Eight years after the federal government took over the completed Yobe State International Cargo Airport, no major aviation activities have started in it.
Former President Muhammadu Buhari commissioned it.
LEADERSHIP Sunday gathered that the airport, initiated by the Ibrahim Gaidam administration in 2017, cost the state about N18 billion. The initial contract was awarded at N11 billion and increased to over N18 billion due to variations.
It is the first-ever cargo airport in Northern Nigeria.
According to the state government, the airport would facilitate the export of meat, dairy products and Arabic gum, among other products, which would be a source of foreign exchange for the state.
There are different opinions on the airport. Some argued that the huge sums spent on it could have been better spent on other critical sectors such as education, security and agriculture.
Nonetheless, the government still has work to do to improve the state’s general economy. The just-commissioned airport is a welcome development as it has the potential to turn around the state’s economy.
A cargo airport in the state has the huge potential to attract foreign investors to invest in the huge and untapped sectors of the state’s economy.
The mineral resource sector, which contains a large amount of solid minerals such as gypsum, diatomite, limestone and substantial kaolin and quartz, among others, has remained untapped because the airport does not exist.
Also, one of the major reasons for the construction of the airport is to boost the state’s agriculture sector through the exportation of agricultural produce such as soybeans, sesame and gum Arabic.
Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni confirmed that the federal government had taken over the recently inaugurated Muhammadu Buhari International Cargo Airport.
He said, “It is indeed a good story for the state because we were able to execute the project in line with the required standard. Our administration will forever remain focused in formulating and executing people-oriented projects for the benefit of the common man.”
When contacted about the state of the airport, the permanent secretary of the Yobe State Ministry of Transport and Energy, Dr Mustapha Gaidam, said construction work on the international cargo airport was being completed so that it could commence operations before the end of 2024.
He said since the “state government has handed it over to the federal government, we don’t have much to say. I’m sure everything will take shape very soon. We are not in a position to speak on the airport.”
According to him, the federal government through FAAN promised that the airport would commence commercial operations in 2024, adding that there are some technical issues.