Private Funds to Fund New Aviation Leasing Entity – Keyamo

Private investors and development finance institutions will provide up to 95 per cent of the funding for a newly established national aircraft leasing firm. Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo disclosed the financing structure during an industry stakeholder meeting in Abuja. The newly approved corporate entity will operate strictly as a private sector-driven special purpose vehicle. President Bola Tinubu recently directed a joint ministerial committee to oversee the immediate operational launch of the initiative. State participation will remain limited to providing strategic sovereign guarantees regarding aircraft safety and international repossession rights.

The strategic intervention aims to fix the chronic structural barriers preventing domestic airlines from accessing affordable global capital. International aircraft lessors frequently avoid the domestic market due to historical legal disputes over asset recovery and currency volatility. The new special-purpose vehicle plans to secure aircraft through dry lease frameworks and sublease them to domestic operators in local currency. Sourcing assets in naira will shield vulnerable local airlines from the constant shocks of foreign exchange fluctuations. International financiers will also benefit from dealing with a singular, state-backed corporate entity rather than fragmented local carriers.

The African Development Bank has fully integrated the domestic leasing project into its broader continental aviation financing framework. This regional development programme controls a seven billion dollar investment pool intended to modernise commercial aviation across Africa. Consequently, international development bankers have selected Nigeria to serve as a primary pilot country for the infrastructure rollout. Local airline executives strongly praised the initiative, noting it resolves long-standing issues regarding aircraft insurance and high interest rates. Industry operators expect the availability of cheap leasing options to significantly reduce domestic flight delays and operational overheads.