About 80 per cent of airports across Africa are financially inefficient, the Secretary-General of Airports Council International Africa, Ali Tounsi, has disclosed.
Tounsi made the disclosure on Thursday in Abuja while briefing journalists ahead of the 35th ACI Africa Annual General Assembly, Regional Conference and Exhibition scheduled for September 19 to 25, 2026.
He said more than 500 delegates, including airport executives, speakers, sponsors and exhibitors, were expected at the event, exceeding the initial estimate of between 350 and 400 participants.
According to him, the large turnout demonstrates the growing interest in the conference and Nigeria’s attractiveness as a destination for major industry events.
“We will have more than 500 participants and more than 40 speakers, sponsors and exhibitors, so it will be a very good event for ACI Africa and for FAAN,” Tounsi said.
He listed financial sustainability among the major challenges facing the African aviation industry, noting that while most major airports were financially viable, the situation was different for the majority of airports across the continent.
“You know that the airport is not all the time efficient financially. Most of the big airports are efficient, but 80 per cent of the airports in Africa are not efficient financially,” he said.
Tounsi also pointed to the changing airport environment, digitalisation, natural disasters and accidents as emerging challenges requiring greater attention from airport authorities.
“The second is the change in the environment of airports, digitalisation, and all these problems related to natural catastrophes, accidents, a lot of problems that airports are facing in Africa,” he said.
The Chairman of the Local Organising Committee and Director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Henry Agbebire, said Abuja had begun receiving delegates ahead of the conference.
He said the event would bring together stakeholders for the 35th ACI Africa Annual General Assembly, the 76th Board and Committees Meetings, and the Regional Conference and Exhibition.
The conference is themed, “Next-Gen Airports, Driving Performance and Resilience.”
Agbebire said discussions would centre on airport performance, resilience, digital transformation, infrastructure, passenger experience, sustainability, safety and security, as well as commercial development.
Meanwhile, FAAN Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Olubunmi Kuku, said the agency had deployed more than 100 personnel to work alongside ACI Africa in preparing for the gathering.
She said FAAN was also collaborating with security and other sister agencies to ensure smooth facilitation and adequate security for delegates arriving through the Lagos and Abuja international airports.
“This has been a long time coming. We’ve had a significant number of individuals, over 100 people from the Nigerian side, working very closely with ACI Africa to ensure that, one, whatever arrangements we make for this 35th Annual General Assembly give the best-in-class experience,” Kuku said.
She added that the conference would give Nigeria an opportunity to showcase its airport transformation and modernisation programmes.
Kuku, however, stressed that the event was primarily focused on addressing challenges confronting the wider African aviation industry.
“But this conference is not about Nigeria; this conference is about Africa,” she said.
She said the gathering would enable airport managers across the continent to exchange experiences, participate in knowledge and learning sessions, and develop new ideas capable of supporting the growth and resilience of the region’s aviation sector.
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