NCAA digital licensing platform will replace paper-based aviation certification processes from July 2026, officials say

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has announced a major transition from manual and paper-based licensing procedures to a fully digital certification platform for pilots, engineers, medical personnel and other aviation professionals.

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The new NCAA digital licensing platform is expected to take effect from July 2, 2026, as part of reforms aimed at eliminating long-standing delays and bureaucratic bottlenecks in the country’s aviation regulatory system.

Director-General of Civil Aviation, Chris Najomo, disclosed this on Tuesday during the unveiling of the Modern Personnel Licensing and Certification NCAA Digital Transformation Initiative PEL/MED Stakeholder Engagement held at Murtala Muhammed International Airport.

Najomo described the initiative as a transformative milestone in the authority’s reform agenda, stressing that Nigeria’s aviation sector could no longer depend on outdated administrative systems in an increasingly technology-driven global industry.

“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,” he 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 Najomo, the NCAA digital licensing platform will allow aviation professionals to complete licence issuance, renewal and conversion applications online while tracking their application status in real time.

The platform will also introduce biometric-backed credentials and QR-code verification systems designed to improve security, transparency and data integrity across the industry.

Najomo noted that aviation regulators globally had moved beyond fragmented databases and paper-driven workflows, adding that effective regulatory oversight now relies heavily on digital verification and real-time data 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.

He revealed that subsequent phases would extend to Air Operator Certificate processing, Approved Training Organisations, Approved Maintenance Organisations, aerodrome certification, air navigation service providers, ground handling organisations and dangerous goods approvals.

The aviation regulator also disclosed 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,” Najomo said.

The DGCA further explained that the platform would support technical certification processes, including aircraft registration, airworthiness certification, maintenance programme approvals, export and import airworthiness certification and supplemental type certificate monitoring.

In his welcome address, Director of Airworthiness Standards, Godwin Balang, said the project would finally end the era of paper-based aviation certification in Nigeria.

Balang stressed that modern aviation oversight could no longer be managed manually in an industry driven by speed, compliance, safety and operational precision.

“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.

“The Director-General has picked this project, and within two years, he has moved it from where he met it to where it is today.”

Balang disclosed that the system includes integrated components such as a central module, personnel licensing module, technical records module and organisational approvals module aimed at streamlining oversight across the aviation sector.

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He added that the NCAA had engaged international technical partners and aviation experts to study global best practices and ensure smooth implementation of the digital initiative.