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By: Shola Adekola
Nigeria’s Ministry of Finance has expressed strong interest in supporting the growth and expansion of Nigerian airlines even it indicated interest to explore ways it can provide financing and investment for airlines to expand their fleets, enhance capacity and compete on the global stage.
The MOFI Chief Executive Officer, Dr Armstrong Takang made this declaration during a courtesy call to the Ministry of Aviation by its management for collaboration between both organisations on Tuesday in Abuja.
Speaking at the meeting, the Assistant Director (Press), Ministry of Aviation, NawaniAbdullahad, declared how the Minister of Aviation, HadiSirika emphasised a collaboration between the Aviation Ministry and MOFI as paramount in the Civil Aviation part of the Nigerian economy.
Sirika who expressed delight over the existence of a structure for MOFI and its fallen into the right hands to get the mandate of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria made it easier for the job to be delivered and effected appropriately.
Sirika recalled how during the Nation’s Transition Committee period, there was an extensive discussion as to what contribution the aviation sector could make, and it was considered to add up to five per cent to the GDP of Nigeria.
The Minister added that a road map was created for the Civil Aviation industry to create a robust sector that would be financially healthy and which would also make aviation the most preferred means of transportation.
The MOFI CEO who in his submissions congratulated the Minister on his recent appointment as a member of the MOFI Governing Council, recalled that MOFI was used as a Special Purpose Vehicle across the economic sector, focused on holding federal government investments, which it had been using to invest in commercial entities for over 60 years.
However, he added that MOFI was not structured to deliver on the mandate that was expected of it, noting that its peers established at the same time and restructured to reflect current realities, had gone on to make major social and economic impacts in their respective countries.
Many of them, he said, had become global brands for investing beyond their home countries’ borders.
According to the MOFI boss“in line with the approval of Mr President to create a comprehensive National Asset Register (NAR) by aggregating, profiling and managing all national assets and investments, the NAR would be harnessed to strengthen the nation’s fiscal and economic realities and the optimisation of our investments and assets.
He noted that the development and modernisation of the country’s airports were crucial for socio-economic development.
The MOFI Chief Executive, who expressed the Organisation’s strong interest in supporting the growth and expansion of Nigerian airlines, added that MOFI would like to explore ways in which it can provide financing and investment for airlines to expand their fleets, enhance their devices and compete on the global stage.
He noted that the investment and collaboration would bring about mutual benefits for both MOFI and the Ministry of Aviation.
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