Nigeria’s new national airline will require initial capital of between N54 billion and N107 billion ($150 million and $300 million), and the government is seeking a strategic partner to operate the carrier, the government stated in a document seen by Reuters on Thursday.
The West African country’s previous national carrier, Nigeria Airways, was founded in 1958 and wholly owned by the government. It ceased to operate in 2003.
Hadi Sirika, minister of state for aviation, on Wednesday said the government would not own more than five percent of the new carrier, called Nigeria Air. He made the comments while providing details of the airline at the Farnborough air show in England.
The government plans to launch the airline in December, making good on President Muhammadu Buhari’s election campaign promise.
Decades of neglect and lack of investment have left Nigeria with low-quality infrastructure seen as a hurdle to prosperity. The government has said that upgrading it will require private investment.
“The initial capital is likely to be in the range of $US 150 to 300 million, invested in tranches over time from start up through the first years of operation,” a government document stated.
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It said the government will provide initial capital but did not state the sum or give further details.
The government will “facilitate the process for opening up the capital of the airline to private sector financial investors”, the document stated.
A private operator, sought through a Public Private Partnership (PPP) process, will manage the airline without interference, it said.
Nigeria Air would serve domestic and international markets and expect to have a fleet of 30 aircrafts in five years with hubs in Lagos and Abuja, Nigeria’s two main cities.
British billionaire Richard Branson set up domestic and international carrier Virgin Nigeria in 2000, but pulled out in 2010 in frustration at what he said was interference by politicians and regulators.
The airline he created, which was later rebranded Air Nigeria, closed in 2012 after collapsing under about 35 billion naira of debt which left it unable to pay staff, a former finance director of the company told Reuters at the time.
Nigeria is overhauling its aviation infrastructure and handing over its airports to private managers in order to improve the business environment for the industry sector to attract investment, the document said.
It said current air traffic in Nigeria is around 15 million passengers which is expected to grow at five percent per annum through to 2036.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
