TT signs air deal with Nigeria

WORKS and Transport Minister Franklyn Khan yesterday announced the signing of a draft bilateral air services agreement between Trinidad and Tobago and Nigeria. Addressing the post-Cabinet news conference at Whitehall, Khan expressed optimism that Prime Minister Patrick Manning will formalise the agreement when he attends next month’s Common-wealth Heads of Government Summit in Nigeria. Khan said TT-Nigeria air link talks started in July 2000 and follow-up talks took place in September, when a Nigerian delegation came to Port-of-Spain. “This agreement has been initialled by both parties and is subject to the approval by the Cabinet of Nigeria and we got our clearance here today from the Cabinet of TT.

“It is hoped that all the approval processes in Nigeria will be completed in time and we expect that when our Prime Minister attends the Commonwealth Heads of Government conference in Abuja in the first week of December, he will have the distinguished honour of being able to sign formally the bilateral air services agreement between TT and Nigeria.This sets the legal and foreign policy framework in which commercial airlines can now attempt to craft and create a market between Africa and Nigeria, specifically, and the Caribbean,” he declared. Describing the 21st century as one of geography and not history, Khan said this agreement “will open up new opportunities for trade and investment in Africa. “The southern hemisphere is starting to do extremely well economically. New growth poles of the world are in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand and that Oceania group. I think this is a step in the right direction,” the Minister stated. Last week, Manning announced that former minister Donna Carter will be TT’s first High Commissioner to South Africa.

Khan added that through this agreement a flight from Port-of-Spain to Lagos will now take “a mere six hours” compared to the current flying time (via London) of 16 hours. He noted already established non-traditional air links with Cuba, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic and hinted that air links with Brazil could be in the offing. The Minister also disclosed that Government is optimistic that by March 2004, Piarco International Airport would regain the Category One status it lost under the UNC. Khan said all the administrative infrastructure is in place and the necessary regulations are 95 percent complete. He added that these regulations will come to Parliament for approval either by the end of November or early December.

On plans to modernise the Tobago airbridge, Khan said Cabinet, together with the Ministry and the Tobago House of Assembly, will consider opening up the subsidy now available to BWIA and Tobago Express, to foreign carriers. He hinted there was a defendable case to open up that subsidy “so that if Liat and/or Caribbean Star want to increase flights on the route, we should also offer the $100 subsidy. “The subsidy is not for the airline it is actually for the passenger,” Khan explained. The Minister said he was open to discussions with a French company that hinted it could construct a bridge between Trinidad and Tobago. “It is very futuristic but not impossible,” he stated.