Subsidy Removal Proceeds Funding Aviation Infrastructure, Keyamo Says

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has said proceeds from the removal of fuel subsidies have enabled the Federal Government to fund major aviation infrastructure projects across the country.

Keyamo disclosed this on Monday at the 67th anniversary celebration of Aero Contractors in Lagos.

He listed the reconstruction of the old terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos; construction of a second runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja; and the complete reconstruction of the runway at the Kano airport among projects being funded with the proceeds.

According to him, the government is also resurfacing the runway at the Port Harcourt International Airport and will soon commence work on the runway at Akure Airport.

Keyamo said Nigeria previously struggled to fund major aviation infrastructure because a significant portion of its oil earnings was spent on fuel subsidies and foreign exchange interventions.

He said the removal of fuel and foreign exchange subsidies had increased government liquidity, allowing the administration to mobilise funds for infrastructure without borrowing.

“In less than two years, after we removed subsidies, from both money and fuel, in less than two years, the President raised $500 million to rebuild the Lagos Airport. Not money borrowed, but because our liquidity rose,” Keyamo said.

He also claimed that Nigeria’s foreign reserves had increased from $3 billion to $56 billion, adding that improved economic conditions had attracted more investors to the country.

The minister said the infrastructure projects aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda for the aviation sector, which he said focused on infrastructure, policy, support for local airlines and human-capacity development.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer and Accountable Manager of Aero Contractors, Captain Ado Sanusi, called for greater government attention to the aviation sector.

Sanusi argued that aviation should be treated not only as a means of transportation but also as a driver of tourism, trade, job creation and foreign investment.

He urged the federal government to give aviation a more deliberate place in its Renewed Hope agenda, warning that Nigeria could lose jobs and investment to neighbouring countries if the sector was not strategically developed.

Sanusi cited the construction of a new mega-airport and major maintenance hub near Nigeria’s border, saying such developments could increasingly target the Nigerian market.

He appealed to the government to adopt a strategic national focus on aviation alongside roads, rail and power infrastructure.