The Managing Director of Toucan Aviation Support Services, Achuzie Ezenagu has called on the federal government to focus on the development of aviation in Nigeria as catalyst to the nation’s economic development.
Ezenagu who made this call at the Nigerian Business Aviation Conference, which closed in Lagos at the weekend, said government, must work with stakeholders to grow the sector.
He also called for establishment of Maintenance, Overhaul and Repair (MRO) facility in Nigeria, noting that it would save the country huge financial resources, help to train and employ indigenous aircraft engineers, make aircraft checks cost effective for Nigerian airlines as well as reinforce Nigeria as a hub in West Africa.
Ezenagu however observed that establishing an MRO in the country would face challenges, noting that it would be costly because Nigeria does not have the necessary infrastructure to facilitate it, adding that it needs the cooperation of government and industry stakeholders to make its establishment possible.
The former Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr Harold Demuren, said Nigeria is overripe to have such facility.
He noted that if 40 per cent of the funds spent on the re-modelling of airport facilities in the last few years were deployed by government to establish the facility, it would have been invaluable for the development of aviation in the country.
Demuren noted that Nigeria losses huge resources maintaining its aircraft overseas ad besides the economic loss, Nigerian trained aircraft engineers cannot secure jobs locally and for Nigeria to become the West African hub, it must have the MRO facility.