Construction of the proposed second international airport in the Northern Region capital, Tamale, is expected to commence soon after the final design for the project is approved by the Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL).

The Minister of Transport, Dzifa Ativor, in an interview with the B&FT on the sidelines of the 23rd Plenary Session of the African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), said all is set for commencement of the project following approval of US$100million by Parliament.

The Tamale airport project, to be executed under a Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) arrangement, is estimated to cost about US$174million. The runway -- which is currently 2,500 metres long -- will be extended to 4,000 metres.

Ancillary constructions will include a perishable cargo centre to serve the Sahelien region of Africa, a Hajj terminal, an airport city, and a regional maintenance bay. The GACL has said the feasibility study for the project has been completed, and it’s working on finalising the design with the Brazilian company chosen to execute the project.

“The design, feasibility and finance arrangement take a minimum of three years. So this was the process we were going through, and very soon [we will start]. They [the executing company] are bringing the final design for us to look at them. As soon as the design and finance are ready, then we can go through.

“But this is purely private sector in collaboration with Government, so the major decisions are with the company which is building the airport,” Doreen Owusu Fianko, MD, Ghana Airports Company Limited, told the B&FT in an interview