THE Acting Rector of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, (NCAT), Zaria, Mr. Joseph Shaka Imalighwe has emphasized that his mission was to take the college to a level where training will be refocused even as the college was moving away from the traditional training to the digital model.
The development came just as the rector appealed to the federal government through the ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development to increase allocation to the college to enable it meet its capital project expenditure.
Imalighwe, who was reacting to the recertification of the aviation college by both the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority. (NCAA) after the two aviation authorities expressed their confidence in the satisfactory standards operating in the school.
The recertification was handed over to the school after the two aviation bodies declared that the college met it required standards.
Justifying the call for more funding for the college, the rector stressed that its status as ICAO TrainAir Plus Training Centre Excellence requires more resources to continuously improve the college, while he revealed how the aviation college is in association with a number of other training institutions and universities to cooperate and improve the curriculum.
He equally disclosed that the leading aviation training institution recently established the Airport Emergency Training (AET) School to offer initial fire fighting courses, competence aircraft live fire simulator and fire fighting course and airport emergency procedure course.
The college, having made some giant strides in the last one year Imalighwe assumed office, has entered into collaboration with the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) and the African Aviation and Aerospace University (AAAU) and other organisations for training which he however said required massive funding to complete some capital projects that will ensure it meet the requirement of its student
The college which presently contributes averagely 45 percent of the aviation industry licensed personnel requirements, is faced with challenges ranging from inadequate training facilities like hostel accommodation and classrooms, high cost of aviation gasoline and inadequate number of required specialized instructors due to high attrition to the industry.
Other challenges include encroachment on the college land, security of college premises, aged college buildings, inadequate budgetary while the staff of the college remained the lowest remunerated in the country’s aviation sector.
Speaking on the status of the college Boeing 737 simulator that has remained inactive for sometime, the rector disclosed that the minister of aviation and aerospace development, Mr Festus Keyamo has sent experts who came to evaluate it saying: “they will soon start work on it to make it functional in earnest once NCAA certifies it.
“The college and NCAA are closely working together assiduously to ensure it come on board as the minister has already sent people to look at it. We want the federal government to increase our annual budget, we need lecture theatres, offices, meeting rooms, hostels. We require the purchase of a fire tender to be dedicated for the airport emergence training school. We also require about 200 computers for the ICT centre as well as capacity training for the college instructors.”
Imalighwe commended the minister saying: “we have a minister who is cooperating with us since we came into office. I have also received maximum cooperation from all staff especially with the management staff and that have helped us a lot.
“The ICAO Centre of Excellence regional officials just came to recertify us after three years, we do recertification with ICAO after three years and they wrote very good things about the college. Even NCAA came a week after the ICAO officials to recertify us also. We have smooth sailing with those organisations.”
“In spite of the short period that training has been sustained, the college has undergone tremendous improvement in areas of facility upgrade and development of new ones, staff members have been undergoing various trainings, we are trying to sustain it.
“We have just bought zaria hotel because we understand the limitation of accommodations within the college, the contractor is starting renovation works. The hostels are not enough and the building of our 150 guest rooms, the contractor has taken possession of the place so that he will start construction.”
