Emirates announces suspension of flights to Nigeria

Emirates Airlines announces it will suspend all flights to Nigeria from September 1 due to its inability to repatriate earnings from the country.

In a statement from the airlines public relations director, Rula Tadros on Thursday, he said the "difficult decision" was made to limit "additional losses and the impact on our operational costs" which continue to s 'accumulate in the market.

“Emirates has made the difficult decision to suspend all flights to and from Nigeria, effective September 1, 2022,” the airline said.

He said: "Emirates has tried in every way possible to address our current challenges in the repatriation of funds from Nigeria, and we have made considerable efforts to engage in dialogue with the relevant authorities for their urgent intervention to help find a workable solution."

"Unfortunately, there has been no progress," the airline added.

Emirates said it will endeavor to help affected customers make alternative travel arrangements where possible.

The airline said that in the event of a positive development in the coming days regarding Emirates' blocked funds in Nigeria, it would reassess its decision.

"We remain keen to serve Nigeria, and our operations provide much-needed connectivity to Nigerian travellers, providing access to Dubai's business and tourism opportunities, and our wider network of over 130 destinations," the company said. aerial. A challenge

The airline's decision comes less than three weeks after it announced in a letter to Nigerian Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika that it would reduce the number of flights to Nigeria from August 15 due to of its inability to repatriate $85 million. income of the country.

Emirates said in the letter that the figure had increased by more than $10 million every month, while the operational costs of 11 weekly flights to Lagos and five to Abuja continued to pile up.

When PREMIUM TIMES contacted a special assistant to Mr. Sirika, James Odaudu, for comment, he said: "The Ministry of Aviation has no role to play in the funds trapped by airlines in the country."

"It's the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria that have to settle them," he said.

Over the past few weeks and months, Nigeria's foreign exchange problem has worsened due to depleted foreign exchange reserves and soaring demand, which has further exacerbated the falling naira in official and unauthorized markets, respectively.

Meanwhile, the country's national airlines are still grappling with rising aviation fuel prices, which has caused all airlines to increase their base fares by more than 100% in the past six months. last months.

Last month, in an emergency meeting with airlines, Mr Sirika said that "there are no immediate solutions" to the continuing crisis in the sector because what afflicts the industry is a global problem.

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