The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has disclosed that three of the 22 airports under its management account for approximately 80 percent of the country’s air traffic, highlighting the challenge of balancing infrastructure investment between high-volume aviation hubs and other airports across the national network.

Managing Director/Chief Executive of FAAN, Mrs Olubunmi Kuku, said the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, alone accounts for 68 percent of the authority’s total traffic, followed by the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano.

Speaking as a keynote panellist at the World Aviation Festival in Lisbon, Portugal, on the theme: “Defining the Airport of the Future—Technology, Partnerships and People,” Kuku said the concentration of passenger traffic at a few major airports requires a carefully calibrated investment strategy that addresses operational safety, infrastructure efficiency and passenger experience without neglecting other facilities.

“Three airports account for 80 percent of the traffic, but I still have 19 others and five other airports that I’m supporting that I also need to prioritise,” she said.

The FAAN chief’s disclosure underscores the capital-allocation dilemma facing the authority as it seeks to modernise Nigeria’s busiest aviation gateways while maintaining infrastructure and operational standards across the wider airport network.

She explained that FAAN’s investment priorities were guided by a three-pronged approach, with safety serving as the primary consideration, particularly in the execution of airside infrastructure projects.

“For me, it’s been threefold. The first is a very clear criterion that focuses on safety, so you will see that a lot of our investments largely focus on some of the airside activities because that’s what we need to have our basic operations running and functional,” Kuku said.

She added that FAAN had concentrated, over the past three years, on rehabilitating major airports, particularly the country’s primary international gateways.

She said the authority is undertaking runway rehabilitation, including complete resurfacing and runway extensions where feasible, alongside the installation of improved airfield lighting systems at selected airports.

Nigeria’s six international airports are located in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Enugu and Maiduguri.

Against the backdrop of its dominant share of national air traffic, MMIA is undergoing a major terminal modernisation programme intended to improve operational efficiency, passenger processing and the overall airport experience.

Kuku said Terminal 1 of the airport was being completely gutted and reconfigured, rather than expanded, to improve the utilisation of existing space and streamline passenger movement through immigration, customs and other processing points.

“For Lagos tops within the airport environment, linking its terminals and extending access to the cargo terminals.

“What it does is it allows us to connect the city very quickly to the airport with five stops within our airport. It connects our terminals and links our cargo terminals to the last stop,” she said.

The proposed rail extension is expected to strengthen connectivity between the airport, the wider Lagos urban transport network and cargo-handling facilities, potentially reducing dependence on road-based access. (Nigerian Tribune)