‘Reducing NCAA Funds Dangerous To Aviation Safety’

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the regulator of the Nigerian aviation industry, has warned about the consequences of continued preying on its revenue, would cripple its operations and jeopardise aviation safety.

Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the NCAA, Michael Achimugu stated this in a chat with journalists in Abuja.

The reaction is coming following attempts to reduce the NCAA’s share of the Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) in favour of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), even though NAMA, by law, should be a self-sustaining agency.
The Bill is already under consideration at the National Assembly.

Achimugu warned that such a move, if actualised, could further weaken the Authority’s financial position and render it unable to meet its regulatory oversight, adding that safety would be compromised and all travellers, regardless of status, would be at grave risk.

According to Achimugu, “The CAA even requires more money, first of all, let’s not forget that the federal government makes deductions from what even comes to the CAA in the first place. Any way you look at it, this move by a revenue-generating agency to cut even more into the CAA’s cost recovery is a very unnecessary move, … The reason planes are not falling from the sky today under this administration, unlike in the past, is because of the CAA.

“The staff of the regulatory agency must be better trained than the service providers they regulate. If inspectors do not possess superior technical knowledge, they cannot effectively enforce safety standards.”

He credited the NCAA’s regulatory oversight for Nigeria’s strong performance in international aviation safety and security audits, as well as improvements in passenger rights protection.

“The reason Nigeria continues to excel in safety and security audits is because of the NCAA. The reason passengers’ rights are better protected today is because of the NCAA,” he stated.

Achimugu called on stakeholders to carefully consider the implications of reducing the NCAA’s financial capacity, saying aviation regulators across the world are adequately funded because of the critical role they play in safeguarding lives.

He maintained that rather than seeking a larger share of the NCAA’s statutory allocation, agencies with independent revenue-generating mandates should focus on their own funding streams.

Achimugu highlighted that worried by this development, the Hon, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo, SAN, has waded in to resolve the issue.

Recall that by law, the NCAA collects 5 per cent TSC and remits to NAMA, NiMet, NCAT and NSIB based on what the law prescribes.

Reacting to the issue, aviation expert, Johnson Adeh, said “countries where air navigation service providers (ANSPs) like NAMA are commercialised or privatised are not funded by the government.
Thus, the concept for the creation of NAMA ab-initio was that it should be self-funded and not dependent on govt treasury.

” The NCAA, as a safety regulator, was to be funded by the government. However, the five per cent TSC was introduced to absolve the government of that responsibility. Yet, from this major funding window of the Authority, the government still ceded a significant portion to other aviation agencies to aid their revenues.”