IATA Reveals Foreign Airlines’ Blocked Funds In Nigeria Hit $743m

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has disclosed that foreign airlines’ revenue blocked from repatriation by the Nigerian government has increased to $743 million from $662m in January 2023.

This was made know by the association on Tuesday in a letter addressed to Hadi Sirika, minister of aviation, and signed by Samson Fatokun, the association’s area manager West and Central Africa.

The air transport group and the global airline community wrote to the federal government, seeking a special invention for the resolution of airlines’ blocked funds in the country.

“For over a year, Nigeria has been the country with the highest amount of airline-blocked funds in the world. Please find attached the comparative table of airlines’ blocked funds by country,” the letter reads.

“Moreover, as of January 2023, airlines’ blocked funds in Nigeria have increased to $743,721,092 from $662m in January 2023 and $549m in December 2022.”

Since the amount increased from $450 million in May 2022, to $464 million in July the same year, the trapped funds have been linked to some of the challenges in Nigeria’s aviation sector with far-reaching effects.