The Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN has signed off the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu for concession under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement to Aero Alliance Limited.
A statement by the Special Adviser on Media and Communications to the Honourable Minister, Mr. Tunde Moshood said, “the event marks another significant milestone in the Federal Government’s commitment to modernising airport infrastructure, enhancing operational efficiency, & attracting private sector investment into Nigeria’s aviation sector under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR.”
According to the statement the “Honourable Minister described the concession as a historic breakthrough, revealing that plans to concession the airport had lingered for over two decades without success.”
“This concession plan has been on for about twenty years, but it has only become possible under the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Before now, investors focused mainly on Lagos, Abuja & Kano airports. Nobody was interested in Enugu and Port Harcourt. Today, Enugu has been successfully concessioned and Port Harcourt will also be handed over within the next few weeks,” the Honourable Minister stated.
The Honourable Minister, according to the statement, disclosed that “the success recorded with the Enugu concession has sparked renewed investor confidence, with bids already being prepared for three additional airports across the country.”
The Honourable Minister “commended Governor Peter Mbah for his visionary leadership & strategic role in attracting investors to the project”, and “assured airport workers that their interests & welfare remain protected under the concession arrangement.”
Mr. Keyamo further charged “Aero Alliance Limited to justify the confidence reposed in it by the Federal Government, noting that as one of the pioneer airport concessionaires in Nigeria, its performance would set the benchmark for future concessions nationwide.”
The Minister disclosed that “the Enugu State Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at facilitating a direct Cargo flight connection between Guangzhou, China, and Enugu, a development expected to boost trade, tourism & investment opportunities in the South-East region.”
The official handover ceremony took place with the signing of the concession documents and formal transfer of operational & management responsibilities of the airport to Aero Alliance Limited.
Governor Peter Mbah described the “concession as a transformative development that aligns with the state’s economic vision of positioning Enugu as a major aviation, logistics & investment hub in West Africa.”
