The Nigerian federal government is actively investigating ways to slow down the country’s skyrocketing flight costs.
Festus Keyamo, the minister of aviation and aerospace development, recently stated in an address in Abuja that the government is committed to resolving the matter. Keyamo emphasized the significance of putting in place all-encompassing measures to lessen the load on travelers.
Keyamo stated, “We will see what happens. I don’t want to predict doom, but we will try all we have to do, not only the dollar issue or exchange issue but within the sector and other surrounding issues within the aviation sector, to force down prices.”
He went on to discuss the necessity for Nigeria’s aviation sector to become more competitive, highlighting the possible advantages of making it easier for local airlines to obtain loans and favorable lease agreements.
He said, “Of course, we need to be competitive under those foreign rules, and I have said before how competitive we should be or how we can be more competitive by allowing our local airlines to have access to dry leases at single digits or loans at single digits.”
The Minister explained, “Our banks cannot give loans to our operators at single digits. In fact, there is no way our local airlines can compete with loans at 26 per cent.
“So how do we do it? We need to go out of this country and all over the world to try and get extra for them to compete in those rules that our partners have allowed us to compete in.
“So, if, for example, British Airways has 14 slots coming into Nigeria every week, we should have our local airlines reciprocate and have 14 slots going into the UK every week, and that competitiveness will force down the prices and all other factors we are looking at too,” he stated.