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Revenue Loss Looms Over Abuja Airport’s Closure

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  • Revenue Loss Looms Over Abuja Airport’s Closure

Ahead of the planned closure of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport runway, Abuja for repairs in February and March, there is a looming loss of revenue by the aviation sector.

Concerned stakeholders, who faulted the alternative provisions that include diversion of traffic to Kaduna airport, said the move would bring much discomfort to air travellers and foreign airlines especially, forcing many to temporarily quit air travel to the northern part of the country.

With airlines and passengers quitting the region, revenue accruing to the regulatory agencies and ancillary services will drop, making required operations further difficult.

The Abuja runway of 4000 metres-plus has been in a bad shape in the last couple of months and was in December 2016 penciled for repair at the cost of N1billion. At least three foreign airlines, including South African Airways, have had their wide-body aircraft damaged in the process of landing on the runway.

While the repair would last for at least six weeks, the Minister of State for Aviation announced that the runway would be closed and traffic diverted to Kaduna airport, from where buses will take passengers back to Abuja in a two-hour road journey.

The Chairman, Governing Board of the Nigerian Aviation Safety Initiative (NASI), Capt. Dung Pam, said though temporary closure of the runway was for safety concerns, the effects would be too huge on the already troubled sector.

Pam said that the Kaduna airport would not be able to cope with the traffic that would be coming in, in terms of all the fixed-wing aircraft.

He said: “It is going to be a serious dislocation of the nexus of our air travel system. Every major airport in the country connects to Abuja and Lagos. So, to have that place completely shut down for six weeks will be a huge blow to travelling public. They will be the ones that will be the worst of.”

The chairman recalled that the John F. Kennedy in New York, United States, one of the busiest airports in the world, does its maintenance at night when the traffic is least and never completely shut down a runway.

Aviation Security Consultant, Group Capt. John Ojikutu, said that the choice of Kaduna for air traffic diversion would scare most of the foreign airlines away.

Ojikutu said that with the security issues in the northern parts of the country, none of the American and European airlines will fly to Kaduna.

He said: “My only worry is that they want to use Kaduna for traffic and I ask the question, why can’t they use Minna? Minna may not be as good as Kaduna, but a 737 can land in Minna.

“For them to want to use Kaduna for foreign airlines, I have my doubts that the airlines will go there. It is for security reasons. The way security is built in the north is different from how we have built it here.

“If the people that are creating problems all over the place want to draw world attention to themselves, they will go to that place and create the problem. The Americans and European airlines have their minds on that. They do not want a situation where they would be brought into the conflicts, in such a way as they will be used as scapegoats. So, they would rather go to Lagos to land,” he said.

The Minister of State, Aviation, Hadi Sirika, will on Thursday engage the industry’s stakeholders on issues arising from the proposed closure of the airport.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Sirika, who disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja yesterday, said the meeting would afford him the opportunity to officially inform the sector’s players of the decision.

Meanwhile, despite the challenges facing the nation’s aviation sector, it has attained a higher level of rating which now places it among the world leaders in terms of safety.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) yesterday said that the country climbed to Level 3 in State Safety Programme (SSP) Implementation Process, and is now on the same rating with the United States of America, United Kingdom and other countries.

The development will boost stakeholders’ confidence in the industry, thereby increasing the business of the sector and bringing more revenue to airlines and government agencies.

The Spokesman of the apex regulatory body, Sam Adurogboye, explained that the categorisation was dependent on the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) that tracks the SSP implementation process of member states via its Integrated Safety Trend Analysis and Reporting System (iSTARS).

“Member states in tandem, therefore, deploy this platform to undertake gap analysis, define their action plans and benchmark their progress. Only two member states–Australia and Sri Lanka–have achieved a full implementation of the SSP according to ICAO records. Nigeria is striving to achieve Level 4, which will be 100 per cent, by the end of 2017,” he said.

The SSP process is inaugurated in member countries in compliance with the ICAO requirements as contained in Annex 19 on Safety Management. Nigeria’s advanced level has put its SSP implementation process among those of states that have defined an action plan for all non-implemented gap questions.

Adurogboye said Nigeria had completed its gap analysis and implemented 43.6 per cent of the required SSP tasks.

“In addition, the country has developed a detailed action plan for the accomplishment of the outstanding tasks with an established and approved timeline.

“In pursuant of the above, Nigeria has commenced the implementation of the SSP processes and has achieved several milestones. These include the completion of the SSP gap analysis and the establishment of the Implementation Plan approved by the Director-General (DG) of NCAA.

“Other completed SSP tasks are the official authorisation of the D-G of NCAA as the accountable executive of the SSP and the designation of the NCAA as the placeholder organisation of the SSP in Nigeria by the Minister of State (Aviation), Hadi Sirika.”

