Some stakeholders in the Nigerian aviation sector, including members of the National Assembly, are worried that investors from some Middle East countries are expressing interest in the planned concession of Nigerian airports.
Reports say that the interests received so far from countries such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar are bothering the stakeholders because of the security implication for Nigeria and alleged “lopsided agenda” currently put forward either by coincidence or deliberately in the concession buildup.
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) recently granted approval for the concession of the four international airports in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Kano. The approval, currently being worked out by the Ministry of Aviation, is the first phase of the plan to concession all the twenty-two federal government-owned airports nationwide.
It is believed that President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent visit to Turkey helped to boost the interest of Turkish investors in the nation’s aviation sector. But besides Turkey, Saudi and Qatari investors have also shown interest in the multi-million dollar concession arrangement. The National Assembly Joint Committee on Aviation is, however, worried about the antecedent of a country like Turkey that has been serving as a channel through which arms and ammunition were smuggled into Nigeria.
While the Turkish authorities have denied having a hand in the arms-trafficking saga, aviation experts are wary of future transactions with Turkish investors. Aviation union members participating in the process said it was to prevent the airports from falling into the wrong hands that they demanded to be part of the concession process for transparency, which they feel is on course.
On the implication of such concerns for the concession plan, aviation security consultant, Group Captain John Ojikutu (rtd), said “whereas we cannot but be skeptical with the biddings, expression of interest is also coming from Europe and Canada, and all need to be patient.”
He said from his conversation with the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, there were several hurdles in the concession process and it was less likely that the wrong bidders would be able to grab a pie in the exercise.
Group Captain Ojikutu, who is also the Secretary General of the Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative, said that in lieu of the security concerns, he had advised all concerned participants to focus on concession of the terminals, cargo sections and car parks among others, but not the aeronautical side. According to him, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has warned African countries since 2009 not to concession the aeronautical side because of the security issues involved.
