• Aviation Experts Warn Of Heavy Toll On Travellers • Exorbitant Air Fares Imminent• Trapped Funds In Nigeria A Quarter Of Funds Stuck Globally – IATABarring a quick intervention from the Federal Government, air travellers, and the industry could be jolted in the days ahead as the unrepatriated funds for foreign airlines accruing from sales of flight tickets in local currencies hit the $600m mark at the end of June.
Findings by The Guardian showed that the stuck fund was in excess of $800 million in November 2021. It was brought down to about $283 million as at March this year, further increased to $450 million in May, and according to estimates, has now reached about $600 million as at June ending. About this time in 2016, foreign airlines’ accumulated stuck fund reached a record high of $600 million. At the time, authorities were apt to blame the global slump in the price of crude oil and attendant decline in foreign reserve. More so, it was at the time a fairly new administration was still trying to find its feet in the economic puddle.
Experts noted that the consequences of the challenge would be felt, in the immediate, as a heavy toll on air travellers. Besides the foreign airlines withdrawing services in extreme cases, the immediate effects will be on airfares, and the travel agencies are already feeling the pinch. “The foreign airlines may resort to taking out lower inventory in the system and resulting in high cost of tickets from the Nigerian market. For instance, a six-hour trip to London may attract a fare rate of about $2000 or more and also encourage tickets sold outside the country to flood Nigeria, thus affecting the survival of Nigerian travel agents and consequent loss of taxes and levies from such transactions,” Akporiaye said.
Bernard advised that it was high time the foreign exchange management had returned to the path of transparency and equity. “Let’s run our forex business the way it is done everywhere in the world. Let the CBN disclose the current state of the foreign exchange and those collecting it. The right business people are not getting priority and that is the problem.
Al-Awadhi explained that airlines were charging higher fares to Nigeria so that they could make a profit from one leg of the trip, as most trips are charged on return tickets.
Nigeria is like Burna boy and this girl. it can never work
Meffy: There is PLENTY forex Airlines: Pay us our $$$ Meffy: