LAGOS, NIGERIA – Achieving safer skies required adequate licensing and strick adherence to quality standards and regulations both locally and internationally.

To this aim, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) on Monday charged Approved Training Organisations (ATOs) on accountability and standardisation for optimum operations and safer skies.

The Director-General of NCAA, Capt. Chris Najomo, gave the charge at the opening of a stakeholder workshop in Lagos.

The three-day workshop had the theme: “Managing ATOs Compliance with the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2023’’.

Najomo was represented by the General Manager of Licensing at NCAA, Mr Hyelni Bassi.

He said that aviation professionals required rigorous training while the industry generally required established compliance measures.

According to him, ATOs provided a strong foundation for building aviation professionals for safety and efficiency of aviation operations.

“Today, we face significant challenges in maintaining high standards of quality and compliance within our training organisations.

“Rapid advancements in technology, evolving regulatory frameworks and the increasing complexity of aviation operations necessitate a proactive and collaborative approach.

“This workshop is an opportunity for us to share insights, discuss best practices and foster a culture of transparency and accountability in our training programmes,” he said.

Najomo said that the workshop would discuss and explore various aspects of compliance management, including regulatory requirements, evaluation methodologies and mechanisms for continuous improvement.

He urged ATOs to exceed expectations from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations.

The Head of ATO Inspectorate, Mr Sunnie Adoyi, said that the workshop was aimed to highlight data by NCAA, identify gaps and ways to address the gaps in developing certification and compliance system.

According to him, certification as an ATO is dependent on the applicant’s demonstration of compliance with the requirements.

He said: “We will be sharing our safety oversight and the compliance tools of ATO in Nigeria.

“The purpose of sharing this data is not to simply make us understand critically what we need to do to meet international best practices, but because we have an obligation.

“From time to time, International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) will pay visits to all contracting states to ascertain the level of compliance to the practices contained in the annexes and relevant ICAO documents,” he said.

Adoyi also said that there was the need to maintain standards that would attract international participants.

He added that NCAA was leveraging technology to simplify approval processes without compromising standards.

Accountable managers, rectors and members of aviation school managements were present at the workshop.