The Federal Government has assured that federal airport workers under the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) will not face layoffs as it plans to concession Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt airports.
This was disclosed by Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika who gave the assurance at a virtual meeting with aviation stakeholders in Lagos, on Wednesday.
The Minister assured that the concession would create even more employment and correct the understaffing at international airports.
What the Minister of Aviation said
Sirika said the plan is not to sell but to concession the airports in a manner that would modernise them and have them operated to create more jobs as well as generate more revenue for the country.
“We will not sell the assets that belong to over 200 million Nigerians and the future generation of this country.
“We are not going to sell because those that were sold were lost, so, we in government believe that we should hold those assets for the Nigerian people in trust.
“We must make those assets better to provide the services that are needed. So, we said, rather than sell outrightly, we will concession.
“In other words, we would give it up to someone who would operate them and make them better,” he said.
He added that the concession will introduce more funding and would also allow customers to enjoy better services, and grow the industry. He also reiterated that after a certain time, the airports will be returned to the federal government.
In case you missed it
Nairametrics reported yesterday that the Aviation Minister said the airport concession would also provide new investment for newer terminals.
The four airports billed for concession are the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Port Harcourt International Airport and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
