Nigeria President and Minister of Transport affirm commitment to ICAO cooperation and objectives

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HE Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (centre) and Mr. Juan Carlos Salazar, Secretary General of ICAO (to the President’s right) held bilateral discussions on 17 May 2022 within the context of the Secretary General’s mission to Nigeria, which began the previous day with the opening of the 7th edition of the ICAO annual Africa and Indian Ocean (AFI) Aviation Week and the 9th meeting of African Directors-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) Meeting.

The President gave the Secretary General the assurance of Nigeria’s support to the activities of ICAO particularly in relation to the achievement of  ICAO’s strategic objectives, highlighting that Nigeria will ensure the provision of a safe, secure and sustainable civil aviation infrastructure.

The Minister highlighted Nigeria’s desire to support the sustainable development of air transport in the region and ICAO’s efforts in facilitating the recovery process of the industry from the unprecedented impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and expressed reassurance of Nigeria’s future continued support for ICAO’s initiatives and collaboration with Member States and development partners.

The Secretary General commended Nigeria for the leadership role it plays in civil aviation in Africa, highlighting the doubling of its number of airports, and the achievement of growing air passenger numbers despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. He recognized the excellent work by the government of Nigeria to maintain high standards in aviation, in line with international best practices. He assured the President of the Republic for the continuous support of ICAO through its Regional Office.