Nigeria is targeting the opportunity to join the list of countries producing air crafts as the President Muhammadu Buhari administration is set to establish an Aviation University.
The Nation reports that Hadi Sirika who is the minister of aviation confirmed this plan when he toured the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT) in Zaria, Kaduna State on Saturday, January 7.
He said: “The aviation university will be different from NCAT; the university will be fully into research and development and production of higher level management manpower need of the industry.
“The university will go into deep research, with the hope that in the near future, we will be able to manufacture aircraft components, until when we are able to produce the aircraft itself.
Since the technology is available around the world, is no longer a hindrance, it is our own ability and capability to pursue it.”
The minister of aviation noted that Brazil and India have joined aircraft producing countries and that Nigeria can do same too.
He said: “If such countries could do it, why not Nigeria’’.
“The technology is known, we are not reinventing it; we just put our act together in doing it. So, the university will cater for that, while NCAT will continue to provide the services in the institute.”
Sirika said the decentralisation of NCAT by the previous administration would make it difficult for the college to do what it was established to do.
He said: “Remember, it was the UNDP that partnered with International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and Nigerian government to produce this institution.
“And it is one of its kind, so why are going to reduce its capacity and capability?. Our own task is to improve, enhance and upgrade the capacity and ability of the college to do more.
“But if somebody feels that he has funds to go and establish a facility somewhere to do some kind of training, of course, we will support him.”
Capt. Samuel Caulcrick who is the rector of the college identified funding and obsolete facilities as some of the bane to the development of the institution.