FAAN moves to place Nigeria amongst top ranking cargo processing nations

DETERMINED to make Nigeria’s aviation cargo processing and facilitation increase in volumes and rank among the first in Africa, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has inaugurated an aviation cargo road map development committee that will help the organisation tackle the challenges identified to be hindering the capacity of the country in processing enough cargo freighting across the country’s airports.

Speaking at the inauguration of the committee, the Managing Director of FAAN, Captain RabiuYadudu said the emergence of the committee was the fallout of the challenges recently pointed out in a communique issued at the end of the first aviation and cargo conference held in 2021 and 2022 code named Chinet 2021 and Chinet 2022.

According to Yadudu: “I am happy today, because these challenges were identified by the various organisations represented in this Committee, I am about to inaugurate.

My happiness is doubled or even tripled because looking at the array of names that constitute the membership of this committee, I have no doubt that we have made the right choices.

“I am convinced that as highly experienced Professionals in Cargo value chain, that you will drive the development of an implementable Aviation Cargo Road Map that will address the identified challenges with a view to moving the cargo business from the level we are currently, to a desired sustainable level in the short- to long-term.

“It is our belief that your road map guidelines will be able to address the ways by which our aviation cargo processing and facilitation will increase in volumes to rank us among the first or at least the second in Africa before or by the year 2027. Currently, we are in the fifth position in Africa, having facilitated only 204, 649 Tons of Cargo in 2021. The first airport, facilitated only 363,204 Tons in the same year. And in Domestic Cargo we facilitated only 8,895 Tons in 2021. By our projections of 25 per cent on year-on year incremental basis, we expect to be ranked first or second in Africa by or before the year 2027. With you, certainly, we can achieve this.”

Among the terms of reference given to the committee include: articulating action plans that meet international best practice and assign timelines for facilitation of cargo processing at the airports, articulate guidelines that meet international best practice for Public-Private Partnership in developing modern cargo infrastructures and facilities for optimum air-cargo facilitation that meets destination Country’s standard.

The committee is expected to articulate programs and incentives that will encourage mass participation of local airlines in domestic cargo facilitation, articulate mechanisms that will bridge the turn-around time in cargo facilitation and articulate solutions to lack of adequate insurance coverage in the cargo value chain.