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Top Nigerian aviation consultant says sector restructuring long overdue
BETTER landside training, tighter regulation and greater privatisation is the best way to fix what's wrong with Nigerian aviation, says Bates Sule, general aviation consultant in an extended interview with This Day of Lagos.
"If you privatise the airports, business will boom," said Mr Sule, former managing director of Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (nahco), which is owned by 80,000 shareholders.
"Cargo operations require a cargo apron and it requires cargo warehouses. If you build modern cargo warehouses and run them efficiently farm produce can pass through seamlessly," he said, answering a question on export substitution now oil prices are so low.
"The solution to the infrastructure challenges can be found through restructuring of the aviation sector," said Mr Sule, also CEO of AviaPort Services Limited consultancy.
He first recalled that the 2004 act establishing the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), should now be amended to achieve greater privatisation.
"The amendment will be to allow for partial privatisation of the authority along the present FAAN zonal structure, which is made up of Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt and their airports.
"They can be named Airports Company of Lagos Plc, Abuja Airports Company Plc, Kano Airports Authority Plc, etc. The process shall be through open bids arising from the necessary framework to be approved by government," said Mr Sule.
"This will give rise to five airport authorities including FAAN. The infrastructure to be privatised shall be the landside, which will be limited to the airport access road and car parks, the terminal building and apron where aircraft are parked.
"FAAN would take charge of the airside which will include the taxiways, runways, perimeter fence, access roads on the airside, airfield lightings including approach lights and the provision of fire services in all the airports in the country that are currently under its jurisdiction," he said.
"I strongly propose that Aviation Security (AVSEC) be relocated to the Office of the National Security Adviser under a department to be known as Department of Airport Security (DAS).
"This department with a commander as its head will compose of the Army, Air Force, Police and FAAN Security. The Army and Air Force will secure the airside, Aviation Security will secure the terminal building while carrying out their statutory function of screening passengers and the police will secure the landside," Mr Sule said.
"In order to achieve all of these the Federal Government will have to set up a high-powered committee of stakeholders including the aviation unions that will devise the required framework.
Similar to the unbundling of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), the staff of FAAN will be transferred to the respective airport companies.
The two ground-handling companies are in the midst of a price war, he said.
This has led to inefficient delivery of service. And even some airlines are beginning to doubt the kind of pricing they receive from these handling companies," he said.
"So there is need for NCAA [Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority] to step in into the pricing structure of the services being rendered by the ground handling companies and to carry out more stringent oversight functions on them," he said.
"So I will want to encourage NCAA to train its personnel on how to carry out oversight functions on the ground handling companies. Not just carry out oversight functions but also to regulate the companies economically in terms of pricing," Mr Sule said.
"If you privatise the airports, business will boom," said Mr Sule, former managing director of Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (nahco), which is owned by 80,000 shareholders.
"Cargo operations require a cargo apron and it requires cargo warehouses. If you build modern cargo warehouses and run them efficiently farm produce can pass through seamlessly," he said, answering a question on export substitution now oil prices are so low.
"The solution to the infrastructure challenges can be found through restructuring of the aviation sector," said Mr Sule, also CEO of AviaPort Services Limited consultancy.
He first recalled that the 2004 act establishing the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), should now be amended to achieve greater privatisation.
"The amendment will be to allow for partial privatisation of the authority along the present FAAN zonal structure, which is made up of Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt and their airports.
"They can be named Airports Company of Lagos Plc, Abuja Airports Company Plc, Kano Airports Authority Plc, etc. The process shall be through open bids arising from the necessary framework to be approved by government," said Mr Sule.
"This will give rise to five airport authorities including FAAN. The infrastructure to be privatised shall be the landside, which will be limited to the airport access road and car parks, the terminal building and apron where aircraft are parked.
"FAAN would take charge of the airside which will include the taxiways, runways, perimeter fence, access roads on the airside, airfield lightings including approach lights and the provision of fire services in all the airports in the country that are currently under its jurisdiction," he said.
"I strongly propose that Aviation Security (AVSEC) be relocated to the Office of the National Security Adviser under a department to be known as Department of Airport Security (DAS).
"This department with a commander as its head will compose of the Army, Air Force, Police and FAAN Security. The Army and Air Force will secure the airside, Aviation Security will secure the terminal building while carrying out their statutory function of screening passengers and the police will secure the landside," Mr Sule said.
"In order to achieve all of these the Federal Government will have to set up a high-powered committee of stakeholders including the aviation unions that will devise the required framework.
Similar to the unbundling of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), the staff of FAAN will be transferred to the respective airport companies.
The two ground-handling companies are in the midst of a price war, he said.
This has led to inefficient delivery of service. And even some airlines are beginning to doubt the kind of pricing they receive from these handling companies," he said.
"So there is need for NCAA [Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority] to step in into the pricing structure of the services being rendered by the ground handling companies and to carry out more stringent oversight functions on them," he said.
"So I will want to encourage NCAA to train its personnel on how to carry out oversight functions on the ground handling companies. Not just carry out oversight functions but also to regulate the companies economically in terms of pricing," Mr Sule said.
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