FG backs Fly Nigeria Act to empower domestic airlines, curb global conspiracy

By Kasim Isa Muhammad

Kanempress News

14th December 2024

The federal government has backed the proposed Fly Nigeria Act to empower domestic operators and grow the its aviation sector.

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, said the Act will strengthen local airlines to compete fairly and also curb global conspiracy in aviation.

He said the focus at the moment is to empower local airlines and not the establishment of a National carrier.

According to the minister, the Act would make it mandatory for government-financed air transportation of government personnel, contractors, grantees and properties to be carried by Nigeria flag carriers.

The minister explained that the Act is aimed at supporting infrastructure development, boosting job creation, and ensuring that aviation policies in Nigeria are aligned with best practices and international standards.

Keyamo, who disclosed this in Abuja on Friday at the Stakeholders’ Engagement on the Proposal for the Fly Nigeria Act and Related Enabling Legislation, explained that the Act was similar to the Cabotage Act in the marine and blue economy sector.

He said: “The aviation industry is a vital pillar of our economy, driving growth, facilitating trade, and fostering connections both within our borders and beyond.

“With the Fly Nigeria Act, we are setting the stage for transformative changes that will enhance our capacity, promote competitiveness, and elevate the standard of services provided to the Nigerian populace and international travellers.

“The Act is more than just a legislative proposal; it is a bold vision aimed at revitalizing our sector and seeks to foster a sense of national pride and ownership, encourage more Nigerians to choose our Indigenous carriers, and ultimately, create a sustainable and thriving aviation industry.”

The Minister while disclosing that the Bill for the Fly Nigeria Act has been proposed for over fifteen years, queried why it didn’t get the needed support.

He also said there was a global conspiracy to taunt the growth of the aviation sector in Nigeria and Africa.

Keyamo said: “I have said it over and over that the rate of mortality of local airlines has been so alarming in the past years. But this government is determined to change that. And that’s why you can see that back to back, we are doing everything for the survival and growth of local operators.

“It’s virtually only in Nigeria you have in the whole of Africa that you have a lot of local operators. Many countries are just one airline country, and in most cases, they are national airlines heavily subsidized by the government,” Keyamo noted.

He said: “We want to ensure that local operators that are so many because of our population, our size and our traffic survive have the right environment in which they can operate. And after we encourage our flag carriers, then we can begin to talk about national carriers if need be at that time because the local airlines are representing us well now and flying our flags all over the world.”

On the global conspiracy, Keyamo said: “There’s always aeropolitics all over the world. It’s not something we say in whispers. It’s a fact that the world is always involved. So many countries and people are involved in the global aeropolitics. For a country that is as big as Nigeria, they want to feed on our traffic with their airlines and ensure that our domestic airlines do not grow.

“It is for us, as a government, to be wise enough to see this and ensure that we make policies to ensure fair competition,” he said.

“This bill was taken to council more than 15 years ago and yet it did not see the light of day. It tells you that there’s a certain external cabal in the aviation industry that seeks to destroy our indigenous markets so that they can come and feed on that market. It’s a global conspiracy but you have to be smart to see it.

“All the foreign airlines in the world feed on the African markets without the competition of African airlines and they will ensure that this aviation markets in Africa remains taunted.

“Especially in a big country like Nigeria, they will ensure that it remains taunted so that they will continue to feed on your markets.

“We thank the foreign airlines for their partnership but at the same time, I’m saying that we must also develop our own to compete fairly. We just want to compete fairly.

“So the global conspiracy is an aero politics. They do it in such a way very cleverly that they don’t want our indigenous airlines to grow, so they keep feeding on our market. So it is for us to be wise enough to see this and to come up with policies that will empower our local operators to match them on the negotiation table and the Fly Nigeria Act is one of the ways to do that”.

The minister expressed optimism that the Act would also open opportunities for more routes and attract lessors.

The Vice President of Airline Operators of Nigeria and Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, lauded the initiative.

He also said the aviation sector in the last 12 months has witnessed positive reforms.

“We are in a new dawn in the aviation sector. In the last 12 months, the country has witnessed positive change. This will develop the country and strengthen airlines.

The minister asserted that: “The government of President Bola Tinubu has given airline operators the enabling environment to work. Instead of blaming us for lack of capacity which is what was obtainable in the past, this government has demonstrated support for local airlines,”

“The Fly Nigeria Act will create jobs; it will conserve the dollar and attract investors,” Keyamo concluded.