measure to ensure these vital facilities can meet and maintain international standards, given the increasing financial demands of their operations.

Moshood said many of the country’s airports are presently running at a loss, so they have to be subsidised each month by the Federal Government, adding that it is noteworthy that this initiative to concession started from previous administrations.

“At this stage, prospective concessionaires have indeed submitted various proposals, including different durations for the concession. It is important to emphasize that the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development has not established any fixed duration.

“All submitted proposals are currently undergoing thorough evaluation that will eventually be reviewed by the ICRC before it is presented to the Minister for conveyance to FEC for approval. We can confirm that this review process has not been concluded,” the statement reads.

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However, for the sake of transparency, he said the minister directed, some months ago that the Aviation Labour Unions be included as part of the negotiating teams.

“Therefore, we must state unequivocally that the information suggesting a predetermined concession duration is false, unfounded, and intended to cause unwarranted disaffection and mistrust in this process by those with entrenched interests.

“Please be assured that the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development is committed to a transparent process that adheres strictly to due process. With his training and track record, the Minister will not allow anything untoward to happen under his watch.

“He has so far run the Ministry in a transparent manner and will not fall into the same mistake of the past. We will ensure that all decisions are made in the best interest of the nation and the aviation sector”, he added.

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.