The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has urged co-operation among stakeholders in the aviation industry ahead of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme (USOAP) slated for the first quarter of 2022.
The Director-General of NCAA, Captain Musa Nuhu, made the appeal during the opening ceremony of the League of Aviation and Airport Correspondents (LAAC) training at the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria, Kaduna on Monday.
USOAP is a programme through which ICAO monitors the fulfillment of the safety oversight obligations by its member nations.
Nuhu said that NCAA has put everything in place for the audit known as Continuous Monitoring Approach (CMA), which entails ensuring that the country abides by the global body’s recommended standard practices, having adequate technical personnel and efficiently regulating the industry to ensure high standard of air safety.
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He noted that Nigeria had sustained a regime of robust regulations and over eight year of zero accident in commercial flight operation.
The NCAA boss added that Nigeria was primed to excel by maintaining and improving on the reputation already achieved in the area of air safety.
He therefore urged all stakeholders, including the media to join hands with NCAA to ensure a successful audit.
“From now on, all your reports are very sensitive. Let us eschew sensationalism capable of putting the nation in bad light. Therefore, I will advise anyone to endeavour to verify and confirm his/her stories before publishing, if in doubt. It is my view that your watchdog role plays a very important part in fostering stability in the industry.
“These balancing, developmental and promotional stories are the hallmark of a burgeoning aviation industry like ours. Let us present our aviation industry as the most improved that it is. “There is no doubt that there is increased confidence in the sector as new airlines are coming in and existing operators are expanding their routes.
“Expectedly, our coast of surveillance programme and other oversight responsibilities as the regulator of the industry have increased correspondingly,” he said.
He reiterated the agency’s commitment to human capital development as one of its core values.
