Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has directed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and other aviation agencies to secure realistic debt repayment schedules from airlines within one week.

The directive followed an emergency stakeholders’ meeting convened by Keyamo on Thursday, August 13, 2026, to address outstanding issues in the aviation sector and prevent further industrial action by aviation unions.

According to a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary, Mahmud Kambari, the meeting was a follow-up to earlier engagements with aviation unions that led to the temporary suspension of their industrial action on Tuesday, August 11.

Keyamo directed the Directors of Finance and Accounts of all aviation agencies to meet individually with airlines and agree on repayment plans that take into account their operating costs and prevailing economic realities.

The Minister also addressed the issue of unionisation, stressing that workers must be allowed to independently decide whether they want to belong to a union.

He directed the NCAA to ensure that aviation unions have direct access to workers across all airlines solely for the distribution of forms through which employees can indicate their willingness or otherwise to unionise.

Keyamo warned that any airline that obstructs the process would face sanctions from the NCAA.

The stakeholders also agreed to reconvene after one month to assess progress made and review the state of the situation.

The resolutions, according to the statement, were collectively reached by all parties at the meeting.