By Uchechi Ijeoma Edosomwan, Deputy General Manager & Head, Electronic Communications Department, Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, and alumnus of the AIG Public Leaders programme. 

The Nigerian aviation sector has been in the spotlight this past year. Amid some turbulence – such as calls for greater maintenance of aircraft – the recent appointment of Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo has led to a wealth of opportunities. New routes and connectivity through recently inked international partnerships, a leap in our compliance ratings that will simplify aircraft leasing and financing, and private sector collaborations to build new maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facilities. It is an exciting time to be in this industry, especially for those of us passionate about skills development – which I believe is going to be essential to the success of these projects. More aircraft and communication, navigation and surveillance (CNS) systems will require more maintenance and safety checks, which in turn will require more skilled inspectors, engineers, and safety personnel. But how can we accelerate the training of these vital public servants?

In 2021, after more than 20 years in the sector, I came to the realisation that my own skills needed to become more diverse if I wanted to make a positive impact. Being an ardent learner – whose personal objective is to be change agent and enabler – I jumped at the opportunity to join the AIG Public Leaders Programme delivered by the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation in partnership with the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. The programme offers public servants the chance to learn new skillsets, develop their leadership capacity, and drive change in the public sector. Even more importantly, alumni are tasked with completing a Capstone Project that will lead to a tangible, positive change in their institutions and directly or indirectly enhance service delivery to the public.

I work in an aviation agency which is a safety, knowledge, and hands-on-driven sector, and I noticed that we could improve efficiency in our training programmes. For example, every Air Traffic Safety Electronics Personnel (ATSEP) is required to be licensed and rated to work on any engineering equipment. The ATSEP is required to undergo a two-weeks On-the-Job Training (OJT) prior to being presented for such ratings, so they can be recognised as technical specialists who provide, install, and maintain the CNS facilities that enhance air traffic management.

My Capstone Project, Standardisation of On-the-Job-Training for ATSEP Communication Ratings, was an intervention for a procedural systematic change where an OJT Manual was developed to further improve the training standard, while monitoring and effectively benchmarking the performance and achievement of the vision and mission of my directorate. Putting together this 125-page manual was far from easy, requiring a five-person team and the unflinching support of the Director of Safety, Electronics and Engineering Services and his Management team.

Since the manual was approved for use in 2022, all subsequent ATSEP cohorts, in the communication sector in MMIA, have used it during their training period, allowing them to quickly grasp the working principles of the communication facilities. It has improved training such that the supervisors are able to effectively monitor the progress of the training with more precision with the benchmark the manual provided. I was honoured to receive a letter of commendation from the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency for this work of improving ATSEP preparedness for the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority Rating Examinations in Communication Systems. The success of this project may have led to my appointment to chair a steering committee in my directorate in 2024; a committee that was given the task of producing a 4-year planner for the engineering directorate as well as recommend projects and strategies to positively impact the directorate’s ability to achieve its goals and objectives.

My training has had a trickle-down effect, and even if just one person has benefited, and is similarly inspired to originate new learning tools or develop their own leadership capabilities, then I can definitively say the AIG Leaders Programme’s thesis is correct. We were taught that informed leaders are the catalysts of positive change, and if there are enough of us, we can help to transform our respective sectors.

In aviation, we could introduce the policies that reduce import duties on tools and spare parts so that budgets can accommodate and provide for more. We could create the strategies to manage obsolescence and minimise downtime – even when we face supply shortfalls. But most importantly, we could change the way we interact with the public, the people who need our services; take on their feedback and implement it to become more compliant and efficient. We could be the cornerstone of Minister Keyamo’s bid to grow the Nigerian aviation sector.

With the right skills development, the right investment in leadership, the sky’s is just the beginning!