Foreign Airlines Kick Over $600million Trapped Funds In Nigeria’s Central Bank

Some of the foreign nations are said to be keeping an eye on the situation between now and December — the deadline that several airlines gave the Nigerian government to pay the accrued debt or risk having them leave the nation—might bring up the matter with Nigeria directly.

 

The home countries of the international airlines whose $600million got stuck in Nigeria’s Central Bank are not happy with the carefree attitude shown by the Nigerian administration.

 

Some of the foreign nations are said to be keeping an eye on the situation between now and December — the deadline that several airlines gave the Nigerian government to pay the accrued debt or risk having them leave the nation—might bring up the matter with Nigeria directly.

 

SaharaReporters earlier reported that Emirates Airlines had announced that it would suspend its flights to Nigeria from September 1 this year.

 

The proposed suspension of flights to Nigeria is connected to its failure to repatriate its trapped ticket sales fund in the West African country back to its home country in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

 

Meanwhile, the foreign nations’ ultimate intervention has been linked to the CBN’s refusal to release the trapped monies for the airlines to return to their home countries in violation of the deal they signed with Nigeria as outlined in the current Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs).

 

This is just as the seeming silence of the various local bankers of the foreign airlines in Nigeria has been attributed to the fact that it is only the CBN that is empowered to do this.

 

According to one of the airlines’ managers in Nigeria, who spoke under anonymity said “The issue of the local banks is primary in this issue since they cannot dictate for their clients. All interactions should be with the CBN as other banks cannot do much. Local banks are insignificant.”

 

Speaking with Nigerian Tribune, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the clearing house for over 300 airlines worldwide, said it enjoined the Nigerian government to help the airlines to access and repatriate their funds out of the country.

 

“IATA engages with the government authorities on matters of common interest to its member airlines. In this instance, IATA has been in regular contact and appealed to the Federal Government Nigeria and the Central Bank to release foreign airlines’ revenues generated in Nigeria.”

 

According to a source at one of the banks, it would be against client confidentiality for a regional bank to consult with a third party over one of its account holders.