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By Chinelo Obogo
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), which is responsible for managing 26 airports, is cash-strapped and can barely carry out capital projects, a former senior official of the agency has said.
A retired deputy Director in the finance department of the agency, Philip Emeto, said that FAAN is finding it difficult to carry out capital intensive projects like airport infrastructure rehabilitation, upgrade of terminals, airfield lighting, acquisition of security equipment and others that are critical to the smooth running of airports in line with the stipulations of the International Civil Aviation Organisation ( ICAO).
Emeto said that at the moment, FAAN is expected to send 40 percent of its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) to the Federal Government from source through the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and their remaining 60 percent income is used to carry out projects as well as pay salaries.
“The immediate past Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. Rabiu Yadudu disclosed that in the year 2022, FAAN remitted about N44 billion of its revenue to the federation account. Capt. Yadudu noted that such deductions contravened the new FAAN Act 2022, which stipulates that all revenue generated by the agency must be ploughed back into the sector for the purpose of infrastructure development as it is done in other parts of the world. FAAN is a self funding agency of the federal government and has a workforce of over eight thousand staff. Aviation is an industry of skilled technical personnel whose job requires constant training and retraining.
“The Federal Government had in October 2012 increased the compulsory contribution to the federation account by its revenue generating agencies to 40 per cent from 25 per cent.
With this 40 per cent of the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) by government agencies, which is sent to the Treasury Single Account (TSA), it is now for the federal government to execute projects.
“This explains why some roads at the airports are in deplorable conditions and some major projects like erecting security and perimeter fencing at some airports under the management of FAAN are not being executed. There is an obvious paucity of funds.
” FAAN plans to reduce the number of daylight airports in the country by installing airfield lighting, but this plan remains at the realm of planning because there is no money to fund such projects.
The agency is facing a huge financial dilemma and this is because the same money needed to upgrade facilities, embark on training is what is remitted to government account.
“The Federal Government should please review this policy because it is from the internally generated revenue that the agency pays its workers, maintain the airports and addresses infrastructure deficit ,most of which are highly capital intensive.
“FAAN ought to constantly embark on training and retraining of its workforce, upgrade its security infrastructure and regularly maintain the runways among others , but doing all this is becoming increasingly difficult due to the fact that almost half of the agency’s revenue is remitted to the federal government treasury,” he said.
