Transport Ministry to build control tower at JIA

JUBA – The government through the Ministry of Transport has laid plans to build a control tower at Juba International Airport (JIA) to ease operations.

This comes after a meeting between President Salva Kiir and the Minister of Transport Madut Biar Yel in the office of the President Wednesday afternoon.

“His Excellency President Salva Kiir Mayardit was briefed in his office by the Minister of Transport Hon Madut Biar Yel on the activities his Ministry is undertaking in the Transport Sector,” a statement posted on the official Facebook page of the president’s office read.

“Hon Madut Biar said, South Sudan is planning to build a new control tower at Juba International Airport as well as Juba radar station,” the statement added.

It says authorities at the Ministry of Transport were creating a trajectory in which South Sudan has full control over its airspace.

A control tower is a building at an airport from which instructions are given to aircraft when they are taking off or landing.

In July this year, South Sudan launched an airspace management system to net extra revenue from commercial cargo and private aircraft plying the routes leading to Juba International Airport.

In another major plan, the Minister of Transport also said the country will resume railway transport to facilitate the ease of doing business through convenient means of transportation.

The meeting briefing was also attended by the Minister of Presidential Affairs Hon Dr. Barnaba Marial Benjamin.