Keyamo Meets NiMet Executives Amid Workers’ Strike

Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has entered a closed-door meeting with executives of the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet) as its workers continue proceed with nationwide indefinite strike over unresolved welfare issues.

The meeting, which is currently underway, was confirmed by Keyamo’s special adviser on media and communications, Tunde Moshood, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday.

“The Hon. Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo SAN is in a closed-door meeting with the executives of striking NiMet workers. Details will be released soon,” the statement read.

The strike, which began on Wednesday, has grounded flight operations across the country and disrupted key services in the aviation sector.

NiMet employees are protesting what they described as the agency’s refusal to negotiate or implement agreed financial allowances and entitlements. Among the grievances are unpaid wage awards, peculiar allowances, and outstanding arrears from the implementation of the 2019 minimum wage.

The striking workers also accused NiMet’s management of deliberately withholding essential documents, failing to address repeated requests for the inclusion of omitted staff in past disbursements, and prioritising executive retreats over staff training programmes.

The ripple effect of the industrial action is already being felt across Nigeria’s aviation landscape.

One of the country’s major carriers Air Peace on Wednesday announced suspension of all flight operations nationwide.

In a statement, the airline cited the absence of QNH (atmospheric pressure) reports, which are crucial for safe aircraft landings, as a direct consequence of the NiMet strike.