By: Tunji Okunlola
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs Olubunmi Onabanjo-Kuku, says Nigeria recorded more than 18.8 million domestic and international air passengers in 2025, making it the fourth-largest aviation market in Africa.
Onabanjo-Kuku shared the figure on Tuesday in her welcome address at the ACI Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition 2026 in Abuja, speaking in her capacity as Vice President of Airports Council International Africa.
She said the passenger figure marked an 11.9% year-on-year increase, calling it a sign of Nigeria’s growing weight in the continent’s aviation sector. “Our aviation market now ranks as the fourth-largest in Africa, with over 18.8m domestic and international passengers recorded in 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of 11.9 per cent,” she said.
The conference, themed “Next-Gen Airports: Driving Performance and Resilience,” drew aviation leaders, airport executives, regulators, financiers, technology providers and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond. Onabanjo-Kuku said the theme carried weight beyond the conference itself, framing it as a strategic challenge for the continent’s aviation industry.
“This gathering of minds, this convergence of vision, could not have come at a more consequential moment for African aviation,” she told delegates. “The theme before us, ‘Next-Gen Airports: Driving Performance and Resilience’ is not merely a conference title. It is a strategic mandate. It is a call to action. It also reflects the journey we are collectively undertaking as a continent.”
Citing International Air Transport Association figures, she noted that African airlines saw a 6.4% year-on-year rise in international passenger demand in July 2026, compared with a 0.1% dip in global international demand over the same period. Overall passenger demand across Africa grew by 5.2%, she said, putting the continent second only to Latin America and the Caribbean in growth for that period.
“This is not a marginal improvement. This continent is on the move,” she said.
She said Nigeria is playing a significant role in that growth, pointing to increased scheduled airline capacity and renewed interest from carriers operating in the market. According to her, Lagos’s Murtala Muhammed International Airport posted the fastest growth in scheduled seat capacity among Africa’s 10 largest airports in September, up 24.1%. Nigeria’s total scheduled airline capacity for September 2026 stood at 1.19 million seats, a 37.4% increase over the same month the previous year.
Onabanjo-Kuku attributed the growth to currency reforms, new aircraft leasing arrangements and rising confidence among international airlines looking to operate in Nigeria. “Since the current Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development took office, several airlines have resumed operations in Nigeria, and more are expected soon,” she said. “These figures are not abstract. They represent millions of Africans connecting with family, doing business, accessing healthcare, and exploring opportunities. They represent livelihoods. They represent economic growth. They represent the future we are building together.”
Despite the positive numbers, she cautioned against reading passenger growth as a sign that the continent’s aviation challenges have been solved. Africa still accounts for only about 1% of global air traffic despite holding roughly 18% of the world’s population, she said, pointing to funding constraints, infrastructure gaps, high operating costs, fragmented connectivity, and pressure to keep airport charges affordable while delivering world-class facilities as ongoing challenges for the sector.
“In Nigeria alone, with a population exceeding 220m, we record approximately 19.5m passengers annually across 28 airports,” she said. “The potential is vast, but the gap between where we are and where we could be remains substantial. This is not a reason for despair, it is a reason for deliberate, strategic action.”
She said FAAN has prioritised safety improvements, expanded airport capacity, and modernised critical infrastructure, citing the rehabilitation of a major runway at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, terminal upgrades, and improved airfield lighting all carried out while operations continued. “We have focused on the fundamentals: safe runways, functional terminals, and reliable systems,” she said.
The authority is also rolling out digital tools including faster check-in systems, automated e-passport gates, upgraded security systems, and passenger-data analytics.
On quality management, Onabanjo-Kuku said FAAN earned ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certifications in January 2026, calling them proof of a systematic commitment to quality, environmental responsibility and continuous improvement. She added that more than 3,500 FAAN staff have been trained and certified through International Civil Aviation Organisation and ACI programmes.
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