British Airways offers to assist Nigeria in development of its aviation industry

Reprieve appears to be on the way for the nation's troubled aviation sector as one of the leading airlines in the world, British Airways, yesterday, offered to assist Nigeria in developing the industry.

Chief Executive Officer of BA, Mr Keith Williams who disclosed this in Abuja said his company will partner with the Federal Government in ensuring the success of the transformation agenda in the nation's Aviation sector.

Williams who spoke with State House correspondents after a close door meeting with Vice President Namadi Sambo said Nigeria with its huge potentials is an investors' delight, adding: "As Nigeria's economy grows the British Airways will grow with Nigeria. If you look at the British Airways, it has served Nigeria now for 76 years and we get a great partnership with Nigeria which has been a long one and an important one and it will always continue to be an important one between the two countries and the British Airways supports that.

"Nigeria, is a huge important country with a huge population. It has got important trade flows and the airlines need to support those important trade flows either through Nigeria airlines or international airlines."

While expressing satisfaction with the way the Aviation sector was being managed in Nigeria, the British Airway boss, however, called for the strengthening of the domestic and regional aviation industry. He said: "The aviation industry, if I look at the global aviation industry, the global aviation is in a period of change and what we are seeing around the world is the growth of cooperation, and that is the case with British Airways, which merged with Iberia, tying up with an American and the Japanese airlines.

"So, there are lots of merger activities happening to support global growth in the airline industry, and clearly, Nigeria is a huge important country with a huge population and it got important trade flows and the airlines need to support those important trade flows whether that is through Nigeria airlines or international airlines."

He assured that BA would continue to meet its socio-economic obligations to Nigeria to further enhance its corporate responsibilities in the country.

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