‘Aviation Passengers Increased To 18m In 4 Years’

The minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika said the aviation passengers have increased from eight million to 18 million passengers in the last four years.

The minister, who state this in Abuja on Tuesday, also said the aviation sector is one of the fastest growing sector before COVID-19 and after the COVID-19 pandemic, it is now the fourth growing sector in Nigeria.

Speaking on the aviation road map, the minister said there are 43 airports in Nigeria, though some are air strips but once plane lands and take off from there, they are all regarded as airports and called on private investors to take advantage of the Abuja airport city and invest in the sector.

He said the return on investment in the aviation sector is about 37 per cent and called on investors looking into the Abuja airport City which is already designated as trade free zone with about 24, 000 hectares of land for investment opportunities.

Speaking on the ongoing aviation conference in Abuja, the minister said: “this is the maiden edition of this conference, and I do hope that going forward, the conference would be institutionalized as a platform where great ideas that will propel the Nigerian aviation sector into a global reference point will be developed.”

“The aviation sector in Nigeria is a goldmine, with lots of latent potentials waiting to be explored. Our vantage position in terms of regional positioning, population and natural resources has positioned us strategically as a continental leader.

“The aviation industry must therefore pull resources together to take advantage of these opportunities. The theme of this conference, ‘Advancing the frontiers of possibilities for safe, secure and profitable air transport’ is very timely, and could not have come at a better time.

“Globally, the core variables driving air transport is safety and security. Therefore, we must continue to discuss issues that bother on these variables. Also, while we continue to emphasize safety and security, we must operate profitably, so as to be able to achieve efficiency and sustainability.

On the part of government, our doors are open, and we are always willing and ready to discuss business, and partner with investors to bring the desired growth and development to the industry.”