Adurogboye said that with this achievement, the NCAA would continue to ensure that air transportation in Nigeria is seamless and secure at all times.

He, therefore, urged airline operators to adhere to all safety regulations as contained in the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs).

Is the CEO/Founder of Investors King Limited. A proven foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Businessinsider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and many more. He has over two decades of experience in global financial markets.

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Insurance

Heirs Insurance Group Unveils Revolutionary Website for Seamless Insurance Experience

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Heirs Insurance Group has launched a website designed to revolutionize the insurance experience for its customers.

With a focus on simplicity, accessibility, and personalized service, the new website aims to streamline the process of obtaining insurance coverage and empower customers to make informed decisions about their insurance needs.

The website boasts a range of innovative features that make navigating insurance options easier than ever before.

From simple and intuitive navigation menus to personalized insurance recommendations, the website is designed to guide customers through every step of the insurance process quickly and efficiently.

According to Ifesinachi Okpagu, the Chief Marketing Officer of Heirs Insurance Group, the new website embodies the company’s commitment to delivering exceptional customer service.

“Today’s customers want simplicity, and this new website delivers on that request,” Okpagu said. “We are empowering customers to take control of their lives, their businesses, assets, and their most cherished people.”

One of the key features of the website is its personalized insurance experience, which takes customers through a short journey to help them identify the best insurance plan for their needs.

Whether customers are looking for coverage for their home, car, business, or loved ones, the website provides tailored recommendations to ensure they find the right insurance solution quickly and easily.

With its user-friendly interface and innovative features, the new website from Heirs Insurance Group sets a new standard for the insurance industry, making it easier than ever for customers to protect what matters most to them.

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Banking Sector

Safaricom, Access Holdings Forge Partnership to Revolutionize Remittance Corridor in Africa

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Safaricom, the leading telecommunications company in Kenya, has entered into a strategic partnership with Access Holdings, spearheaded by Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede.

The collaboration aims to revolutionize the remittance corridor between East and West Africa, marking a significant step towards enhancing financial inclusion and empowering millions of individuals across the continent.

The partnership comes on the heels of Access Holdings’ recent acquisition of the National Bank of Kenya Limited, signaling the company’s ambitious expansion into the East African market.

Leveraging Safaricom’s extensive network and expertise in mobile money through M-Pesa, which currently dominates the mobile money market in Kenya, the alliance seeks to create seamless and efficient channels for remittance transactions.

Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, the driving force behind Access Holdings, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, highlighting its potential to transcend traditional boundaries and foster greater economic connectivity between East and West Africa.

He highlighted the fusion of collective expertise and resources between the two entities, underlining their shared commitment to driving financial inclusion and empowerment across the continent.

The partnership holds promise for addressing the challenges faced by millions of Africans in accessing affordable and reliable remittance services.

By connecting more than 60 million customers and 5 million businesses across eight countries, the collaboration aims to facilitate over $1 billion in daily transaction value, significantly boosting the flow of remittances within and outside Africa.

With the first phase of the collaboration focusing on key markets such as Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and Tanzania, stakeholders anticipate a transformative impact on the remittance landscape, paving the way for greater intracontinental trade and economic integration in line with the objectives of initiatives like the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

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Banking Sector

EFCC Urged to Repatriate Recoveries to NDIC for Depositors’ Relief

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The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has made a fervent plea to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to expedite the repatriation of recovered funds to its coffers to facilitate the timely reimbursement of depositors affected by bank failures.

During a recent meeting between the Managing Director of NDIC, Bello Hassan, and the Executive Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, at the NDIC headquarters in Abuja, Hassan stressed the importance of enhanced collaboration between the two agencies in recovering depositors’ funds lost due to bank failures.

Hassan emphasized that the return of recoveries made by the EFCC on behalf of the NDIC would significantly contribute to the prompt reimbursement of affected depositors.

He commended the EFCC for its unwavering efforts in combating corruption and financial crimes, highlighting its crucial role as a key member of the Taskforce on Implementation of the Failed Banks Act chaired by the NDIC.

The NDIC boss also highlighted the existing partnership between the two organizations, which led to the establishment of the NDIC Help Desk at the EFCC in 2022.

He disclosed that several high-profile cases referred to the EFCC were currently under investigation.

In response, Olukoyede reiterated the EFCC’s commitment to collaborating closely with the NDIC to combat financial crimes and safeguard the integrity of the Nigerian banking sector.

He pledged to intensify efforts to repatriate recovered funds promptly, acknowledging the interconnectedness between criminal activities and bank failures.

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