A COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF AVIATION SAFETY ROUND TABLE INITIATIVE (ASRTI) QUARTER 1, 2024 BREAKFAST BUSINESS MEETING HELD ON THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2024 AT GOLFVIEW HOTELS, GRA, IKEJA, LAGOS
SPEAKERS
SPEAKERS INCLUDED: Speakers included Capt. Samuel Caulcrick, former Rector, Nigeria College of Aviation Technology, Zaria; Engr. Benedict Adeyileka, former Director General, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority and Air Commodore Demola Onitiju (Rtd), President, ASRTI. ; ; The event saw the investiture of Patrons to ASRTI, including Prince Julius Adelusi–Adeluyi as Grand Patron and aviation heavyweights Capt Dele Ore, Senator Musa Adede, Elder Soji Amusan and Dr Harold Demuren as patrons. ; ; The event was attended by a cross-section of honored guests which included Mazi Nnamdi Udoh, Mr Roland Iyayi, Capt Hamisu Yadudu, Ambassador Ayo Oyekanni, Mrs N Onyenso, Mr Chris Aligbe, Mr Yinka Folami, Mr. Yomi Agoro, Engr A Galadinma, Comrade Ugbeikwu Sunday Ugbeikwu and representatives of the NCAA, NCAT and NSIB
THEME: MANPOWER STRATEGY TRAINING, SUCCESSION AND HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE NIGERIAN AVIATION SECTOR
Following robust discussions centered on the theme, the following resolutions were reached:
- There is a need for a robust management plan through scalable skills acquisition, and technical, operational, and soft skills to encourage employees to adapt to new situations and deliver a winning customer experience across Nigeria’s aviation industry.
- Aviation requires its own Local Content Development Board as applicable in the other sectors such as in the oil and gas industry to address the local content issues in the recruitment of aviation professionals. The meeting called for The Ministry of Interior and the NCAA to collaborate to ensure proper monitoring and compliance with Local Content Law on expatriate quotas and the excessive use of foreign personnel to fill manpower gaps.
- The merger of the Licensing Directorate with Flight Operations at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) should be reviewed in the interest of safety and the maintenance of global best practices as recommended by the International Civil Aviation Authority ICAO.
- Civil aviation policies should consider the existing differences in professional employee demands among aviation organizations rather than the existing blanket policies
- It is time for the NCAA and industry stakeholders to look to resourcing young professionals who have acquired the requisite education and training into aviation and deal with the discouraging experience where individuals have been trained and find no jobs, thereby further discouraging others from looking to the sector. It is time to deal with the issue of low-time pilots who do not meet current cockpit requirements and are required to get experience where there are no outlets for the experience. This consideration applies to every area in the industry, from pilots to engineers to air traffic engineering personnel and flight dispatchers.
- The industry resolved that the mass exodus of aviation professionals out of Nigerian airlines, agencies and others is not a negative for Nigeria and should therefore be encouraged, with the expectation that they will return with greater experience in the future.
- Stakeholders observed that the cost of ab-initio training across the industry has gone beyond the capacity of citizens to fund, unlike in the past when there was a substantial amount of scholarships in the industry. The meeting called for the establishment of new scholarships from states and both public and private organizations that will fund the training of a significant number of young people as well as provide for the continuous training and upgrade of professionals and in the industry.
- There is a need to declare a state of emergency in the training of Airport Fire Personnel as demonstrated by the current capacity to deal with fire incidents. There is also the need to train additional air traffic controllers and Engineers, as there is a substantial number of individuals approaching retirement with huge gaps envisaged even in the near term. Of particular note was the need to be more circumspect in the hiring of Air Traffic engineering personnel in the interest of safety.
- Flight Dispatchers are critical to safe flight operations and require a much stricter definition of their role in flight operations. The current role must be redefined from a jobber in operations to their specific role as defined under the regulation
- The Nigeria College of Aviation Technology, (NCAT) Zaria has stated that its mandate is the training and development of aviation personnel but cannot keep pace with the current demands in the industry. The meeting concluded that it is of the highest priority to expand the capacity of the NCAT to deliver many more diversified professionals and further extend its mandate to assistance in job placement, and not just training.
- NCAT was also called upon to take immediate steps to certify its B737NG simulator and its fire simulator to provide the much-required domestication of training for crews in Nigeria and as an income earner from candidates around the world. It was further advised that the unusually long delays in certifying equipment must not be the norm.
- A one-week annual program tagged National Aviation Week to be held by all stakeholders was proposed to increase the government’s attention to the aviation industry and improve it.
- The NCAA and the Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) were asked to improve their collaboration in a coordinated manner to enhance safety in the industry. They were asked not to engage in arbitrary and sometimes conflicting pronouncements that are not only meddlesome but are also dangerous and violate due process.
- The meeting called for the industry to reach out to retired professionals whose knowledge is valuable to the industry. They should be called up to consult for the NCAA, NAMA and all other agencies in their statutory processes and to assist with as many training roles as possible to develop the next set of industry professionals.
The Planning Committee.
Issued 19 Oct 2026 · Quarter 1, 2024 Breakfast Business Meeting