Sade Williams/Business a.m.
MUNICH International and its Nigerian counterpart, F.C.I. International are reportedly in the fray as Nigeria begins what is the first step of a major review process of the country’s airport development process.
Both MUNICH and F.C.I. have been invited in a partnership to embark on a technical workshop whose goal is to lay the foundation for airports in Nigeria to begin implementing a master plan. This development follows from an approval given by Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, for the review process to kick off.
Keyamo, in a keynote presentation at the opening of the workshop done on his behalf by permanent secretary Emmanual Meribole, said it will be mandatory for Nigeria’s airports to implement master plan and adherence to master plan will be monitored by the Civil Aviation Authority.
The workshop is coming at a time when the CAA is equally embarking on aviation development master planning for the industry that will set standard parameters for aviation to thrive in Nigeria.
According to Fortune Idu, coordinator of the programme, who is also the chairman of Airport Business Summit and managing director of F.C.I International, the programme is an Airport Master Plan fact-finding technical workshop, aimed at guiding the Ministry’s technical team and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) in the acquisition, procurement, and implementation of the master planning process.
The workshop in Abuja was led by Bünck Olaf: senior consultant, masterplan programme, Munich Airport International, Germany, who has headed the supervision of over 13 global airports’ masterplan processes.
The workshop is designed to increase awareness of the relevance, application, and implementation process of airport master planning and prepare a well-informed group that will eventually become full custodians of the master plan when it is developed. This report will support and help guide the upcoming master planning process.
In his opening remark, Chris Najomo, acting director general, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), said the masterplan process both embarked upon at the Ministry level, CAA and FAAN showed the administration’s commitment to entrenching an enduring aviation development process as part of the renewed hope agenda of the president, Bola Ahamed Tinubu and enshrined in the mandate of the minister.
Najomo charged all the participants to be fully involved in this process as that will make aviation development more sustainable and safer for all.
Those who attended the workshop were representatives of the Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, all the aviation agencies, and some state airports’ representatives.
