President Bola Tinubu, in a move aimed at resolving financial issues, has instructed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to establish a quarterly reconciliation platform with foreign airlines. This initiative is designed to tackle the backlog of trapped funds, which stands at over $600 million.
Airbus Industrie, a prominent aircraft manufacturer, made a noteworthy prediction during the summit, stating that Nigeria’s domestic air traffic is expected to increase by five per cent annually for the next two decades.
Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has raised concerns and criticized Nigeria for the various charges imposed on airlines that operate within its borders.
Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, shared details of the reconciliatory meeting during the African Aviation Summit in Abuja. He highlighted that this was one of the objectives behind President Tinubu’s visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Additionally, he introduced three pivotal roadmap projects: the Aerotropolis, Aircraft Leasing Company (ALC), and a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility. He also outlined five strategic focus areas to actualize Nigeria’s aspiration of becoming an aviation hub in Africa.
These key areas consist of infrastructure upgrades, the establishment of an Aircraft Leasing Company (ALC), the development of a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility, and ensuring the availability of forex.
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Keyamo said: ‘The recent global events further exposed the immense contribution and importance of air transportation as a catalyst for economic development, vital engine of global socio-economic growth, one of the greatest contributors to the advancement of modern society and a key instrument for achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs.’
‘These underscore why the world was greatly impacted when international aviation was disrupted by the pandemic and other global occurrences. It is the vision of this current administration to make Nigeria the aviation hub of Africa.’
‘Government welcomes major players in aircraft leasing and head lessors to invest in Nigeria airlines to provide state of the art aircraft.’
‘The government will ensure the enforcement of contract agreements and the rights of investors and indeed all parties are protected and Nigeria being a signatory to the Cape Town Convention will uphold international obligations.’
‘This administration is committed to ensuring that forex is readily available to entrepreneurs, thus the president has directed that the CBN holds quarterly reconciliation meetings, with a view to resolving this issue.’
‘CBN is open to providing tax holidays to encourage existing and new entrants into the Nigerian aviation sector. I wish to reiterate that my administration, will continue to sustain the support being given to the industry.’