As Ogun Agro-Cargo Airport nears completion

Airport development is undoubtedly a capital intensive project with quite insignificant return on investment if the huge potential offered by airports are not optimised. Out of over 22 airports in the management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the federal government agency with the statutory responsibility for airports management, only about four are […]

Airport development is undoubtedly a capital intensive project with quite insignificant return on investment if the huge potential offered by airports are not optimised.

Out of over 22 airports in the management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the federal government agency with the statutory responsibility for airports management, only about four are considered viable.

When the four viable international airports including the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, which is the busiest and most viable; the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, Malam Aminu Kano Airport, Kano, and Port Harcourt International Airport, Rivers State are taken off the radar, the remaining airports barely generate money to sustain their operation.

 This is why stakeholders have kicked against the proliferation of airports by state governments in recent times, and the existing airports are barely profitable.

 But the Agro-Cargo Airport by the Ogun State government was conceived as a niche airport to support the development of agricultural produce which analysts say is one of the missing links in Nigeria’s agricultural export value chain.

Although there are designated cargo airports in the country, the agricultural link has made the Agro-Cargo Airport a game-changer, filling a major gap in Nigeria’s drive to diversification.

Located in an agrarian community of Iperu in Okene Local Government Area of the state, the Agro-Cargo Airport has all the full complements of an airport facility in addition to being designated as an airport for the export of agricultural produce.

The airport has a standard runway that could accommodate wide-bodied aircraft; a control tower for use by the air traffic controllers, a fire station, terminal building and apron. These are standard facilities required for the approval of the aircraft and the state government is poised to deliver the project before the end of 2022 to provide passenger and cargo services in line with the standard and recommended practices by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

The history of the airport dates back to the administration of Governor Gbenga Daniel when it was conceived but now being implemented by the Dapo Abiodun’s administration in line with the vision of the state to leverage the agrarian status of the state to attract local and international investors.

And with the congestion in Lagos State, the airport which can be easily accessed from Shagamu on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway and Ikorodu-Epe-Ijebu Ode axis is positioned as a veritable alternative for airport users and members of the flying public.

And already the airport has secured the buy-in of the apex aviation regulatory authority in Nigeria, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) whose team has visited the airport to assess the quality of work done on the project to ensure it is in line with regulatory provisions prior to the certification of the airport for passenger and cargo operation.

During a recent tour of the project being undertaken by Craneburg Construction, it was observed that most of the component parts of the projects like the 4-km runway, the control tower and the terminal building are at advanced stages of completion.

The project manager, Nicholas Mfarrej, said the terminal building can take about 3,000 passengers at a time, adding, “We still have some redundancy capacity within the terminal. If four airports land at a time, there won’t be an issue.”

He said the project would be completed before the end of this year; the runway fire station, control tower, taxiway, apron and the cargo terminal buildings. “We can assure you that it will be completed 100 per cent before the end of the year.”

The Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Abdulwaheed Odusile, also assured that the airport would be ready before the end of the year.

He said, “We started the construction of this airport from scratch and we started in April 2021. This airport would be an international airport in all ramifications.

“The 4km runway is almost ready, the construction of the fire station is on, the control tower and the administrative building is there and those are the essential components of an airport. Every other thing as you know is luxury and comfort.”

He added that the government is also building an aerotropolis which is like an airport village and a one-stop market for aviation related businesses.

Odusile said, “This is one of the promises made by the governor. We don’t promise we are going to do everything, but we are going to do everything that we promised. That is the mantra of this administration. No matter who started this, we will complete it. This project was abandoned by the previous administration and we are continuing it.

“We are bringing different people and don’t forget, this is a specialised airport as it will be an Agro-Cargo Airport, though, there is another facility for passenger operations. Already, some agencies of the government are scrambling to be here and I can tell you for a fact, the Nigeria Air Force is already looking forward to being here, just like the Nigeria Customs Service and so many other private investors. This will be the only truly Agro-Cargo Airport in Nigeria.”

The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Ade Akinsanya, whose ministry supervises the project, said the uniqueness of the airport is its accessibility as there are six locations to come in from such as Lagos, Ibadan, Ijebu Ode, Shagamu, among others.

He gave some vivid descriptions of the project, especially the agricultural testing site which would be approved in Africa by the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Sagamu.

He said, “That is one of the challenges people exporting goods out of Nigeria face because most of those goods don’t meet the international standards. So, before anything goes out, it will be tested before you can export it and it is just nearby.

“For this airport, you can access it through six locations; Lagos-Sagamu, Lagos-Ibadan, Lagos-Epe. I don’t think any airport can rival it anywhere within this country and the facility is unique. The design was done by one of the most famous consulting firms in the world…. They have done more airport designs probably than anyone else. So, that credibility is there. The standards we are meeting are world class. Everything you will be seeing today is something that complies with Nigerian and international standards.

“Overall, the total width of the runway is 60; 45 plus 75; and another 7.5 shoulders. We have perimetre fencing at the airport from the beginning unlike some of the airports that we have around Nigeria. In front of the perimetre fencing, you will also have a security road on both sides for patrol. We don’t want intruders coming into the airport.”

 On the terminal building, he said, “It is a kind of a hybrid of what you have in Morocco and a bit of Paris in France. It is a work of art. The same thing also with the control tower – it is something unique.

We have two separate terminal buildings for the airport; cargo and passenger. At any time, the apron can accommodate four Boeing 777 aircraft. It can take two wide-bodied and two Boeing 737 models.”