The Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) are not investors in the Nigeria Air airline.
The Minister of Aviation
Mr James Odaudu, the Special Assistant (Public Affairs) to the Minister of Aviation clarified this in a statement made available to Economy Footprint.
NSIA was listed as an investor in the Nigeria Air in error in a document released by the Ministry of Aviation during the press briefing by the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, announcing the investors of the much awaited national carrier.
A statement said the error was inadvertent and is regretted.
“Our attention has been drawn to the inadvertent inclusion of the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) as part of the private investors in the Nigeria Air project. We wish to clarify that the Authority is not involved, in any way, as part of the private equity ownership of the airline, being a government establishment” the statement indicated.
He noted that “the NSIA was not mentioned in Minister’s presentation, but only in the general brief given to the media, an error made during its preparation.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, the equity ownership structure of Nigeria Air stands as : Ethiopian Airlines 49%, Nigerian private investors (SAHCO, MRS and other institutional investors) 46% and the Federal Government 5%” the statement reiterated.
