The National Institute of Transport (NIT) is set to launch its flagship pilot training program in July, expected to significantly reduce the cost of training pilots in Tanzania and the East Africa region.
“The pilot training is currently obtained abroad at a significant cost of not less than TShs300 million (USD112,000). However, Tanzanians will now be able to access it within the country at approximately half that cost,” said Eng. Dr. Prosper Mgaya, the Rector, NIT.
“The institute has already procured two training aircraft Cessna172Skyhawk with the assistance of the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania and expecting to receive another aircraft (twin engine) by the end of 2025 to increase its fleet,” he added.
Dr. Mgaya made the remarks during a recent visit of Monitoring and Evaluation (M& E) team/Officers from 16 selected Regional Flagship TVET Institutes (RFTIs), National Project Coordination Unit (NPCU) and Inter University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) which is the Regional Facilitation Unit (RFU) implementing the East Africa Skills for Transformation and Regional Integration Project (EASTRIP). The team was on benchmarking visit to understand EASTRIP implementation at NIT.
With funding from the World Bank and the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, through EASTRIP, the institute has established the Regional Centre of Excellence in Aviation and Transport Operations. Through the project, NIT is expected to increase the access and improve the quality of TVET programs with focus on aviation and transport operations and to support regional integration in East Africa.
The EASTRIP Team is taken on a guided tour during the visit to NIT
Through EASTRIP, the institute is receiving TShs49 billion (USD21.25 million) to establish the Regional Centre, which is one of its kind in Eastern and Central Africa. The Centre is modelled on international standards in terms of infrastructure, equipment and human resource capacity which has enabled it to obtain international accreditation in aviation training (from ICAO) through the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA). The centre supports the training of qualified skilled workforce in Aviation and Transport Operations to meet labour market needs in East Africa.
The institute has acquired state-of-the-art aviation training equipment, such as Cabin Crew Mock-ups, Aviation System Trainers, Virtual Maintenance Trainer (VMT) and constructing five (5) buildings (Centre of Excellence, High-Tech, Mock-Up and Wet Drill Buildings.
As part of the EASTRIP, NIT has constructed two Hostel buildings at NIT Mabibo Campus and one building at Kilimanjaro International Airport for Pilot training campus. The buildings at Mabibo Campus will host 24 workshops and labs, including avionics lab, wheel and brakes workshop, simulators rooms, engine and propeller lab, pilot plotting rooms, and aerodynamic labs.
The two hostels will accommodate 1,504 students (752 female and 752 male) both local and international students including those with special needs. “All these buildings are at their final stage to complete, and we are awaiting the handover process from the contractors,” Dr. Mgaya said.
EASTRIP Team during the visit at NIT
On their part, the team represented by Ms. Roseann Murithi from IUCEA said, “we are very grateful to be here at NIT, other RFTIs under EASTRIP are implementing different category, as for NIT is basically on Aviation and Transport Operations. We have learned a lot on the area of Aviation,” she said.
Ms. Murithi commended the work undertaken and stated that, based on the quality of the buildings and training equipment in place, it is evident that NIT is now the only Centre of Excellence for Aviation and Transport Operations in East Africa region.
By Ngusekela David, Marketing and Communication Officer, at NIT
