… AS SEN. SIRIKA EARNS ICAO'S CHAMPION OF THE NO COUNTRY LEFT BEHIND (NCLB) INITIATIVE AWARD
Earlier, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) honoured Senator Hadi Sirika the Champion of the No Country Left Behind (NCLB) initiative award which the Organization introduced by Nigeria's Dr. Olumuyiwa Aliu, the 5th President of ICAO in 2014.
This development was made known in a statement by the Special Assistant to the Minister of Aviation, James Odaudu. The award came in the wake of other awards Nigeria has received from the organisation since the inception of the Buhari administration.
According to the Mr. Salvatore Sciacchitano, President of the ICAO Council, the award was in recognition of the Minister's sterling contributions to the implementation of the initiative, not only in Nigeria but also other member-nations. Nigeria had remained the only country whose Minister attended three consecutive assembly meetings as chief delegate with quality contributions at all the sessions. He also commended the Minister for ensuring that the country’s representatives at ICAO since his assumption of office are not only highly experienced professionals but also committed to the ideals of the organisation.
As a background, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a specialized organ of the United Nations with 193 member states having one vote on matters before the Assembly. Decisions to be taken at these Sessions are arrived at by a majority of the votes cast save for where Convention so otherwise provided. The ICAO Assembly, convened by the Council, the governing body, is the ICAO's sovereign body and it meets, at least, once every three years.
As a convention, a large number of international organizations are invited to the Assembly, which establishes the worldwide policy of the Organization for the upcoming triennium. During Assembly Sessions, ICAO’s complete work programme in the areas of technical, economic, legal and technical cooperation are reviewed in detail. Assembly outcomes are then provided to the other bodies of ICAO and to its Member States in order to guide their continuing and future work, as prescribed in Article 49 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation.