By Chinelo Obogo, [email protected] 09051862508
Cargo transportaion is a very crucial segment of the Nigerian aviation industry and by extensionits economic development.
The simple reason that it is the fastest way of moving goods to far flunged locations makes it quite relevant in modern day business transaction as a denominator for countries that enjoy robust economy.
Beyond these underlying benefits, demand for transporting agro products by air has been increasing globally due to the need for consumers to access the products in their original state devoid of chemical processing and preservation associated with several industrial good.
Cargo freigthing of agrocultural goods is also considered cost effectiven and faster as it provides the ideal method for exporters and importers of perishable commodities to service existing markets and develop new ones.
As at 2020, air cargoes accounted for 35 per cent of the movement of goods worldwide and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recorded six trillion dollars as airlines contribution out of which air cargoes generated $111 billion. The aviation body says if air cargo business is well funded, it could benefit from the anticipated $1 trillion increase in trade growth in the next four to five years because all sectors of our socio-economic life depend it.
However, in Nigeria, despite designating about 13 airports as perishable cargo terminals, facilities at many of them are yet to kick off.
Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) data records state that Nigeria’s annual air cargo import for 2019 stood at 131 million tons, while exports by air was 6 million tons, leaving a gap of 115 million tons between air cargo imports and exports. The implication is that most aircraft that bring in air cargo into Nigeria go back empty causing a huge loss of revenue.
To address some of these challenges, the Ogun State government had embarked on an Agro-Cargo Airport designed to serve as an aerotropolis for a conglomeration of agro-processing companies to provide facilities for cargo processing that turn raw materials, into finished goods.
During a tour of the airport july 6, 2022, the Ogun State Commissioner of Information and Strategy, Abdulwaheed Odusile, Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Ade Akinsanya, and the senior project manager, Craneburg Construction Company, Nicholas Mfarrej, took turns to explain the level of completion of the project and how the different components of the airport would work.
Speaking on the occasion, Commissioner for Information and strategy, Mr Waheed Odusile, told newsmen that construction of the airport was started in April 2021and would be completed before the end of 2022.
He said “We started theconstruction of this airport from the scratch in April 2021 and by the grace of God, before the end of this year, the first aircraft will take-off and land on this airport and that will be the first of its kind in the country. This airport would be the fastest built airport in Nigeria.”
The airport would be an international airport in all ramifications. The 4km runway is 90 percent ready, the construction of the fire station is on, the control tower and the administrative building are there as are essential components of an airport. Every other thing as you know is luxury and comfort. Even, at that you will marvel by the architectural design of the terminal building.
We are not just building an airport, we are building an aerotropolis. We are bringing different investors in and don’t forget, this is a specialised airport as it will be an agro-cargo airport though, there is another facility for passenger operations.
Already, some agencies of the government are scrambling to be here. I can tell you for a fact, the Nigeria Air Force, the Nigeria Customs Service and so many other private investors are already looking forward to be here. This will be the only truly agro-cargo airport in Nigeria.
There will be an international testing center here where all agro-produce that go out of Nigeria will be brought here and be certified as complying with international standards. So, once that is done, goods from here can be exported to anywhere in the world. All parcels coming into Nigeria would be flown to our airport here before they are now redistributed to any part of Nigeria.
You can also see the location of the airport, it is on the western side, you will see the Lagos-Ibadan Expresswa on the southern side and then you have the Sagamu–Benin Expressway. So, whichever way you want to approach the airport, the logistics of that is easy to Lagos. To the hinterland, you have easy access, if you want to go to the east, north and other part of the western it is easy. So, goods coming in and out of our neighbouring states will come here and this will also decongest Lagos and it will spread development across the country, especially for us in Ogun. We claim and rightly so to be the industrial capital of Nigeria and we want to use this airport to complement that.
This airport is also an important component of our transportation master plan, which will bring together rail, road and water transportation. This airport is not just a standalone airport, it is also being supported by other transportation facilities that we are building. This is part of the five pillars of development we call ISEYA, which is an acronym for Infrastructure, Social Welfare, Education, Youth Empowerment and Agriculture. With these five pillars, we have been able to touch the lives of our people in different ways. This airport is also an infrastructural development, economic development and it is also providing jobs.
