The Central Bank of Nigeria on Friday, August 26th, 2022, released $265m to airlines operating in the country, to settle outstanding ticket sales to check a brewing crisis in the country’s aviation sector.
There have been serious concerns and reactions over hundreds of millions of dollars earned by foreign airlines operating in the country which they could not repatriate due to foreign exchange scarcity challenge .
International airlines operating in the country have been raising airfares and reducing flights over their inability to repatriate funds to their home countries.
Emirates Airlines had announced the suspension of its flight operations in Nigeria from September 1, 2022, while fears had increased that more airlines may follow the same step.
According to the CBN, breakdown of the figure indicated that $230m was released as special foreign exchange intervention while another $35m was released through Retail SMIS auction.
Disclosing this in a statement, the Director, Corporate Communications Department, CBN, Mr Osita Nwanisobi, said the Governor, CBN, Godwin Emefiele, and his team were concerned about the development and what it portends for the sector and travelers as well as the country in the comity of nations.
Nwanisobi retiterated that the bank was not against any company repatriating its funds from the country, adding that what the bank stood for was an orderly exit for those that might be interested in doing so.
“With Friday’s release, it is expected that operators and travelers as well will heave huge sighs of relief, as some airlines had threatened to withdraw their services in the face of unremitted funds for outstanding sale of tickets, CBN said.
This came as the Central Bank of Nigeria on Friday announced the release of $265m out of the N464m trapped funds to the foreign carriers.
A breakdown of the figure indicates that the sum of $230m was released as a special FX intervention while another sum of $35m was released through the Retail SMIS auction.
However, BA in a notice to travel agents in Nigeria on Friday said the ticket distribution firms would no longer be able to make new bookings or service existing bookings made in Nigeria.
The UK airline did not specify the reason for the decision nor did it state how long the suspension of ticket sales by Nigerian travel agents would last.
BA however said it was committed to the Nigerian market and would not stop flights to the country.
