Nigeria Steps Up Aviation Safety Reforms as ICAO Team Arrives Ahead of April Validation Mission

……Nigeria Moves to Deepen Aviation Safety Oversight

Nigeria has intensified efforts to reinforce its aviation safety architecture following the arrival of a high-level Regional Office Safety Team from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Western and Central African Office in Abuja.
The technical delegation was formally received by the Director-General of Civil Aviation, Capt. Chris Najomo, marking the commencement of the ICAO Regional Office Safety Team (ROST) Assistance Mission to Nigeria.
The engagement comes ahead of the ICAO International Coordinated Validation Mission (ICVM) scheduled for April 15 to 22, 2026—an internationally recognised exercise that evaluates how effectively countries implement global aviation safety standards and recommended practices.
Mission Focus: Closing Safety Gaps Before ICVM
Speaking during the reception, Najomo described the mission as a critical milestone in Nigeria’s ongoing transition toward full alignment with international aviation safety best practices.
He stressed that ICAO audits and assistance programmes are not punitive score-keeping exercises but structured mechanisms designed to:
Improve aviation safety systems
Strengthen regulatory oversight
Ensure sustained compliance with global standards
According to him, Nigeria has already treated past audit findings with urgency by developing corrective action plans validated by ICAO and now under implementation across the aviation sector.The ongoing ROST mission is specifically targeting four technical areas that previously recorded the highest number of outstanding protocol questions:

Personnel licensing

Flight operations

Air navigation services

Aerodromes and ground aids

Progress Since the 2023 Safety Audit

Najomo recalled Nigeria’s performance in the 2023 Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme Continuous Monitoring Approach, where the country achieved an Effective Implementation score of 70.12 per cent—a figure reflecting measurable progress while also highlighting the need for deeper institutional improvements.
He thanked ICAO’s regional leadership for sustained technical support and reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to implementing all outstanding safety recommendations ahead of the April validation mission.

ICAO Calls for Transparency and Stakeholder Cooperation

Leading the visiting delegation, Kebba Lamin Jammeh clarified that the current engagement is strictly an assistance mission rather than a formal audit.
He urged aviation stakeholders to maintain openness, transparency, and full collaboration to ensure the mission delivers meaningful safety outcomes for Nigeria and the wider West African aviation system.
Senior officials of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, representatives of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, other aviation agencies, and technical experts from the Banjul Accord Group Aviation Safety Oversight Organization participated in the engagement.

Broader Implications for Nigeria’s Aviation Future

The ICAO assistance mission underscores Nigeria’s shift from compliance-driven reactions to a proactive, system-wide safety governance model anchored on transparency, technical capability, and sustained international cooperation.
Successful implementation of corrective measures ahead of the ICVM is expected to:
Strengthen Nigeria’s global aviation safety rating
Boost investor and airline confidence
Enhance regional aviation leadership in West Africa
Ultimately, industry observers note that sustainable aviation growth will depend less on infrastructure expansion alone and more on credible safety regulation and continuous institutional reform.

Nigeria intensifies aviation safety oversight as ICAO’s technical team begins a pre-validation mission in Abuja ahead of the April 2026 global safety assessment.