The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Tuesday, said it has cleared verified outstanding liabilities to foreign airlines with $64.44 million.
The money is forex backlog accumulated from the sales of international flight tickets by foreign airlines operating in Nigeria
Confirming the figures, CBN’s Spokesperson, Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali, noted that the last payment brought the total of verified amount paid to the concerned airlines to $136.73 million.
She added that all the verified claims have now been cleared.
She added that the CBN was working with relevant stakeholders to ensure that liquidity improves within the forex market to ease the pressure on the naira.
Last year, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said $1.68 billion belonging to foreign airlines was currently trapped in Africa.
Speaking at the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) 55th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Entebbe, Uganda, IATA’s regional vice president of Africa and Middle East, Kamil Al Alwadi, said the trapped fund hit $1.68 billion at the end of September, 2023.
The countries holding on to the foreign airlines funds are Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Angola and Zimbabwe and Nigeria accounts for over $750 million of that amount.
IATA attributed trapped funds as one of the major issues plaguing aviation in Africa, describing the numbers as alarming with it having a huge and devastating impact on connectivity.
