By Omowumi Omotosho
Only three out of the 22 airports under the management of Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) are profitable.
FAAN’s managing director, Olubunmi Kuku disclosed this in an interview with Channels Television.
Kuku highlighted that several northern and south-western states in Nigeria are in the process of developing new airports.
She explained that FAAN is currently cross-subsidising the remaining 19 airports and will extend this support to some of the new airports being built.
“I started off by saying that we have 22 airports which we own and manage,” Kuku stated.
“We also have about six or seven airports that are either owned by state governments or private individuals or entity which we also support with either aviation security or fire and rescue services.
“We have a number of states in the north as well as in the south-west that are coming up with new airports.
“I would say that based on the stats today, only three of the 22 airports are actually profitable and contribute largely to the sustenance of the airport companies that we run.
“I would also say that we are actually cross-subsidising the other 19 airports today and in most instances, we will substitute or cross-subsidise for some of the airports that are coming on board as well.”
She further elaborated that FAAN contributes 50 percent of its revenue to federal coffers, a significant challenge that the authority is addressing through discussions with various government branches for some relief.
Kuku emphasized that passenger traffic is more influenced by GDP growth and economic activities rather than the construction of new airports. She stressed the importance of focusing on activities such as trade, manufacturing, and tourism to boost airport traffic.
“Rather than building new airports, we need to look at the bottom of the value chain to determine what activities can drive traffic into these airports,” Kuku said.
She also mentioned that FAAN is working closely with international organizations, including the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Federal Ministry of Aviation, to expand both domestic and international routes, adding that there are initiatives aimed at transforming Nigeria and specific airports within the country into transit hubs.
“What that means is that we start to build a network of airports where we can push our feeders to some of the other states or to some of the other locations and start to utilise our airports,” Kuku added.
The FAAN boss revealed that nearly 4 million passengers currently travel internationally from Nigeria. She also highlighted the importance of efficient infrastructure use for sustaining and maintaining these facilities.
