Lack of good policy implementation stunts aviation growth- Former NANTA President

Former President of National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), Mr. Bankole Bernard has put many of the problems of the aviation sector to lack of implementation of policies, adding that the situation has had a serious impact on peoples’ lives and their businesses.

Bernard who spoke on the sidelines of the 25^th League of Airports and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) annual seminar held in Lagos said, “We have to shift focus on the impact over the years.  As I sat there, I realized that the Act that governs NCAT was enacted in 1964, whereas all others had been reviewed lately. How come the one that affects industry personnel has been abandoned for decades?

“It shows that we pay very little attention to the workforce in the industry and that explains why we more often export that aspect of the aviation business. We need to go back to the drawing board and make sure that the personnel are well trained”.

 As at today, we only have 20 accredited training organisations in Nigeria, to serve a population of over 200 million people. It is not that people are not interested, but there are no enabling laws to attract investors into this critical aspect of the aviation industry. I think we need to pay more attention to issues that affect human factors in the industry”.

Bernard, who is also the Managing Director of Finchglow Group reiterated that  for there to be a meaningful collaboration, there is the need to have a central data system, stressing that  with that they can rely on information coming from one agency to another.

He lamented that the sector and system have disintegrated systems which they need to integrate, adding that “Until we integrate the system to a point that we all know that the information that I am getting is factual, then we will not move forward”.

“We are talking about codesharing and interlining among the airlines, how do you think that will be possible when they cannot even rely on information that is available?

He decried a situation where information available is coming from different sources, re-emphasising that the earlier the country has a central data system the better for the nation, agencies, captains for the industry and even the journalists that would want to rely on the data that they have gotten.

Aviation industry stakeholders have attributed stunted growth of the sector to policy somersaults and lack of implementation of some of the good policies that have ended up just on paper.

They have consistently called on the government to review some policies that are antithetical to the development of the sector and its subsequent impact on the profitability of airlines and other businesses in the country.

Airline operators and other private investors in the Nigerian aviation industry have consistently made the claim that government policies and interventions are often misdirected, especially when operators in the sector are excluded from making input into such policies.

The consequence is that Nigerian airlines are not profitable, which explains the short life span of domestic carriers that survive for an average age of 10 years.

Wole Shadare