Ortom, shelve the cargo airport

In a move that is totally out of tune with economic realities  on the ground, Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom plans to build a cargo airport  in Makurdi which will cost N38 billion. He said the decision was in line with the vision to partner with the private sector in order to develop the state’s […]

In a move that is totally out of tune with economic realities  on the ground, Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom plans to build a cargo airport  in Makurdi which will cost N38 billion. He said the decision was in line with the vision to partner with the private sector in order to develop the state’s infrastructure and agricultural sector.
At the foundation laying ceremony for the airport at Daudu in Guma Local Government area, Ortom said it would facilitate the airlifting of farm produce from the state to other parts of the country and to Europe. According to him, construction of the cargo airport is being pursued under an agreement between Benue State government and Cargo Development Consortium (CDC). CDC’s team leader Robert Orya assured the state government that the cargo airport would be completed within the specified time and according to specifications so as to address yearly post-harvest losses in the state. Executive Project Advisor to the firm Mr Benish Kohov also said the state government had granted a concessional agreement to CDC, which also holds majority stake in the project and shall be completed between 2019 and 2020.
Despite the hollow assurances which contractors and consultants routinely give to government officials at the launching of every White Elephant project, we believe that this brain wave idea of a cargo airport in Makurdi is a misplaced priority. It is most likely to end up as one of the White Elephant projects which dot this country, which are embarked upon by state governors for political or egotistic reasons. We have many such airports, cargo or otherwise dotting our landscape but most of them are comatose. These days when the entire aviation sector is distressed and even otherwise profitable airports are badly hit, is not the time to think of building a costly new local airport. Besides, Makurdi has an airport which is presently underutilised. Nothing stops cargo planes from using that airport if they wish to. If it requires a lengthening of the runway in order to accommodate huge cargo planes, Ortom can do that. It will be cheaper than starting another airport project in the same town.
Benue State is known as the bread basket of Nigeria and if the government is concerned about post-harvest losses, building a cargo airport is putting the horse before the cart. It should instead use the money to construct roads to enable farmers evacuate their produce from the rural areas, which is the biggest problem right now. The way the state’s rural roads are now, even if the cargo airport is built, farmers will not be able to get to it with most of their produce.
Benue State produces a lot of food and cash crops at the moment, but these are still far short of the scale required to satisfy industrial needs. It will therefore be more advisable if Governor Ortom begins to invest in enhancing the state’s agricultural production through agricultural credit to farmers, guaranteeing farm prices and building well equipped
storage facilities. All these are needed before the state’s farmers could produce in the right quantity and quality to satisfy international markets.
Then also, the state government must do its homework very well. Benue State produces a lot of yams, oranges, rice and cassava. The international market for any of these products must first be identified. Nor should Benue aim to export only basic agricultural produce without value addition. Produce meant for export should at least be partially processed locally for value addition and employment generation.
If these have not yet been done, we urge Governor Ortom to return to the drawing board for a comprehensive study of how to achieve economic success for his state. He is on the right track by casting his eyes abroad for Benue State’s produce, but he should shelve the N38 billion cargo airport project for now until “he has done the needful.”