Abstract
This study was on assessment of air transportation opportunities and infrastructural development in Akwa Ibom state. Three objectives were raised which included: To find out the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunity in Akwa Ibom state, to find out the contribution of air transportation to infrastructure development in Akwa Ibom state and to find out the challenges face by air transportation in economic development of Akwa ibom state. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for this study. The data collected were presented in tables and analyzed using simple percentages and frequencies.
Chapter one
Introduction
1.1Background of the study
Air transport is one of the world’s most important industries. Its development and technical service achievements make it one of the major contributors to the advancement of modern societal development. The growth in the aviation sector cannot be matched by any other major form of transport due to its technicality and new innovations that is going on in the sector. The above has helped so much in economic and tourist development of the nation and the globe. Demand for air transport services has increased the influence of air transport in the nation and global economy, thereby enhancing rapid movement of passengers, goods and services to the domestic and world market. This in effect helps to generate higher revenue to the economy by way of fast in and out flow of goods and services. The aviation industry plays an important role in the aspect of work and leisure to people around the globe. The sector helps to promote and improve quality of life, living standards of people within the nation. All this helps to generate economic growth and poverty alleviation by way of providing employment opportunities, increasing revenues from taxes. The employment opportunities would be generated through supply chain transformation from the airports.
Air transportation is a major industry in its own right and it also provides important inputs into wider economic, political, and social processes. The demand for its services, as with most transport, is a derived one that is driven by the needs and desires to attain some other final objective. Air transport can facilitate, for example, in the economic development of a region or of a particular industry such as tourism, but there has to be a latent demand for the goods and services offered by a region or by an industry. Lack of air transport, as with any other input into the economic system, can prevent efficient growth. But equally, inappropriateness or excesses in supply are wasteful (Button, 2008).
Economies, and the interactions that exist within the globe, domestic and the air transport system, are in a continuous state, although economists‟ notions of equilibrium have some very useful intellectual content, and validity in the very short-run. In reality the world is dynamic. This dynamism, of which the particular thrust of globalization is the concern here, has implications for industries such as air transport that service it. But there are also feedback loops, because developments in air transport can shape the form and the speed at which nations‟ development, globalization and related processes take place. The demand for air transport is a derived one; the institutional contexts in which air transport services are delivered have knock-on effects on the economic system. These feedback loops may entail direct economic, political, and social effects that, for example, the system may enhance trade and personal mobility, but they may also be indirect, as for example through the impacts of air transport on the environment (Button, 2008)
Air transport has a unique advantage over all other modes of transport if speed, time and distance are major considerations. Air transport is of high value in relation to weight. It is also preferred where accessibility by other modes is a problem (especially in riverine or mountainous regions). Air transportation is a system with many inter-related parts. Each airport is connected to the system through the airways and other airports with which it exchanges flights. Its share of the GDP is however, still legible in Nigeria (Aderamo, 2010).
Aviation stakeholders and experts have called for continued investment in infrastructure to sustain the growing contribution of the sector to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The transport industry contribution to the nation’s Gross Domestic Product in the second quarter of 2021 is less than its contribution in the first quarter, but aviation stakeholders said the aviation sub-sector made greater contribution than in the previous years and attributed the development to improved infrastructure and growing passenger traffic. Based on this background the researcher wants to investigate the contributions of air transportation to employment opportunities and infrastructural development in Akwa Ibom state
Statement of the problem
In Nigeria, the demand for air transport services has been on the increase within the past three decades. There has been growth in passenger, aircraft and freight traffic as a result of physical and economic development of cities in different parts of the country. The creation of states and the need to develop state capitals for them to perform their socio-economic responsibilities has fuelled the tempo of physical development in the country. Fast connections between the diverse economic spaces of Nigeria are better achieved through air transportation. According to Ogunbodede (2006), the diversity in the resource endowment between the North and the South is an important factor in the growth of air transport in Nigeria. Also, the new civilian administration regards the air transport subsector as a critical focal point in the effort to open up the country to foreign investors and thereby narrow the gap between available and required levels of domestic investment capital (Adeyemi 2001). All these are indications of increasing demand for air transport services in the country. In order to accommodate future demand for air transport services in Nigeria, it is expedient to plan for it. More development on the issue of passenger travel demand will greatly assist the aviation industry. The long run success of any aviation organization is closely related to how well management is able to foresee the future and develop appropriate strategies.
Objective of the study
The main objective of the study is to assess the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunities and infrastructural development in Akwa Ibom state. The specific objectives are;
- To find out the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunity in Akwa Ibom state
- To find out the contribution of air transportation to infrastructure development in Akwa Ibom state
- To find out the challenges face by air transportation in economic development of Akwa ibom state
Research Question
The following research questions are formulated to guide the study
- What is the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunity in Akwa Ibom state?
- What is the contribution of air transportation to infrastructure development in Akwa Ibom state?
- What are the challenges faces by air transportation in economic development of Akwa ibom state?
Research Hypotheses
The following research hypotheses are formulated to guide the study;
H1: there is no significant contribution of air transportation to employment opportunity in Akwa Ibom state
H2: there is no significant contribution of air transportation to infrastructure development in Akwa Ibom state
H3: there are no challenges faces by air transportation in economic development of Akwa ibom state
Significance of the study
The study will be of benefits to students, aviation sector, policy makers and the Akwa Ibom state. The study will give a clear insight on the assessment of the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunities and infrastructural development. The result of the study will educate many on the contribution of air transportation on employment and infrastructure in the state. The study will also serve as a reference to other researcher that will embark on the related topic
Scope of the study
The scope of the study covers the assessment of the contribution of air transportation to employment opportunities and infrastructural development. The study will be limited to residents in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state
Definition of terms
Contribution: To help produce or achieve something together with other people, or to help make something successful
Air transportation: Air transport is one of the fastest modes of public transport which connects international boundaries. Air transport allows people from different countries to cross international boundaries and travel other countries for personal, business, medical, and tourism purposes
Employment opportunity: Employment Opportunities means consideration for hire, hire, transfer, promotion, training, and non-disciplinary retention, including in any reorganization or layoff.
Infrastructure: Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function
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