Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has declared that the country is uniquely positioned to become the central hub for air transportation in Africa.
Speaking at the International Route Development Conference, Network Cargo 2024, in Moscow, Russia, Keyamo emphasized Nigeria’s geographical advantage and untapped aviation potential.
The conference, which brought together transport ministers and industry leaders from around the world, focused on enhancing global partnerships through the highest standards of freight forwarding services.
Keyamo highlighted Nigeria’s strategic location, equidistant from South America, Europe, and Asia, making it an ideal hub for air travel.
“Nigeria is about 6 to 7 hours away from major destinations like Doha, Dubai, and Brazil. With our population, we have the dream to develop a real hub for Africa. We are not just talking about being a hub, we are committed to making it a reality.”
The Minister noted that while Nigeria has significant international traffic, much of it is currently serviced by foreign airlines.
“Most of the flights originating from Nigeria are not indigenous. Airlines from Ethiopia, Egypt, Morocco, and other countries feed on our traffic. We want to change that,” he said.
To address this imbalance, the Nigerian government is committed to increasing the capacity of local airlines.
He emphasized that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration is focused on strengthening Nigeria’s domestic aviation sector, ensuring that local operators benefit from the nation’s air traffic.
“Instead of giving up our traffic and airspace to other people, we are focused on ramping up the capacity of our local airlines. That is a major priority of President Tinubu’s administration,” Keyamo said.
The Minister also announced Nigeria’s plans to expand its international routes, with a particular focus on establishing direct connections to South America, specifically Brazil.
“It is ironic that to fly to Brazil from Nigeria, one has to first travel east to Addis Ababa or go to Angola before heading west. We are working to open up direct routes from Nigeria to South America, addressing this gap in our aviation connectivity”.
