The Federal Government has said Nigeria’s new national airline, known as Nigeria Air, would officially commence operations in April 2022.
Hadi Sirika, the minister of aviation announced the take-off date while briefing state house correspondents after the federal executive council (FEC) meeting at the presidential villa, Abuja.
He said the Nigerian government would hold a five per cent stake in the proposed national carrier. Nigerian entrepreneurs would hold 46 per cent.
Sirika said the remaining 49 per cent would be reserved for yet to be assigned strategic equity partners, including foreign investors.
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Hadi Sirika said the national carrier would create about 70,000 jobs for Nigerians.
Sirika had shortly after coming into office in 2015 launched an aviation development roadmap that included a new national carrier and other interventions in the country’s aviation sector as priorities.
The project, a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is to replace the defunct Nigeria Airways which ceased operations in 2003.
