President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to attend the opening ceremony of the World Aviation Forum, and flag off the event.
This was contained in a statement issued today by the Deputy Director of Press and Public Affairs, Federal Ministry of Aviation, Mr James Odaudu.
According to the statement, the President’s presence was to emphasise the importance attached to the consideration of Nigeria’s emergence as the first country to host the annual event organised by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
The three-day event, which holds from November 20 – 22 in Abuja, will be the first to be held outside the ICAO Headquarters in Montreal, Canada. It also underscores Nigeria’s rising profile within the aviation world.
Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, said Nigeria’s hosting of the ICAO World Aviation Forum, coming so soon after the country hosted the ICAO Symposium on Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), is a clear indication of the confidence the Buhari administration has elicited within the sector, and an endorsement by the world body of its reform programmes for the nation’s aviation industry.
“The third ICAO World Aviation Forum, which is intended to explore the benefits of the aviation sector to social, economic development and prosperity of member states, is aimed at top-ranking government officials in charge of aviation, transport and infrastructure, finance, economy and tourism; and key industry and financial partners.
“The forum is also expected to discuss, identify needs, and facilitate the funding and financing required to accelerate the implementation of international civil aviation standards and policies, as well as global plans for aviation, in support of the ICAO No Country Left Behind (NCLB) initiative,” the statement read in part.
The objectives of the forum include the establishment and alignment of infrastructure programmes and plans that are consistent with the ICAO global strategic plans for aviation like the Global Aviation Safety Plan (GASP) and the Global Air Navigation Plan (GANP).
The meeting will also discuss the stimulation of common and interoperable air transport systems leading to the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
On the benefits of the forum, Mr Sirika said it is expected to build on the outcomes of the two previous ICAO World Aviation Forums (IWAF/1 and IWAF/2) held in November 2015 and September 2016 respectively.
He added that it will also tackle the existing and future financing challenges facing aviation infrastructure and capacity development in member states, especially in Africa, in the spirit of the ‘No Country Left Behind’ initiative.
The minister said Nigeria appreciates the honour and privilege of being the first country to host the Forum and appealed to ICAO for continuous support for the country’s drive to reposition its aviation sector.
Ekiti Government has said the ongoing construction of the Cargo Airport at Ipogun in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area would completed in 18 months.
Mr Bunmi Awotiku, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Airport Project, said this when Ekiti House of Assembly Committee on Works and Transport visited the site on Friday at Ipogun.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the project started in October 2019.
The Chairman of the House Committee, Chief Olugboyega Aribisogan, said that the airport was a timeless legacy, which would enhance the rapid transformation and development of the state.
Aribisogan, accompanied by other committee members, said they were at the site to examine the level of work done on the project.
The chairman assured that the Assembly would give necessary legislative support to the state Executive to enable it deliver the dividend of democracy to the people of the state
Passengers have commended the integrity and professionalism demonstrated by the Dana Air security team on discovery of valuable items forgotten onboard its aircraft
The airline in a statement issued by its Media and Communications Manager, Kingsley Ezenwa said, ‘we are not surprised by the recent commendations that our security team has been getting on their constant display of integrity and professionalism on and off the job.
‘’There have been many cases of lost and recovered items like phones, ipads, huge sums of money, Nigerian passports with valid visas and lots of valuable items. We have also returned a lot of missing foreign and Nigerian passports to the immigration, embassies and even sometimes call the owners in the cases where we are able to track the passenger’s booking with authentic details. This is also one of the reasons we advise passengers to enter their correct details when booking.’’
Recently, a passenger on one of our flight from Abuja to Lagos left a bag containing $5,000 and some other valuables. On getting to Victoria Island, he noticed he wasn’t with the bag and dashed back to the airport, met the security team who confirmed the item was found. He proved ownership of the item; completed necessarily documents and got his missing item back immediately.
He thanked the security team for displaying a high level of integrity and professionalism in handling an issue that involved hard currency. He also appreciated the staff for proving all the negative things they hear about Nigerians wrong.
Another passenger, Musa Anasemi, who forgot a Nigerian passport with a valid US visa, said he didn’t have an idea where he left the passport, but after about nine days, he decided to check with us. He got his passport with gratitude and praises for the airline and the security staff that found the item and declared it.
We carry out our due diligence in recruitment across board and have invested heavily in training and retraining of staff. We also try our best to keep staff happy in our little way and these are the results.
We are also glad that our staffs have been able to prove to the world that some of the things they hear about us around the world are actually not true. The safety, comfort and well-being of our guests will remain a top priority and we will continue to keep the flag flying.’’
In 2018, Dana Air had 34 of its air passengers’ luggage missing with 32 of them recovered between January and December of same year according to a report obtained from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
The airline’s security team have been commended for not only displaying integrity but for foiling series of security threats to its aircraft.