The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has announced plans to transition from manual and paper-based licensing procedures to a fully digital platform for pilots, engineers, medical personnel, and other aviation professionals.
The new digital licensing regime is expected to take effect from July 2, 2026, and is aimed at eliminating long delays and bureaucratic bottlenecks that have affected licence issuance, renewals, and certifications within Nigeria’s aviation sector.
Speaking on Tuesday during the unveiling of the Modern Personnel Licensing and Certification NCAA Digital Transformation Initiative PEL/MED Stakeholder Engagement held at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, the Director-General of Civil Aviation, Chris Najomo, said the era of endless waiting for aviation licences would soon end.
Najomo described the initiative as a major milestone in the authority’s ongoing reform programme, stressing that Nigeria’s aviation industry could no longer depend on outdated systems in a rapidly evolving global sector.
“Personnel licensing in America is key to airline operators. It is very important. This is what pertains everywhere in America and other advanced aviation systems,” Najomo said.
“I am sure airline operators are asking, ‘When are we going to start? When are we going to stop waiting one week, two weeks, sometimes one month for licences to come out?’ But I tell you, it is going to be over soon. There will be no more waiting.”
According to him, the digital transformation initiative will provide transparent online application processes for licence issuance, renewal, and conversion.
Applicants will also be able to track the progress of their applications in real time.
Najomo added that the platform would introduce biometric-backed credentials and QR-code-based licence verification in line with global aviation standards, thereby improving security, transparency, and data integrity.
He noted that the aviation industry worldwide had moved beyond fragmented databases, semi-automated systems, and paper-driven workflows, adding that modern regulatory oversight now relies heavily on technology and real-time verification systems.
“The deployment of this digital licensing and medical certification platform represents the first phase of the NCAA’s wider digital transformation programme,” he stated.
Najomo disclosed that future phases of the programme would include Air Operator Certificate processing, Approved Training Organisations, Approved Maintenance Organisations, aerodrome certifications, air navigation service providers, ground handling organisations, and dangerous goods approvals.
The DGCA also revealed that the authority had already reduced delays associated with the issuance of Air Operator Certificates for airlines.
“Before now, obtaining an AOC could take between one and two years. We reduced that timeline to between six and eight months, and with this digital platform, we are looking at reducing it further to about 90 days,” he said.
He further explained that the platform would cover technical certification processes such as aircraft registration, airworthiness certification, aircraft maintenance programme approvals, export and import certification of airworthiness, supplemental type certificates, and monitoring of airworthiness directives.
In his welcome address, the Director of Airworthiness Standards, Godwin Balang, said the implementation of the MPLC project would mark the end of paper-based aviation certification processes in Nigeria.
Balang stressed that effective aviation oversight could no longer be managed manually in an industry driven by speed, accuracy, compliance, and safety.
“What we are going to find with my team is not something you can use paper files for. You need systems. That is why we are gathered here today,” he said.
According to Balang, the MPLC system includes several integrated components such as a central module, personnel licensing module, technical records module, and organisational approvals module aimed at streamlining regulatory oversight across the aviation industry.
He added that the NCAA had engaged international technical partners and experts to study global best practices in aviation digitalisation to ensure smooth implementation of the project.
Balang also disclosed that a team from the authority recently travelled to South America for a five-day technical engagement focused on the deployment and operationalisation of the MPLC project.
