February 02, (THEWILL) – Key players in the nation’s aviation industry have noted that the aviation industry performance between 2015 and 2023 is far below par.
The observation was made by members of the Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative (ART), an apolitical aviation-based non-governmental organisation (NGO), established to advocate air safety and security in all areas of the aviation industry.
They made the observation at the very first Breakfast Business Meeting (BBM) in 2023, which was held Thursday, at Golfview Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos
Speaking on the Scorecard of the present administration, President of ART, Dr Gabriel Olowo, in his welcome address, said that in 2022, the professional body has evaluated the response rate to the topical issues treated in their past BBMs during the Buhari-led two-term administration.
Reeling out the score sheet, Dr Olowo said “6% of recommendations were implemented; 42% were working in progress (WIP), while 52% remained unscratched in 8 years. However we view it, the industry performance between 2015 and 2023 is far below par.”
On the government’s key performance indices, the president added that while the National Carrier project is a stillbirth, National Maintenance & Repair Organisation (MRO) is yet to be realised.
According to him, FAAN airport concessions have remained inconclusive, just as he admitted that the Civil Aviation Authority and establishment of the Nigeria Transportation Investigation Board (NTIB) are very successful.
“We’re grateful to the professionals in the CAA and the NTIB for their dutiful role in ensuring aviation safety”, Olowo said.
Dr Olowo equally noted some pending issues in the Nigerian aviation industry, which include failure to establish some aviation agency boards as stated in the Civil Aviation Act (CAA), which violates Section 29:1 of the Civil Aviation Act, as contained in Section 11:1 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution.
He also raised the issue of who takes responsibility for the financial losses airlines and service providers incurred during the recent strike that disrupted business activities at the airport.
Explaining further, Dr Olowo said, “Poor communication and crisis management exacerbated the strike’s collateral damages. A domestic carrier reportedly lost N500 million due to MM2’s abrupt shutdown.
“The ART strongly condemns the strike and management’s inadequate response. With apologies, adequate compensation should be provided to all parties affected. Regrettably, if “the plan of change is not higher than the pain of remaining the same, people don’t change.”
He condemned a situation where the new airport terminal building in Lagos commissioned by the President last year was said not to have had an aircraft apron for parking, ditto the one in Abuja that is obstructing the control tower.
Another issue he raised is the fact that the light rail line in Abuja does not connect to the airport terminal building, wondering if there were no plans before these projects were executed.
He also envisioned that the newly commissioned Blue and Red Line Rails in Lagos would share links with the airport terminal buildings.
Meanwhile, the cardinal objective of ART is the advancement of the Nigerian aviation sector through a consistent working relationship with the government and knowledge-sharing among stakeholders.
The group organised the BBM to address the question of “Aviation in Nigeria Beyond 2023 General Elections: Challenges and Prospects.”
Key participants include Professor Pat Utomi, founder, Centre for Value in Leadership; Asiwaju Olanrewaju Jim-Kamal, NNPP Gubernatorial candidate in Lagos State; Mr Andrew Okunuga, former MD, Nigerian Airways; Professor Anthony Kila, Professor of Strategy and Development and Professor Egwukhe Johnson, Professor of Business Administration, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, among others.
About the Author
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
