Nigeria, AFDB sign Letter of Intent to operationalise Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme

Nigeria and the African Development Bank (AFDB) have signed a Letter of Intent to operationalise the AFDB’s laudable program for Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme (IATP) in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

The Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme for Africa is a continent-wide platform designed to modernize Africa’s aviation ecosystem and mobilize private, institutional, and concessional capital. It seeks to revitalize the industry, as African airlines currently account for less than 3 percent of global air traffic despite housing nearly 18 percent of the global population. The bank earmarked $7 billion for it.

Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, and AFDB President Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, signed the Letter of Intent at the ongoing Annual Meeting of AFDB in Brazzaville, Congo.

Before the signing, the minister, who is the African Champion of IATP, attended a dialogue session with the President and Governors of the AFDB where he addressed them on the opportunities presented by the $7 billion program of the IATP for Africa and especially for Nigeria.

According to him, “I unveiled President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the aviation sector and rolled out the potentials of the sector, especially the newly approved Nigeria Aircraft Leasing Company and why the bank should mobilise capital to support it.

“I explained that this can form the template for other African nations to emulate. I reiterated that Nigeria has done the groundwork to enable the takeoff of such an initiative, including domesticating the Cape Town Convention, updating its IDERA and reworking its aviation insurance policies to meet global industry standards.”

Keyamo informed both Nigeria and the AFDB pledged their commitment to work assiduously to operationalise the banks’s laudable program for aviation in Africa (IATP).

The President of AFDB, Dr. Sidi Ould Tah, expressed delight at the presentation and gave his commitment to the success of the IATP in Africa and particularly in Nigeria.