The Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, has said that the aviation sector is collapsing but the federal government is determined to revamp the sector to meet international standard.
Sirika said this when Guillemette Jaffrin and Bayo Oyewole, from the World Bank, visited him in his office in Abuja to discuss the possibility of World Bank providing assistance for development of the aviation sector.
Sirika stated that since inception of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, efforts were geared toward doing things properly.
No responsible government would allow contractors and consultants to dictate how businesses should be done to the detriment of the Nigerian populace, he said. “Government is no longer driven by contractors and consultants wishes. Activities are driven by needs.”
He stated that the dwindling prices of crude oil posed a major financial challenge to government, stressing the need to partner with investors in the private sector. He said government was willing to work with investors on a Public Private Partnership Agreement (PPP) to develop critical infrastructure in the aviation sector.
Sirika urged the World Bank to give Nigeria priority attention in its location of projects because Nigeria had the capacity and potentials to impact on the rest of Africa.
Present at the meeting were Engr. Saleh Dunoma, Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, (FAAN), Ibrahim Abdulsalam, Managing Director, Nigeria Airspace Management Agency, (NAMA), and Capt. Muhtar Usman, Director General, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Dr. Ibrahim Idris, Director Planning Research and Statistics, Federal Ministry of Transportation.
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