FAAN hosts 300 delegates, investors for ACI-Africa conference

As Nigeria needs investment in the aviation sector, no fewer than 300 delegates and investors from Africa and some other parts of the the world converge on the country as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) hosts the 59th Airport Council International Board and Regional Committees Meetings and Regional Conference and Exhibition taking in Lagos from April 14-19, 2018.
The president of ACI-Africa executive board and managing director of FAAN, Mr. Saleh Dunoma who announced this in Lagos at the Pre-ACI briefing and unveiling of the event logo gave the theme of the conference as ‘Business Transformation for Sustainable Development of African Airports.’
He described the theme as “apt” as it “tends to showcase the country’s potentials to the rest of the world.”
“Serving in the capacity as the ACI-Africa president will ensure that Nigeria is in the limelight and will also give Nigeria an advantage in decision making as it relates to aviation matters in Africa and the world,” said Dunoma.
He said Nigeria’s hosting of the conference “is a pioneer achievement for Nigeria as this is the first time in history that this prestigious position will be occupied by a Nigerian.”
He said ACI had been of tremendous assistance in the certification process of the Lagos and Abuja airports through airport excellence (APEX) in safety programme which “helped us identify safety gaps in our aerodromes.”
Highlighting some of the direct benefits accruable from the conference, Dunoma the delegates will pass through Nigerian airports, pay visa fees to the Nigeria Immigration Services, stay in various hotels and visit different historical sites before they depart.
Thereafter, the managing director said FAAN had commenced airport excellence (APEX) in safety programme at four international airports in Port Harcourt, Kano, Enugu and Kaduna.
He said the week-long APEX safety review at the Port Harcourt International Airport will be closely followed by the APEX review in Kano while the safety reviews for Kaduna and Enugu will be carried out in May.
“FAAN is engaging a proactive means of mitigating risks and ensuring the overall safety of our passengers.
Over the years, he said African airports have been run mainly as government entities without the drive for profitable management.
“This has resulted in many airports being classified as non-viable and unable to meet their operational costs. This has posed a major problem in the efficient running of nonviable airports which are unable to cater for their maintenance and operational needs thereby leading to stakeholder and customer service dissatisfaction,” he said.