When Governor Dapo Abiodun was elected, he promised that he was going to complete projects initiated and left uncompleted by his predecessors. We don’t promise we are going to do everything, but we are going to do everything that we promised. That is the mantra of this administration. No matter who started this, we will complete it. This project was abandoned by the previous administration and we are continuing it.
The control tower is about five-storey building and it is what is obtainable in the international community.
For his part, Commissioner for Works Akinsanya, said the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) in Lagos was one of the most difficult airports to get in to before the expanded the road. But for this airport, you can access it through six locations; Lagos-Sagamu, Lagos-Ibadan, Lagos-Epe. I don’t think any airport can rival it anywhere within this country and the facility is unique. The design was done by one of the famous consulting firms in the world and they have done more airport designs probably than anyone else, so, that credibility is there. The standards we are meeting are world class. Everything you will be seeing today is something that complies with Nigerian and international standards.
We have perimeter fencing at the airport from the beginning unlike some of the airports that we have around in Nigeria. In front of the perimeter fencing, you will also have security road on both sides for patrol because we don’t want intruders coming into the airport.
The terminal is the kind of hybrid you have in Morocco and a bit of Paris in France. It is a work of art. The same thing also with the control tower – it is something unique. We have two separate terminal buildings for the airport; cargo and passenger. At any time, the apron can accommodate four aircraft of Boeing 777 aircraft. It can take two wide body and two Boeing 737 model.
There would also be a testing site for agricultural produce. The only testing site approved in Africa by the African Development Bank (AfDB) will be located at a site not too far from here – Sagamu. That is one of the challenges people exporting goods out of Nigeria face because most of those goods don’t meet the international standard. So, before anything goes out, it will be tested before you can export it and it is just nearby.
The airport occupies about 5,000 hectares of land. However, we are still in the phase one of the project, there is room for expansion in the future. For the runway, it has about four layers. The first layer is about 65mm of asphalt, the second layer is about 50mm of asphalt and the next is about 100mm of asphalt. Right now, we are at about 90 per cent completion for the runway and the runway would be completed by the end of July. Airfield lighting has already been programmed into the project. This airport is supposed to run for 24 hours. So, all the auxiliary things that will make it functional are already programmed.
For warehousing facilities, we are going to have private investors to take part in that and already, there are lots of enquiries. Even, the federal government is interested. The state government will provide private investors with the facilities to grow their businesses. That is why it is aerotropolis.
We have been engaging with aviation agencies on approval and authorization. During the first visit by the Senate Committee on Aviation, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) personnel came with them and the regulatory agency gave us an approval for whatever we are doing here.
Whatever we grow in Nigeria can be exported from this place and whatever they produce in any part of the world can also land here. There are lots of opportunities for the exportation of foodstuffs. One good thing is that this will also boost the agro processing and agro products in the state.
Lagos is too crowded as it is. The cargo operators are not having a good time, the passengers also are complaining, so, this will be a relief to everyone. Passengers can land here and be in Lagos within 30 minutes and for those going to the east, they can land here and be anywhere within a few hours. So, the viability to me is the best location and it will be a big relief for Lagos also.
Ogun state has the most industries and Sagamu is just about 10 minutes drive and we have lots of industries there, which will make it easy for them rather than going to Lagos. All the things that will complement the airport to make it a good business are being done.
On the cost implication, I can’t be definite at the moment because we are making changes to some of the things here. I don’t want to give you a figure now and tomorrow it changes. When we started this project, a litre of diesel was about N300, but today, it has risen to over N800 and every equipment and supplies rely on that. That is why I can’t give you a specific number at the moment. Luckily for us, the contractor, Craneburg has good experience as they constructed the Anambra Airport. They are our partner and we are sitting down with them to look at a lot of things.
Mfarrej, senior project manager
The project would be completed before the end of this year including the runway fire station, control tower, taxiway, apron and the cargo terminal buildings. We can assure you that it will be completed 100 per cent before the end of the year. The terminal can take about 3,000 passengers at a time. We still have some redundancy capacity within the terminal. If four airports land at a time, there won’t be an isue.