The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Management, Barrister Festus Keyamo, is leading agencies of the ministry at a plenary session of the National Sports Tourism Conference and Exhibition (NASTOCE 2026) conference focusing on General Air Transport Services and Aerospace Management: A Vital Component in Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria on Day One of the Conference – Monday 30th March, 2026 at the prestigious Nicon Luxury Hotel.

NASTOCE in identifying with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to deploy the tourism potentials of Nigeria to grow the national economy in partnership and collaboration with the aviation industry is leveraging on the interconnectivity between sports and tourism as well as the aviation sector to create the needed awareness through a 2-day National Sports Tourism Conference and Exhibition (NASTOCE 2026), with the Theme: Leveraging on the Inter-Section of Multi-Sectoral MDAs to Promote Sports Tourism in Nigeria

During the plenary session for the aviation industry, the Honourable Minister is to deliver a Keynote Address while Heads of Agencies of the Ministry will deliver position papers reference to the respective mandate of each Agency.

The Managing Director, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), as a Special Guest Panelist, will deliver a position paper on: The Policy Thrust Mechanisms of FAAN in Seamless and Safer Air Transportation Management for Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria; The Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), as one of the Special Guest Panelist, will be delivering a position paper on: NCAA: Positioned to Safeguard the General Operations of the Nigerian Aviation Industry for Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria. while The Managing Director, Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), also A Special Guest Panelist, will be delivering a position paper on: Positioning NAMA for Efficient and Safer Air Transport Service Delivery for Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria.

Also at the plenary session for the aviation sector, The Director General, of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), , will deliver a position paper as A Special Guest Panelist on: Positioning NSIB for Efficient and Safer Inter-Modal Investigation Service Delivery for Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria and the Director General, Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMeT), as A Special Guest Panelist, will deliver a position paper on: NiMeT, Availing the Nation with Accurate Weather and Climate Information for Efficient and Safer General Living and upscaling Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria. While the Rector, Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), as A Special Guest Panelist, will deliver a position paper on: NCAT, Availing the Nation Aviation Industry with Skilled Manpower and Technological Advancement; Pathway of upscaling Sport Tourism Development in Nigeria

The National Sports Tourism Conference and Exhibition NASTOCE is scheduled to hold from Monday 30th – Tuesday 31st March, 2026 at the Nicon Luxury Hotel, Abuja. With the theme Leveraging on the Inter-Section of Multi-Sectoral MDAs to Promote Sports Tourism in Nigeria , the Conference seeks to focus on the connectivity between tourism and sports as well as the inter-links with other MDAs so as to explore the inherent socio-economic potentials existing in the interface of sports and tourism for the benefits of the national economy.

According to Malam Ahmed Mohammed Sule, convener and Chairman of the National Organizing Committee of NASTOCE 2026, The objective of the Conference is to, among others, provide a healthy dialogue forum and platform for critical discourse annually that explores the intersections and socio-economic benefits inherent in a collaborative interface of Nigerian sports and tourism industries.

He stated that the Conference is planned in such a way that each Ministry is offered the opportunity to critically examine the available areas of collaborative interface with the tourism and sports sectors with the view to exploring the resource endowments for the socio-economic growth and development of the country, noting that each Ministry Agency will present a position paper that tells how it intends to promote the growth of sports tourism in Nigeria in relation to its mandate.

Other Ministries along with their Departments and Agencies billed for the Conference and Exhibition include the key Ministries in charge of tourism and sports in the country, i.e., Federal Ministry of Arts, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy and the National Sports Commission. Others are Ministry of Interior, Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy, Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, Federal Ministry of Defence, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment and the Federal Ministry of Transportation to mention a few.