The proliferation of aviation agencies by the subsequent governments has continued to generate mixed feelings amongst key players, with many raising the alarm over the pedigree of outsiders being brought to the agencies at the expense of the well trained personnel.
The latest to kick against the loose proliferation came from the body of the Nigerian Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (NATCA), which has argued that the proliferation of the agencies have no bearing on the aviation and aerospace system.
According to the association, amidst the shortage of requisite technical manpower in the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency ((NAMA), the calibre of manpower being recruited into the agency are completely at variance with its needs.
Lending his voice to the growing concerns about the abnormality, president of NATCA, Mr Abayomi Agodo lamented how the aviation agencies, are systematically shifting from their core mandates with the proliferation of departments.
Agoro specifically mentioned Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Nigerian Meteorological Agency (Nimet), and the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) as some of the agencies affected by the proliferation by the subsequent governments, including the present one.
Warning that most of these departments are in conflict with the Acts that set up the agencies and canvassed for a reversal, Agoro cautioned that this is impacting negatively on the finances of the agencies and insisted there should be a change.
His words: “We have observed with alarm the proliferation and establishment of departments that have no direct or incidental bearing on the core mandates of the agencies in the sector, most especially NCAA, NIMET, NAMA and NSIB.
“We are sure as a legal mind you will agree with us that there are departments that have not been provided for or intended by the provisions in the NCAA Establishment Act 49 of 2022 and NAMA Establishment Act 48 of 2022 (all as amended and Gazette as No. 22). These are some of the issues that may significantly increase the financial overhead of the agencies and detract them from their original mandates.”
Senator Hadi Sirika, the immediate past minister of aviation, had, at the tail end of the last administration, created new departments in virtually all the agencies.
While some of the industry players commended the creation of the new departments, others described them as “over-bloated directorates.”
Insisting that the type of manpower being recruited into the agency are at variance with its real needs as an Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP), Agoro urged that a holistic evaluation of the staff strength of NAMA on a department by department or directorate by directorate basis in line with its core mandate as well as the standard template accepted by the Civil Air Navigation Service Organization (CANSO) and industry best practice, must be embarked upon without delay.
Acknowledging that air traffic management is undergoing considerable change globally, he expressed that the quantum of resources available to attend to these new or emerging changes are becoming constricted in Nigeria due to government policies.
He added that NATCA’s engagement with NAMA, NCAA and the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, indicated that the industry was facing the challenge of maintaining the already deployed Air Navigation Services (ANS) solutions based on the Aviation System Block Upgrade (ASBU) framework.
Lamenting that these facilities are also being degraded due to scarce and constricted sources of revenue available to NAMA and fearing that this may cause gaps in the system, Agoro declared: “Our main goal as a professional body is the continued promotion of safety, efficiency, and regularity in both the domestic and international air navigation, as well as to assist and advise our authorities in the development of safe ATC systems.
“It is also encompasses our challenge to keep up a high standard of knowledge and professional efficiency, a high moral and ethical standard among air traffic controllers and also to closely co-operate with international and national aviation authorities and institutions concerned with air navigation in promoting and enhancing safety of flight operations.
“As Air Traffic Controllers, we have serious concerns and worries about the future and resilience of our air navigation services. There are new and emerging technologies that may provide enablement for air traffic management, but they have transcended the current levels of training that air traffic controllers are being given and this is a critical challenge on its own.”
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