Following Senator Osita Izunaso’s recent criticism of touting and begging at Nigerian airports, which he described as a “national embarrassment,” the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has unveiled a comprehensive plan to reform airport operations and enhance passenger experience nationwide.
The plan, detailed in a document titled “Position Document on Measures to Address Corrupt Practices and Enhance Passenger Experience at MMIA and GAT”, and signed by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, outlines a new initiative known as Operation Air Clean.
The framework emerged from an emergency meeting involving FAAN Managing Director Olubunmi Kuku and heads of key airport agencies.
Operation Air Clean aims to stamp out corruption, strengthen transparency, and streamline operations, particularly at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and the General Aviation Terminal in Lagos.
Key measures include dissolving joint inspection tables by security agencies, replacing them with intelligence-led passenger screening, individual profiling, and camera-based monitoring systems.
To improve passenger flow, the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Immigration Service will now share counters, while Customs officers will relocate to Aviation Security screening points for currency declaration checks.
FAAN also plans to make passenger searches more transparent. Secondary screenings for arriving passengers will now take place in designated profiling rooms at Terminals 1 and 2, with real-time display screens showing the names, agencies, and contact details of officers on duty—an effort FAAN says will “ensure transparency and accountability.”
Under the new framework, agency roles will be clearly defined: NDLEA officers will collaborate with AVSEC personnel at screening points and conduct roving checks, while DSS operatives will maintain surveillance around departure and screening areas.
The document read in part, “NDLEA personnel will partner with AVSEC at screening points and conduct roving checks in the arrival hall. DSS officers will roam around the departure and screening areas. DSS and Immigration Service personnel will now share counters to reduce checkpoints for outbound passengers, enhancing travel flow.
“Customs will relocate to the AVSEC screening point for money declaration. On arriving, secondary screening will be done in a profiling room. The rooms will be situated at Terminal 1 and 2. Real-time screens will display the names, agencies, and contact details of officers on duty to ensure transparency.”
To boost enforcement, FAAN has activated a mobile court to swiftly handle cases of touting and other related offenses.
It also plans to set up a designated meet-and-greet area to offer a secure space for visitors waiting to receive passengers, thereby easing congestion around the terminals.
“The immediate activation of a mobile court will expedite the prosecution of offenders, especially touts. The RGM will designate a secure, convenient space for visitors awaiting arriving passengers.
“Immediate prosecution of any BDC or car-hire staff found loitering or engaging in unauthorised activities. Also, the immediate prosecution of any BDC or car-hire staff found outside designated areas. Defaulting businesses will also face shutdowns and withdrawal of rights to operate in terminals,” the document added.
In line with its ‘zero tolerance for misconduct’ policy, FAAN has warned that any Bureau De Change or car-hire operators caught loitering or operating outside designated areas will face prosecution.
The authority added that defaulters risk business closure and withdrawal of operating rights within the terminals.
