Festus Keyamo, the minister of aviation and aerospace development, has signed a concession agreement for the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu.
On July 31, 2025, the federal executive council (FEC)
approved the full business case for a 30-year concession of Enugu airport.
The deal covers both the airport and its unfinished cargo
terminal, adding that it would address financial burdens associated with
smaller airports.
Tunde Moshood, special adviser on media and communications
to the minister, disclosed the the latest development in a statement on Friday.
He said the agreement was signed on Thursday at the ministry
in Abuja in the presence of officials from the Enugu state government and Aero
Alliance Limited, the concessionaire.
The media aide said the deal marks a major milestone in the
federal government’s drive to modernise aviation infrastructure through
public-private partnerships (PPPs).
In his remarks, Keyamo described the event as the conclusion
of a “painstaking and transparent” process that began several years ago.
“Today is the end of a very long and tedious process
regarding the concession of the Enugu Airport,” the minister was quoted as
saying.
“The process culminated on the 31st of July, 2025, when the
federal executive council approved the proposal to concession the Enugu
Airport, subject, of course, to contract.”
‘WE PRESERVED RIGHTS OF AVIATION WORKERS’
He said consultations were held with aviation unions to
ensure workers’ rights were protected under the concession framework.
The minister said safeguarding jobs and protecting staff
interests formed a core part of the concession framework.
“We did these agreements with the rights and privileges of
workers uppermost in our minds. Let me say today that we have fully respected
and preserved the rights of aviation workers,” Keyamo said.
He said no aviation worker will be retrenched as their
employment terms remain unchanged.
“They will continue as staff of the federal government and
the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN),” the politician said.
“Having taken care of the rights of workers, we then
addressed other critical issues and virtually covered all areas before the
signing of this agreement.”
The minister said two outstanding operational issues —
security charges and the financial model for airport operations — will be
resolved in the coming weeks to ensure smooth implementation of the concession.
“As far as the main concession is concerned, we have agreed
to concession the Enugu Airport to Aero Alliance today,” Keyamo said.
According to the statement, the concession of Enugu airport
is part of the federal government’s broader aviation sector reform agenda aimed
at attracting private investment, improving infrastructure, boosting regional
connectivity, and strengthening Nigeria’s aviation competitiveness.
The Enugu state delegation was reportedly by Obi Ozor,
commissioner for transport, while the Aero Alliance team included Chuks
Aniekwe, Oyiwodu Okibe-Oga, Onyedikachi Nwachukwu, Kester Enwereonu, and
Michael Nwaechie of Ivy Solicitors.
Also present were Yakubu Kofarmata, permanent secretary of
the ministry; Olubunmi Kuku, managing director of FAAN; and Bridget Gold,
FAAN’s director of legal services.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com