Nigeria's federal government has signed a 30-year concession agreement handing the management and development of Port Harcourt International Airport to a private operator, in a deal the government says will end years of losses at the airport.

The agreement was signed in Abuja on Thursday, 12 November. The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, signed on behalf of the federal government, while Eyo Asuquo, group executive of R28 Holdings, signed for the concessionaire, Port Harcourt Airport Company Limited.

The airport, formally known as the Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo International Airport in Rivers State, remains a federal government asset. The concession covers its management and development, not an outright sale.

Five-year reviews and revenue sharing

Under the agreement, the concessionaire will face a performance review every five years under the standard process of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC). The government will continue to earn revenue from the airport under a sharing formula, and Keyamo warned that the government could take the airport back if agreed standards were not met.

The minister said the concession had the approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council. He said the decision was driven by the fact that some airports are run at a loss, while profits from major gateways such as Lagos, Kano and Abuja are used to sustain them.

"There is no country in the world that succeeds without private capital. That's the statement of fact. And that is what we are doing here today," Keyamo said at the signing.

He argued that private operators can decide faster, raise capital and develop non-aeronautical facilities such as conference centres, supermarkets and malls, which in many airports generate more revenue than the aeronautical side. He also said the concession would remove bureaucratic bottlenecks that slow down infrastructure development.

Workers' jobs protected

Keyamo said President Tinubu had directed that workers' welfare must be fully protected in the process, with no worker losing a job and conditions of service unchanged. He said the government had signed a preliminary agreement with the unions before the signing ceremony, after months of negotiation.

"I'm happy to announce to you that everyone is on board," he said. Previous attempts to concession Nigerian airports had been frustrated by resistance from labour unions and court cases, and the minister said engagement with the unions, as was done with Enugu Airport, had helped to avoid protests.

Speaking for the concessionaire, Asuquo described the process as long and thorough. "This has taken a very long process. It's been a very thorough process," he said, promising to bring international standards to Port Harcourt. "There shall be no attrition. There will actually be more staff. Because as we develop the airport into a city, there will be need to upscale and employ more people," he added.

The minister said the concessionaire had been vetted by the ICRC for capacity, background, financial strength and experience, and found worthy to run the airport to international standard. He also disclosed that the government had received proposals from investors interested in developing other airports, including those in Benin and Yola.

Keyamo said the concession was not a sudden decision. "It is also not a knee-jerk decision. This has been on the cards for many, many years. Successive governments just could not cross the line," he said.

Sources: The Hints News; Nairavoice.