Nigeria achieves a milestone on World ATC Day

Nigeria achieved a historic milestone with an all-female Air Traffic Control (ATC) Crew managing all control units nationwide, covering Area, Approach, and Terminal Control.

This was part of activities to mark the World Air Traffic Controllers Day celebrated globally.

This initiative was conceived by senior female Controllers, spearheaded by Nigeria’s first female Controller, Hauwa Danboyi, who took the initiative to management and secured approval.

DGM, Air Traffic Management (ATM), Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Kate Nnanna-Ibemgbo, was then charged as the Planning Committee Chairman together with her committee members who saw to it that the epoch-making event was a reality.

“We thought of a situation where we could come together and pool our individual strengths to have a collective strength and do what we know would project the core values of ATC in Nigeria, but to also show that in our profession there is actually a very big presence of inclusion. There is diversity, but at the same time there is inclusion. So, there is synergy between the male and the female counterparts,” he stated.

The DGM, Technical Evaluation and Manpower Development, Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Ekeada Doris, said: “I am proud to say that when I joined ATC in 1998, we were six in number and now we are almost 50. So, I am very proud that we have enough ladies to occupy all the positions all over the country today.”