…Says
airports handled 15.2m passengers, ferried 195,230MT of cargo
The Minister of State for Aviation, Senator Hadi
Sirika, on Wednesday disclosed that transportation which is the cardinal
objective of the National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP) of the
current administration cannot be over-emphasised.
Sirika that airport transport alone contributes
about US$8.2 billion to the country's gross domestic product annually.
According to him, the airports in 2016 handled 15.2
million passengers, conveyed over 195,230 metric tons of cargo and 7,373.0
metric tons of mails.
Sirika, while speaking at the 2017 15th edition of
the National Council on Transportation (NCT) taking place in Sokoto State, said
there was need for every sector to operate efficiently for the recovery of the
nation's economy.
"This has become urgent for us given the
fallen price of oil which had been our main stay and the resultant decline in
government revenue," he said.
According to the minister, "Transportation is the
wheels that roll the economic development of countries. The sector contributes
to the economic sectors which include oil and gas, tourism, travel,
agriculture, trade and commerce, manufacturing and other non-oil sectors.
"Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa with
a population of over 180 million people. Presently, the country has 27 functional
airports and several privately owned airstrips and helipads. The airports in
2016 handled 15.2 million passengers, transported over 195, 230 metric tons of
cargo and 7,373.0 metric tons of mails.
"Also, according to the International Air
Transport Association (IATA), air transport in Nigeria supports more than
650,800 jobs including tourism-related employment, while contributing US$8.2
billion to the country's GDP annually."
He noted that the statistics underscored the
importance of aviation in the economy of Nigeria but, "in relation to our
population size and geographical location, the country has the potential to do
more."
Sirika hinted that currently, there is no effective
inter-modality of air transportation with other modes in terms of
infrastructural linkages except road network. "However, construction works
are at advanced stage to connect the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport to
rail while the master plans of the other international airports have provision
for linkages.
The minister, who was represented by the Permanent
Secretary, Ministry of Transportation and Aviation, Sabiu Zakari, further said in
preparation for an efficient inter-modal transport system, "President Muhammadu
Buhari has approved a robust road-map for the aviation sub-sector, and that the
road-map intends to address some of the infrastructural gaps and challenges
with a view to providing long-term solutions.
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