The International Air Transport Association, IATA, said that Nigeria has maintained a clean slate by clearing all airlines’ trapped funds.
This comes as the IATA noted that $1.7 billion in airline funds are still being blocked from repatriation by Pakistan, Bangladesh, Algeria, and Ethiopia as of the end of October 2024.
IATA Director General, Willie Walsh made this disclosure recently in a statement.
He stressed that Nigeria has been exempted from the debtor countries, an indication that the federal government has settled the outstanding debt balance.
“Over the last six months, we have seen significant reductions in blocked funds in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Algeria, and Ethiopia; at the same time, amounts are rising in the XAF/XOF zones and Mozambique.
“Bolivia has also emerged as a problem, where repatriating sales revenues is becoming increasingly difficult and unsustainable for airlines.
“This unfortunate game of ‘whack-a-mole’ is unacceptable. Governments must remove all barriers for airlines to repatriate their revenues from ticket sales and other activities in accordance with international agreements and treaty obligations.
“No country wants to lose aviation connectivity, which drives economic prosperity. But if airlines cannot repatriate their revenues, they cannot be expected to provide a service.
“Economies will suffer if connectivity collapses. So, it is in everyone’s interest, including governments, to ensure that airlines can repatriate their funds smoothly,” he said.
In June 2024, IATA announced that the Nigerian government cleared 98 percent of trapped foreign airline funds.
