ROTIMI ASHER
In a bid to further strengthen the bilateral relations existing between the two countries, Nigeria is on the verge of commencing the assembly of South Africa-made aircraft.
The Consulate General, the Republic of South Africa disclosed this to Motoring World in an exclusive interview during one of the activities making the country’s 29th independence held in Lagos, Nigeria.
According to him, as a way of enhancing the relationship between the two countries which span over 26 years, the Consulate of South Africa in Nigeria on February 18, 2023, launched the SA-Nigeria Aviation forum to facilitate the business of aviation.
“It may interest you to know,” he explained, “that there is a delegation from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), which is currently in Cape Town, South Africa to buy about 20 Aircrafts. They call them the Jabiru type of Aircraft. This aircraft are designed and manufactured in South Africa but are going to be assembled in Nigeria.
‘’ More than 20 aircrafts have been bought by Nigeria. These are some of the stories we want to be telling. We will be telling the stories during business round table and other opportunities existing between the two countries
“On the 25th, we are bringing captains of industry from both South Africa and Nigeria to come and discuss common issues of interest in the business industry.”
He lamented that despite what he described as existence of a number of basic challenges and prospects between the two countries, there has never been a meeting of minds.
“We are, therefore, creating a platform for them to start engaging themselves. We are hoping that on the sideline of the round table, we are going to establish what we call a financial sector mode of forum where we would have monthly reviews of issues that have been discussed,” he revealed.
A well-established Aircraft which originated from Australia, the Jabiru has become one of the most widely flown fixed wing NTCA aircraft brand in South Africa.
The country was registered as an aircraft manufacturing facility in 1991. With the aim of keeping aviation affordable, the country set up full manufacture of all composite parts of the Jabiru aircraft to supply local market. This has reduced the supply of the Australian content; reducing exchange rate, thereby keeping the price down.
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