Sirika seeks ICAO’S intervention on revival of HRDF

MINISTER of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has appealed to member states and the African Civil Aviation Commission ( AFCAC) to call on the Secretary General, International Civil Aviation Organisation ( ICAO), Juan Carlos Salazar to use his good offices to revive the ICAO Human Resource Development Fund ( HRDF), which has remained inactive since 2018.

Sirika said Nigeria generously contributed to the fund and equally benefited from the inaugural secondment of officers to ICAO under the programme. The exposure, experience and knowledge gained by the officers attest to the usefulness of the HRDF programme.

Sirika stated this at the seventh Africa- Indian Ocean ( AFI) Aviation Week and the ninth Directors General of Civil Aviation Authorities ( DGCAA) meeting yesterday, in Abuja.

He said Nigeria would continue to support ICAO’S initiatives and collaborate with member states and development partners on the development of air transport in Africa.

He also stressed the need to address the issue of financing and modernisation of aviation infrastructure in line with the historic Declaration and Framework for Plan of Action for Aviation Infrastructure Development in Africa adopted at the ICAO World Aviation Forum ( IWAF) in Abuja in 2017.

“It is important to recall that in accordance with ICAO Assembly Resolution A40- 9, Appendix C Section II Article 7, the implementation of this declaration should be done under the AFI Plan and I hope this is on the agenda for this event. “Today, we are also going to witness the signing of the MOU between Singapore and AFCAC to support trainin programmes for a viation in Africa. On behalf of the Government of Nigeria and other African member states, I take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to the Government of Singapore for their partnership with AFCAC and commitment to ensure development of international civil a viation, particularly in Africa,” he said.

In his remarks, DirectorGeneral, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority ( NCAA), Musa Nuhu, said the experi - ence of the last two years has underscored the fact that overcoming challenges and achieving meaningful growth in the industr y can only be done through cooperation, collaboration and coordination amongst stake - holders.