Nigeria's airspace is safer now

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has clarified that the United States did not delist Nigerian airlines due to safety concerns

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has assured that with its enhanced safety surveillance, the Nigerian airspace has become safer.

The Acting Director General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Chris Najomo, gave the assurance yesterday at the corporate headquarters of the Authority in Abuja during the staff annual New Year prayer session to kick off NCAA’s 25th anniversary celebration.

Speaking on the sidelines of the programme, Capt. Najomo said the Authority has enhanced safety surveillance due to safety issues, which has made the airspace safer.

He maintained that under the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Tinubu, coupled with the five key-point agenda of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, the Authority has been able to perform better.

He said, “We will do anything that will make sure that every airline complies with our regulations. You can see recently we had to sanction some airlines, and they accepted their sanctions.”

“We sanctioned five airlines because they refused to pay refund tickets, and they have agreed that they will pay on time. So, you know, this year, 2025, we hope to see more and better.”

Capt. Najomo also told the staff that he is focused on delivering on his core job functions and meeting his performance targets. He said he is not distracted by sponsored, fabricated fake stories meant to attack him.

Reacting to reports about his confirmation as the Head of the agency, Najomo said, “I am not distracted from my work; my confirmation is in the hands of Mr. President. And when the time comes, he will do the needful. For now, it’s not distracting me. I’m doing my job,” he stated.

On staff work conditions, he said his management is motivating staff in the best ways possible in addition to improving the workspace.

“We will be fully digitalised. We also have the flight data center that is there. We have the CPD portal. We have the DATR portal to make it easier to do business and seamless too,” he said, among other digital solutions the Authority has deployed.

The high point of the event was the hoisting of the NCAA @25 flag and the unveiling of the anniversary monument by the Acting Director-General of Civil Aviation (Ag. DGCA), Nigeria, Capt. Chris Najomo, accompanied by his management team and hordes of NCAA staffers.