The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) says just three out of the 22 airports in the country are profitable.
Whilst speaking on Channels television on Tuesday, Olubunmi Kuku, FAAN’s managing director, said a number of states in the north and south-west are developing new airports.
Kuku mentioned that the authority is cross-subsidising the other 19 airports and will continue to do so for some of the new airports that are being developed.
“I started off by saying that we have 22 airports which we own and manage,” Kuku said.
“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.”
The FAAN boss said the authority contributes 50 percent of its revenue to the federal coffers which is a major challenge, noting that the authority is in discussions with the several arms of government to ask for some relief.
Kuku also explained that passenger traffic is driven by gross domestic product (GDP) growth and economic activities instead of the construction of new airports.
She said it is necessary to focus on key activities such as trade, manufacturing, and tourism to amplify 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.
Kuku added that FAAN is working closely with international organisations, including the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the federal ministry of aviation, to expand both domestic and international routes.
She said there are schemes put in place to transform 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,” she said.
She disclosed that nearly 4 million passengers currently travel internationally from Nigeria, emphasizing that the efficient use of infrastructure is crucial for sustaining and maintaining the facilities.