Nigeria, AfDB Sign Letter of Intent for $7 Billion IATP Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme

• Keyamo Unveils Nation’s Air Transport Upgrades at AfDB Dialogue in Congo

In his new role as the African Champion of the Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme (IATP) of the African Development Bank (AFDB), Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, in Brazzaville, Congo, attended a dialogue session with the President and Governors of the AFDB where he addressed them on the opportunities presented by the $7 billion programme of the IATP for Africa and especially for Nigeria.

This dialogue session highlighted an extraordinary milestone for continental aviation, coming on the heels of the African Development Bank (AfDB) formally designating Nigeria’s Aviation Minister as the “African Champion” for the newly launched Integrated Aviation Transformation Programme (IATP).

With the formal signing of the Letter of Intent (LOI) at the AfDB Annual Meetings in Brazzaville, this $7 billion continental framework is positioned to address the stark reality that African carriers account for less than 3% of global air traffic despite the continent housing nearly 18% of the world’s population.

The IATP is structured around a five-year deployment window designed to mobilise private, institutional, and concessional capital to revitalise the continent’s air transport ecosystem.

A major chunk of the $7 billion facility acts as an Aviation Financing and Connectivity Facility (AFCF), targeting fleet modernisation and aircraft leasing solutions to help carriers bypass high domestic interest rates and access fuel-efficient aircraft on competitive terms.

Alongside standard infrastructure development, a secondary window—the Pooled Regional Sukuk Platform—will specifically target airport infrastructure, cargo logistics, and the modernisation of air navigation systems.

The Minister used the occasion to unveil President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for the Aviation sector, highlight the sector’s potential, especially the newly approved Nigeria Aircraft Leasing Company, and explain why the Bank should mobilise capital to support it.

A statement from the Minister’s spokesman, Mr Tunde Moshood, said this can serve as a template for other African Nations to emulate.

He reiterated that Nigeria has done the groundwork to enable the takeoff of such an initiative, including domesticating the Cape Town Convention, updating its IDERA and reworking its aviation insurance policies to meet global industry standards.

The President of AFDB expressed delight at the presentation and committed to the success of the IATP in Africa, particularly in Nigeria.

After the session, the Minister unveiled the Country Compact for Nigeria’s Aviation sector and proceeded to a signing ceremony for a Letter of Intent (LOI) between the Bank and Nigeria, in which both sides committed to working assiduously to operationalise the Bank’s laudable program for Aviation in Africa (IATP).

Wole Shadare