Kasim Sumaina in Abuja
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, Thursday in Brazzaville, Congo, signed a LETTER OF INTENT (LOI) between African Development Bank (AfDB) and Federal Republic of Nigeria, in which both sides committed to work diligently to operationalise the bank’s Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme (IATP), a well-received plan for aviation in Africa.
Keyamo, in his new role as African Champion of IATP, attended a dialogue session with the President and Governors of AfDB, where he addressed them on the opportunities presented by the $7 billion IATP plan for Africa and, especially, Nigeria.
He unveiled President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the aviation sector and rolled out the potential of the sector, especially the newly approved Nigeria Aircraft Leasing Company and why the bank should mobilise capital to support it.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Communications, Tunde Moshood, Keyamo explained that the Renewed Hope Agenda for the aviation sector could form the template for other African nations to emulate.
He stated that Nigeria had done the groundwork to enable the take-off of the initiative, “including domesticating the Cape Town Convention, updating its IDERA and reworking its aviation insurance policies to meet global industry standards.”
President of AfDB, Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, expressed delight at the presentation and gave his commitment to the success of IATP in Africa and, particularly, Nigeria.
After the session, Keyamo unveiled the COUNTRY COMPACT for Nigeria’s Aviation sector and proceeded to a signing ceremony of the LETTER OF INTENT (LOI) between AfDB and Nigeria.
