By Faith Anisiobi, The Sight News
The Lagos Chapter of the Association of Professional Women Engineers of Nigeria (APWEN) has honoured the Director of Safety Electronics and Engineering Services at the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Engr. Terese Ihenachor, with its Outstanding Public Service Award.
Ihenachor received the award during the maiden APWEN Lagos Engineering Summit 2026 in Lagos in recognition of her contributions to engineering excellence, the empowerment of women engineers and sustainable professional development.
According to the citation by APWEN, Ihenachor was recognized “for her outstanding commitment to engineering excellence, empowerment of women engineers and sustainable professional development.”
The award celebrates women whose leadership has contributed to advancing engineering, innovation and efficiency in public service.
Ihenachor made history in December 2023 when she became NAMA’s first female substantive Director of Safety Electronics and Engineering Services.
Since her appointment, she has provided strategic leadership for the maintenance, modernization and reliability of NAMA’s Communications, Navigation and Surveillance/Air Traffic Management infrastructure across the country.
Under her leadership, the directorate has recorded progress in the upgrade and deployment of critical communication, navigation and surveillance facilities required for safe and efficient flight operations in Nigeria’s airspace.
She has also strengthened maintenance programmes for safety-critical systems, improved technical planning and operational coordination, and prioritized the timely calibration of navigational aids to ensure their accuracy, integrity and compliance with applicable international standards.
A notable example of her operational leadership was the recent deployment of a Mobile Control Tower at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, following a fire incident that affected critical air-ground communication infrastructure at the old terminal.
The intervention ensured continuity of safe air navigation services at the country’s busiest aviation hub.
Under Ihenachor’s technical supervision, the facility was tested and adapted to Nigeria’s operational requirements through local innovations, including a smart flight-strip system and seamless connectivity with NAMA’s Centrex and Total Radar Coverage of Nigeria systems.
NAMA also said arrangements had commenced for the deployment of another mobile control tower to support Runway 18R.
Ihenachor joined the civil aviation sector in 1994 and has held several technical and managerial positions, including General Manager, Workshop, Planning and Logistics, before her appointment as Director.
She is a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Nigerian Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers and Nigerian Institute of Management.
A former Secretary and Treasurer of APWEN, Ihenachor also founded the Girl-Child Engineer Initiative, which promotes female participation in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).
