Nigeria tops global charts in ICAO audit, signals aviation breakthrough

By: Amarachi Okonkwo 

Global aviation stakeholders have spotlighted Nigeria’s strongest-ever safety performance as a potential inflection point for Africa’s aviation sector, following the country’s 91.4% score in the latest audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The record result Nigeria’s highest to date featured prominently at the ongoing International Air Transport Association (IATA) Focus Africa Conference in Addis Ababa, where policymakers, regulators and airline executives are charting a path toward improved safety, connectivity and operational efficiency across the continent.

Speaking at the conference, Adefunke Adeyemi, Secretary-General of the African Civil Aviation Commission, described Nigeria’s performance as evidence that coordinated continental efforts are beginning to yield measurable gains.

According to her, 36 targeted safety missions have been carried out across 14 African countries to address regulatory gaps and operational deficiencies. These interventions have contributed to lifting Africa’s average Effective Implementation (EI) score—from 56% to 62% a key benchmark used by ICAO to assess compliance with global safety standards.

“This demonstrates that aviation safety is not an isolated national effort but a collective continental responsibility,” Adeyemi said.

She added that similar progress is being recorded in aviation security, where 22 missions across 14 countries have pushed Africa’s average security compliance levels to nearly 65%. AFCAC is also advancing initiatives aimed at harmonising security and facilitation processes across major African hubs to improve passenger experience and operational efficiency.

Beyond safety, Adeyemi pointed to gradual but notable improvements in travel accessibility within Africa. Currently, about 28% of African countries offer visa-free entry or visa-on-arrival for fellow Africans, while more than 20% have adopted e-visa systems developments seen as critical to unlocking intra-African mobility.

Connectivity indicators are also trending upward. Over the past four years, 188 bilateral air service agreements have been aligned with the Yamoussoukro Decision, the continent’s framework for airspace liberalisation. As a result, intra-African connectivity increased from 14.5% in 2022 to 23% by December 2025.

Route expansion has been even more pronounced. The number of intra-African routes more than doubled from 59 in 2023 to 124 by March 2026 including 22 new “fifth freedom” routes, which allow airlines to carry passengers between two foreign countries as part of a broader network.

Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, said the country’s audit milestone underscores its commitment to strengthening safety as the foundation for growth.

“Just last week, we achieved 91.4%, the highest in our history,” Keyamo said. “We recognise that a safe aviation system is the bedrock of trust and industry expansion.”

He noted that Africa’s population of 1.4 billion, coupled with a growing middle class, presents a significant demand opportunity, even as the continent remains underrepresented in global air traffic.

Keyamo called for accelerated implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM), a flagship African Union initiative aimed at creating a unified air transport market through open skies policies.

However, aviation leaders cautioned that progress remains uneven across the continent. Lucy Mbugua, Regional Director of ICAO, said disparities in regulatory capacity and compliance persist among African states.

“While Nigeria performed very well, some states are not doing so well,” she noted, highlighting ICAO’s “No Country Left Behind” initiative, which seeks to harmonise aviation standards and support weaker regulatory systems across member states.

Mbugua also pointed to looming capacity challenges, warning that global passenger demand is projected to double by 2050, with Africa expected to outpace other regions in growth.

“This growth will not be evenly distributed,” she said. “Emerging markets in Africa are projected to expand faster than the global average, making it imperative to strengthen safety oversight, infrastructure and regulatory frameworks now.”

For Nigeria, the audit milestone positions the country as a regional leader in aviation safety, one that could play a pivotal role in shaping Africa’s broader ambition to build a more integrated, competitive and globally compliant air transport ecosystem.