FAAN to concession 17 airports besides the 4 international ones
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Another 17 airports across the country managed by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) are to be concessioned besides the four international ones in Port Harcourt, Lagos, Abuja, and Kano now undergoing the process of private enterprise.
Civil aviation regulations are also being reviewed for unbundling to make entry requirements for aviation investors easier, said Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika.
He made the disclosures at the National Aviation Conference in Abuja, saying apart from the current concession of four major international airports, other airports would also be concessioned in due course.
FAAN manages 21 airports on behalf of the government and is going through the process of concessioning the international ones in Port Harcourt, Lagos, Abuja, and Kano.
“For investments in the airports, airport concessions, starting with the five international airports are also excellent opportunities for investments. Other airports too gradually will be out on concession.
“There are a lot of state airports, a lot of private airports, I believe they need resources and investments and I’m sure the owners/operators of these airports will welcome investments from the private sector to enable them to achieve their strategic goals for implementing these projects,” Sirika said.
He was represented by Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Director General Musa Nuhu.
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Rejigging regulations
“So, by and large, the Nigerian aviation industry offers several opportunities for investments and we as the regulator, we are working at the regulations to unbundle them and make it easier for people to invest in all areas,” Sirika added, per The PUNCH.
“This is especially in general aviation which has significant sectors and we are going to be unbundling our regulations to make the entry requirements much easier so that people are encouraged to invest.”
FAAN Commercial and Business Development Director Sadiku Rafindadi reiterated that the Nigerian aviation market is huge yet untapped.
He said FAAN plans to fully tap the potential and harness the opportunities in the 21 airports managed by the authority.
