Nigeria’s Federal Government has come under fresh criticism after it approved a concession arrangement for Akanu Ibiam International Airport, located in Enugu, the capital of Enugu State in south-east Nigeria.
Aviation professionals and labour unions said they were not satisfied with how the process was handled, raising questions about transparency and how the preferred concession company was selected. They also asked what standards were used to choose Aero Alliance as the concessionaire.
Okay News reports that the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, the federal ministry responsible for air transport policy and oversight in Nigeria, recently announced that its minister, Festus Keyamo, had formally signed the airport concession agreement. The ministry described the signing as an important step in its effort to modernise Nigeria’s aviation infrastructure through strategic public-private partnerships, also called PPPs.
Tunde Moshood, the minister’s Special Adviser on Media and Communications, said the main agreement had been concluded, but added that two operational matters would be settled in the coming weeks. He listed the issues as security charges and the financial model that will guide airport operations, saying they would be resolved to support smooth implementation.
Before the formal signing, industry debate had been heated by reports suggesting the airport could be concessioned for 80 years. After the agreement was executed, the minister clarified that the concession period is 30 years.
Reacting to the development, Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd), a Nigerian aviation analyst and former military officer with long-standing involvement in aviation policy discussions, said he supports the idea of conceding international airports, but argued that the duration should be shorter. He said the agreement “should not exceed 20 years” so the government can properly review profitability and performance.
Ojikutu also said the concession focus should be more on non-aeronautical services, such as commercial and support activities that are not directly related to aircraft operations. He further argued that no international airport should be concessioned alone, insisting that each should be bundled with smaller domestic airports to reduce pressure on public funds and spread development across the network.
In a wider criticism of how the deal was handled, he compared the development to the Nigeria Air project that was promoted under Hadi Sirika, Nigeria’s former aviation minister, and later faced heavy public scrutiny. Ojikutu asked: “How can you concession an airport without involving people? How many companies bidded for it?” He also referenced Nigeria’s earlier privatisation framework under Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigeria’s former president who led the country from 1999 to 2007, and questioned why the concession process was not more openly conducted.
However, Chris Aligbe, the Chief Executive Officer of Belujane Konzult, disagreed with the view that 30 years is too long, saying it is within normal global practice for airport concessions. He said: “30 years is normal, but what should bother everyone are the terms of the concession.” He added that concession agreements can run for 15, 20 or 30 years, and in some cases can extend to 50 years, but the main concern should be the details, including the operating model and the financial structure.
Labour unions in Nigeria’s aviation sector also raised objections. The Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), and the Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals (ANAP) said they were worried about the agreement and called for it to be reversed.
In a letter dated Monday, 26 January 2026, and addressed to the minister, ATSSSAN General Secretary Frances Akinjole, ANAP Secretary General Abdul Rasaq Saidu, and NUATE General Secretary Sikiru Waheed said workers’ representatives on the concession committee were “effectively sidelined”. They said this approach ignored labour issues that should have been captured in the contract, adding that no agreement was signed with their unions before the concession was concluded.
The unions also said the process created tension among staff of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the government agency that manages many airports across the country. They described the situation as a “lack of transparency” and said it had caused serious agitation among FAAN workers nationwide.
Rejecting the concession, the unions said they were concerned about the impact on employees who could be affected by the new arrangement and urged the minister to reverse the process so that, in their words, “the proper things” can be done.
