The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has declared that the country’s civil aviation sector will be subjected to a full safety assessment by the International Civil Aviation Organisation by the end of August 2023.
The Punch reported that this was said during the Banjul Accord Group Accident Investigation Agency’s closing ceremony in Abuja on Friday by the Director-General of the National Security Intelligence Bureau.
The NSIB director emphasized the importance of the approaching ICAO audit, saying that it will give important information about the safety of Nigeria’s aviation industry.
He continued by saying that the audit’s findings would make it easier to pinpoint areas that needed improvement and facilitate the adoption of practical steps to create safer skies.
Olateru continued by saying that Nigeria had one of the top safety records and that by the end of this month, Nigeria will have its audit, and “our scorecard will be revealed,” he stated.
“It is determined by the number of accidents, the number of fatal accidents, the number of significant incidences, and major occurrences. The fewer the incidences, the better.
“There are several airlines in the world that have been in operation for more than a century and have never had a tragic crash, therefore that is a sign of safety.”
He continued, “The ICAO audit is the sole way to determine a country’s safety record. We will conduct our own audit in August since it is the only way to evaluate any country. The public will then be able to see how we did in terms of safety once the report is released.”
