Sade Williams/Business a.m.

Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State has said the state government will give free land alongside other incentives to agro allied investors willing to invest at the Damaturu Cargo International Airport in the state capital.

The governor said with the completion of its 3.6 kilometre runway, terminal building and the installations of state of the art aeronautical equipment and its strategic location, the airport is poised for businesses.

Buni spoke at the 2024 Airport Business Summit in Lagos where he urged the federal government to mandate the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to collaborate with Yobe State government in ensuring the airport opens for optimum operations especially the lifting of agro-allied produce.

The governor, who was represented by Mustapha Gaidam, permanent secretary, Yobe State Ministry of Transport and Energy, affirmed that the agrarian state produces the largest number of livestock in the country adding that the airport will best serve as a transit location to neighbouring countries and across the world when the livestocks are exported while generating huge revenue for Yobe state and the federal government.

Gaidam said: “When one of the installers of the aeronautical equipment came to the airport, he said the only airport that has this kind of infrastructure and technology in our clime was Damaturu International Airport, because they are new models found only in the developed airports in the United Arabs Emirate.

“On a daily basis, you see thousands of trucks leaving Yobe state to other parts of the country especially Lagos filled with cows and their byproducts; we are just producing and selling within the country, why not export them?

“That is why we are calling on investors to take advantage of the business opportunities to invest in the airport, especially in the agro-allied sector by building warehouses for storage of the abundant farm produce and livestock in the state for export.”

He said “the airport has a large landmass of about 2.5 by 5 kilometres. We are now calling on investors to come. His Excellency, the governor, is ready to give them land free of charge for all agro-allied businesses.”

Speaking on the security of the airport, the permanent secretary assured that, “in terms of security, we have one battalion of the Nigerian military in the airport, and more importantly, we must realise that the security challenge in the North-East has drastically reduced.”