Air Transport Senior Staff Services Association of Nigeria calls for inter-ministerial action to secure funding for Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB funding).
Following its National Executive Council meeting, ATSSSAN emphasized the need for increased financial support for the accident investigation agency. It emphasized that the current funding from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) via general revenue appropriations is insufficient.
Inadequate funding from sectors like rail and marine hinders the Bureau’s effectiveness, impacting comprehensive aviation investigations.
The NSIB Act 2022 transformed NSIB from the AIB to a multimodal investigator for rail, road, and maritime accidents. Despite this expansion, financial support from the government and other transportation sectors has been lacking.
The union feels that the financial challenges associated with the jurisdiction expansion is enough to spur instant action to ensure the NSIB funding is not just on paper but a thing of reality.
The ATSSSAN’s NEC emphasized the critical need for inter-ministerial collaboration to ensure NSIB receives necessary funding for its obligations.
“Investigating such incidents and accidents demands substantial resources. We urgently need inter-ministerial cooperation between aviation and transportation to ensure adequate funding for NSIB’s statutory mandate.” ATSSSAN further stated.
In 2022, NSIB’s revenue increased by raising the Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) collected from NCAA from 3% to 6%, and by receiving a 5% share of the Passenger Service Charge (PSC) from the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and private terminals.
However, the agency has struggled to secure designated percentages from rail, maritime, and road transportation, hindering its ability to fully function across multiple modes of transportation. NSIB funding shortfall, as noted by ATSSSAN, undermines its ability to effectively intervene and investigate incidents in other transportation sectors.
Already, there has been two accidents that the NSIB is currently looking into. The train/bus mishap at PWD in 2023 and the recent boat mishap that claimed an actor’s life.
