Buhari guarantees ICAO Of Sustained Investment In Aviation Sector

Nigeria will continue to make sizable investments in the provision of aviation infrastructure for the safe, secure, environmentally friendly, and sustainable economic development of international civil aviation, President Muhammadu Buhari has assured the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

When he welcomed Salvatore Sciacchitano, the president of ICAO, into his audience on Tuesday in Abuja, President Buhari made the commitment.

The President recalled Nigeria’s lengthy relationship with ICAO and proclaimed:

“Nigeria has been a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) since 1962 and has continued to make valuable contributions to the ICAO Council’s work and its activities.

“This country has been playing a key role in supporting the implementation of ICAO Policies and Programmes internationally, particularly in the African region.

“To this end, Nigeria has ratified all international air law instruments like the Montreal Protocol and amendments to some articles of the Chicago Convention,” President Buhari said.

He informed his guest that Nigeria was leading the charge for aviation security, safety, and ease in Africa.

The President of Nigeria, Buhari,

“I have recently signed into law Civil Aviation Act 2022. This is to reposition the industry to ensure continuous compliance with ICAO standards and to meet the challenges of a dynamic and rapidly growing air transport sector,” while assuring the ICAO President that the “aviation industry in Nigeria is increasing by leaps and bounds.”

“I have approved also the establishment of Aviation and Aerospace University in Abuja to cater for research and development in the sector as well as the managerial challenges. In this regard, Nigeria has already started receiving the support of ICAO members like Qatar under the No Country Left Behind Initiative,” he said

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The President stated that he was optimistic about the future of the aviation industry in Nigeria, saying that “the roadmap of the Ministry of Aviation, overseen by Senator Hadi Sirika, is on course and would be sustained along with other reforms of this government.”

President Buhari expressed his gratitude for the support Nigeria had received under his administration, which he claimed had led to Nigeria’s reelection during the 41st Session of the ICAO Assembly while congratulating Mr. Sciacchitano on his election to a second term as President of the ICAO Council.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the aviation industry in Nigeria has more than doubled in size under this administration, which the country’s leader said the ICAO President has “become the fastest expanding of our economy Pre-COVID.”

He claims that “passenger numbers increased from 8 to 30 million. The five new airport terminals have increased our capacity by 50 million passengers. All of them have occurred during our seven-a-half years in office.

In a brief statement, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority’s Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, informed the President that the ICAO Air Services Negotiation (ICAN) event “will provide States, either on-site or participating remotely, with a central meeting place to conduct bilateral, regional, or plurilateral air services negotiations and consultations, as well as networking opportunities for policymakers, regulators, air operators, service providers, and other interested parties.”

He was pleased with the nation’s aviation industry’s post-COVID revival and praised it as the second-best in the world. The ICAO President informed President Buhari that the gathering provided a forum for dialogue between the country’s civil aviation authorities and attendees from around 160 other countries, adding that more than 4,000 bilateral agreements were being inked.