The Federal Government has constituted task forces within the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and the Federal Ministry of Aviation to ensure improved investments in the nation’s aviation sector through the Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) arrangement.
The Acting Head, Media and Publicity of the ICRC, Ifeanyi Nwoko, in a statement indicated that the initiative was primarily aimed at attracting private capital to bridge the infrastructure gap in the sector and by implication, boost its growth and contributions to the nation’s yearly Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The spokesman stated that the establishment of the task forces was sequel to decision at a meeting between the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, and the Director-General of the ICRC, Dr. Jobson Ewalefoh, in Abuja.
Nwoko quoted the ICRC boss as stressing that in view of the key roles the aviation industry plays in Nigeria’s economic growth, the commission’s task force would be committed to improved PPP investment in the industry even as the minister was said to have promised to establish a similar task force in the ministry to jointly work with its counterpart in the ICRC for timely execution of infrastructure projects in the sector.
He partly stated: “In its bid to unlock the economic potential of the aviation sector through investment in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), the Federal Government has established task forces in the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), and the Ministry of Aviation.”
According to him, the meeting was primarily held to leverage new policies and leadership to address the lingering challenges in the nation’s aviation sector, particularly those that led to PPP-related legal tussles
Ewalefoh expressed optimism that all the pending legal tussles would be resolved through a coordinated approach between the commission and the Ministry of Aviation and by so doing, open new vista for smooth implementation of the PPPs projects in the sector.
