Chinedu Eze
The Comptroller-General of Immigration Service,(CGI) Martin Abeshi has announced that Immigration personnel would be deployed to the new Immigration Control areas at the Murtala Mohammed Airport Domestic Terminal (MMA2) in preparedness for the commencement of international flights on December 1, 2015.
The CGI made this known at a meeting with Mr. Christophe Pennick, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd (BASL), and operators of the Airport at the Service Headquarters, Abuja at the weekend.
Mr. Pennick was at the Service Headquarters to brief the CGI on the extent of work done at the Airport to ensure that facilities meet international standards.
He confirmed that Bi-Courtney has provided well-furnished offices for administration duties and put in place necessary facilities needed for processing of passengers in the Immigration Control areas of the Departure and Arrival halls as well as an interrogation room.
BASL has also provided transit area for interline passengers and a holding area for passengers that may be refused entry into Nigeria and needs to be repatriated.
He was therefore at the Service Headquarters to request that NIS personnel are deployed in good time for the take-off of the first international flight.
“I am here this morning to request that you post your staff to the Immigration Counters provided. Facilities have been designed and produced in a manner to conform to international standards; while providing seamless transit between international and domestic passengers as well,” Penninck said.
The CGI in his response said that the Service has been monitoring developments at the MMA2 since the Federal Government and Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) and was satisfied with developments.
“You have done well and shown seriousness in ensuring that MMA2 becomes a model for airports in Africa. I will deploy officers who are well trained and conform to global best practices to you; however, for the purpose of effective control; the MMA2 operations will be supervised by the Murtala Muhammed Airport Command,” Abeshi said.
According to Pennick, Dana, Aereo and Medview airlines would commence flight using the MMA2 to Accra and a few other destinations in West Africa.
Dana Group Named One of Nigeria’s Top 50 Brands
Dana Group of companies has announced that it has been named one of the top 50 brands in Nigeria.
The Group was given the recognition at the 3rd edition of the Brands Nigeria Leadership Forum held at the prestigious Oriental Hotels in Lagos.
Themed “Prospect of an Economy without Oil,” the top 50 brands is an annual selection of top brands that have shown tremendous leadership, innovation and quality in their categories.
According to the coordinator of Brands Nigeria, Mr Taiwo Oluboyede; “a number of factors were considered in the selection of the top 50 brands this year. Of importance are the top of the mind factors like: popularity, acceptability, spread, loyalty and availability”
Established in the 80s, The Dana Group of Companies has grown to become a multi-billion naira business empire with diverse interest in Automobile, Aviation, Pharmaceutical, Steel, Plastics, Water, Chemical, Banking, and Real Estate.
Since inception, the Group has experienced phenomenal growth on account of its quality products; focus on customer satisfaction and efficiency of human capital. Today, Dana Group of companies is a multi-national with a well-defined vision to become number one in all the markets it serves.
The Group’s business approach has been highly consumer oriented, providing local value added products and services, that meet basic needs of the populace at the most economic pricing. Considering the need for quality products, the Group commissioned a plastics plant for household products in year 2000, followed by a pharmaceutical formulation and water bottling plant in 2003. The Group also made an inroad into rice milling using state-of –the art food processing equipment, and further established its commitment to the Nigerian project when in 2006, it acquired the Steel Rolling Mill in Katsina, from the Federal Government to produce iron and wire rods.
Still living by the philosophy of leading by example, Nigeria’s Aviation industry has continued to witness world-class in-flight service, efficient customer service, innovative e-airline products and on-time departures and arrivals with the Group’s introduction of Dana Air in 2008, a domestic airline with a trend setting desire to go regional soon.
As always, Dana Group of Companies acted in line with Federal Government’s recent automotive policy and launched a multi-billion naira Vehicle Assembly Plant in 2014. The Vehicle Assembly Plant with futuristic technology has the capacity to churn out over 27,000 exquisite KIA and Renault cars per annum.
The Group has established itself as a socially responsible organization as its philanthropic arm, Dana Foundation; is taking care of various causes such as contributions to educational and healthcare institutions, sinking of boreholes and support for orphans and special children yearly.
As a proudly Nigerian brand, Dana Group’s investment in various sectors of the Nigerian economy is huge, and has directly and indirectly provided jobs for over 5,400 employees.
