FG to Partner Enugu Govt on Cargo, Int’l Airport Terminals

Gideon Arinze in Enugu

The Federal government has announced that it would partner with the Enugu State government to complete and operationalise the international wing of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, and also build a cargo terminal to boost the state’s and nation’s economy and tourism capacity.

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr. Kabir Yusuf Mohammed, made this known after a tour of the ongoing international terminal building and the proposed site for the international cargo terminal at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, yesterday.

Speaking to newsmen after a courtesy visit to the Enugu State governor, Peter Mbah, and a tour of the facility, Mohammed said that there was no better time to discuss partnership and collaboration than now.

He commended Mbah’s zeal and sense of urgency towards the actualisation and operationalisation of the two terminals.

 “We met with the governor here today with a view to collaborate with FAAN in order to make the international terminal functional. This is a time to look at things again and again before you will be able to get the right formula for it, and I believe His Excellency has that formula and within the shortest possible time, I can assure you that this terminal will be put to use,” he said.

He noted that Enugu, as the capital of the South-Eastern region, “is where we know that there are a lot of traders, who trade in different kinds of things across the globe.

“So, having in place a cargo terminal here will go a long way in improving the economy of the South-East Zone and the nation,” he said.

On his part, Mbah noted that the operationalisation of the international terminal and construction of the cargo terminal and warehouse at the airport was critical to Enugu’s drive for a $30 billion economy.

“For us, the cargo terminal is critical. You know that we are migrating agriculture to agro-allied industrialisation. That means agriculture will not just be for food, it will also be for export. “And the cargo terminal is critical if we are going to engage in exports. We need to be able to export from here. That is why we are looking at partnering with FAAN to ensure that we start and complete a cargo terminal and indeed operationalise it,” he said.