The Domestic Airports Cargo Agents Association (DACAA) on Monday hailed the opening of a cargo terminal at the General Aviation Terminal operated by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) in Ikeja.
The Acting Chairman, Board of Trustees, DACAA, Mr John Ekeanya, said that the new cargo hub would improve the contributions of domestic cargo to the country’s economy.
Ekeanya spoke with our Correspondent in Lagos.
He said that there was a healthy competition in the cargo ecosystem
He said: “The building and commissioning of a cargo hub at the General Aviation Terminal by FAAN is a very welcome development.
“We used to have something like that but not as comprehensive. Now, we can boast of a cargo hub that means we will no longer depend on only one cargo space at the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal Two (MMA2).
“Now, we have an alternative, which is a government facility. Our goods will be processed and properly kept.”
On the involvement of the association in the planning and establishment of the cargo hub, Ekeanya said that cargo agents were not carried along.
” I have raised this issue with FAAN management, and we are hopeful that remedies would be made going forward.
“Generally speaking, it is a welcome development, and we are hoping that cargo agents will be integrated into the whole programme.
“I started that by writing to the director of cargo operations at FAAN, and we hope that this is the beginning of a good thing,” he said.
According to Ekeanya, the hub will be mutually beneficial to FAAN and DACAA members.
Freedomonline reports that DACAA had on April 2 called for the establishment of cargo processing centres in all airports in Nigeria to boost economic growth.
On May 9, FAAN unveiled its cargo terminal at GAT.
