Nigerian International Airports do not have Masterplans — Keyamo
Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, stated that the five international airports in Nigeria lack a "masterplan" for enhancing infrastructural growth and development. The minister shared this information during the Channel’s TV Politics Today program in Abuja on Wednesday.
"I didn't find any masterplan on the ground throughout Nigeria," the minister replied when asked about the state of infrastructural development at the country's airports. Upon assuming office, he inquired about the masterplan for airports, particularly the five international ones, expressing concern about the absence of plans, which goes against global best practices.
"Whether a house or anything else, even a road, you must have an approved plan. I didn't find any master plan on the ground in all the five international airports in Nigeria," he remarked.
"The first thing I did was ask, 'What have you guys been doing about this?'" Describing the existing method of infrastructural development at the ministry as 'stop and start' and 'disjointed,' he conveyed his worries.
"I have informed the President that we need to start with masterplans for the five international airports. We will do it for all of them, but let's start with the five international airports," he added.
The minister further explained that the National Assembly listened to him and allocated funds for executing masterplans in the recently approved 2024 budget.
"If you look at the 2024 budget, you will see the master plan there. That's what we did," he confirmed.
Keyamo argued that the government is now engaging with world-class international design consultants worldwide to implement its ideas.
"If I buy a house and don't have money to build, I'll go and do the design first and get an approved plan before seeking money to build. That's what we are going to do," he emphasized.
The minister questioned the absence of well-developed airports in Nigeria with proper hubs, comparing them to those in other countries.
"Why can't we be as ambitious as smaller countries, even in Europe and every part of the world that has beautiful airports, world-class airports with proper hubs? We don't have a single airport in Nigeria that has a hub," Keyamo pointed out.
He announced plans to transform the major airports in Kano, Enugu, Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Abuja, seeking concessionaires worldwide to construct hubs for these airports.
"These days, air transports must converge with roads and rail transport to bring passengers to their ultimate comforts," Keyamo concluded.
