The Federal Government has concluded a series of strategic engagements with the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers following a high-level visit to Bombardier’s Laurent Beaudoin Completion Centre in Montréal, Canada, aimed at strengthening Nigeria’s aviation industry.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, led a delegation of Nigerian airline operators on the working visit, describing the engagement as a major step towards modernising the country’s aviation sector and improving the capacity of indigenous airlines.
The Bombardier meeting completed the government’s programme of direct engagements with major aircraft manufacturers after similar discussions with Boeing, Airbus and Embraer.
According to the minister, the initiative fulfils a pledge he made upon assuming office in 2023 to connect Nigerian airline operators directly with global aircraft manufacturers in order to improve fleet renewal, expand access to aircraft financing, strengthen maintenance capabilities and deepen technical cooperation.
“Our goal is to create opportunities that will enhance indigenous capacity, modernise airline fleets, improve safety standards, boost operational efficiency and guarantee the long-term sustainability of Nigeria’s aviation industry,” Keyamo said in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Tunde Moshood.
During the visit, the Nigerian delegation toured Bombardier’s aircraft manufacturing and completion facilities and received briefings on the company’s maintenance systems, pilot and technical training programmes, digital aviation technologies, aftermarket services and aircraft acquisition solutions.
The discussions are expected to pave the way for collaboration in fleet modernisation, Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services, engineering support, aviation training, technical capacity development and aerospace technology transfer.
Keyamo noted that the partnership would also encourage Nigerian operators to acquire newer, safer and more fuel-efficient aircraft while strengthening relationships with aircraft manufacturers, financiers, leasing companies and other industry stakeholders.
He added that the successful completion of engagements with Boeing, Airbus, Embraer and Bombardier reflected the President Bola Tinubu administration’s determination to reposition Nigeria as Africa’s preferred aviation hub through strategic international partnerships, private-sector collaboration and sustainable industry reforms.
The minister was accompanied by the Director-General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Chris Najomo; the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs. Olubunmi Kuku; Nigeria’s Representative on the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), Mahmoud Sani Ben-Tukur, alongside other senior government officials and aviation industry stakeholders.
