Kelvin Osa Okunbor
MANY Nigerian airports are under-utilised because their managers, including the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) have not exploited up to 10 per cent of both aeronautical and non-aeronautical sources of revenue.
The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, Hon. Nnolim Nnaji, said managers of airports were yet to adopt the global template of seeing airports as revenue spinners in areas of airport terminals not related to flight operations as opposed to the runway.
He said effective utilisation of airports could be achieved if the managers construct more shopping areas, offices, malls, hotels and places of tourists’ interest at airports than mere aerodromes and departure and arrival halls used by passengers.
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Nnaji said many of the nation’s airports were under-utilised because their managers focused on air side facilities, instead of putting more investments that could generate revenue in the land side.
He said ongoing debate over airports privatisation or concession needed to be expanded to consider options for earning more revenue than argument over ownership or control of the terminals.
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