The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo (SAN), has said that Ekiti state is ready to compete with the rest of the world regarding agro-cargo activities.
Keyamo, who stated this in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, after inspecting the state Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport, commended the quality of work done and described the airport runway as world-class.
The minister, who said he was at the airport on a fact-finding mission, posited that the quality of the facility’s runway could be compared to any runway in the world.
He said, “Ekiti should be the commercial hub of western Nigeria regarding agro products. This is one of the hearts of western Nigeria, where many agro activities happen, and we have been missing a lot of commercial activities here. But with this facility here, you can be sure that Ekiti is ready to compete with the rest of the world regarding agro-cargo activities”.
Keyamo noted that virtually all the facilities needed for a standard airport have been provided; however, they said that the delay in commencing commercial flight operations at the airport is to allow non-scheduled flights, which is the standard procedure worldwide.
He said the AgroAllied airport had been on the Ministry of Aviation’s radar for a long time, and it was high time it commenced operation.
“Well, I am here on a fact-finding mission. The Ekiti Agro-Allied Airport has been on our radar for a long time, and we felt it was time for us to start operations there.
“What we have approved for the first six months to conduct a non-scheduled flight.
In other words, we will not have big commercial airlines coming in with plenty of passengers now, but it is ready for the private jets to come in now to test the facilities here. It’s not because it is not prepared, but it is the standard procedure all over the world: you start with a non-scheduled flight and test the facilities before bringing a lot of passengers here.
“I can see that the aeronautical side is ready, the aeronautical where you have a runway and am sure you have seen the quality of the runway; this quality of the runway you see here can be compared to any runway in the world”, the Minister asserted.
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