 has faulted three foreign airlines for continuing to sell tickets exclusively){kind=link}
The National Association of Nigerian Travel Agencies (NANTA) has faulted three foreign airlines for continuing to sell tickets exclusively in United States dollars in Nigeria, saying the practice undermines the naira and disrespects the country’s sovereignty.
NANTA President, Yinka Folarin, who spoke with The Punch, said while most carriers have returned to accepting the local currency, a few others have deliberately excluded it from their ticketing platforms.
According to him, the continued refusal of the airlines to transact in naira amounts to an attack on Nigeria’s economy.
“It is no longer a general industry problem. Only about three airlines are still selling exclusively in dollars. We are not allowed to name these airlines due to professional ethics and anti-competition regulations, but their actions are clear: they are punishing the naira, excluding it from trade within its own country,” Folarin said.
He noted that recent monetary reforms had brought more stability to the naira and eliminated earlier bottlenecks in foreign exchange liquidity and repatriation of funds, insisting there was no justification for dollar-only ticketing.
“There is no justifiable reason for this anymore; liquidity has improved, the process is more transparent, and there are no outstanding remittance issues. Over 30 airlines are currently repatriating funds without challenges. If those ones can comply, why are these three still operating otherwise? It’s simply arrogance,” he declared.
Folarin urged all operators in the sector to align with the Federal Government’s reform agenda, stressing that “the naira deserves to be respected in its own country.”
Backing NANTA’s position, aviation expert, Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd.), said government must step in if indeed outstanding trapped funds have been cleared.
“I am not sure if they have gotten their money. But if they have, the government should stop them immediately. I think this is happening because some people may be benefiting from it internally. That cannot stand if we are no longer owing them. It is wrong and must be corrected without delay,” Ojikutu said.
He added that although airlines sometimes pay service charges in dollars, that should not justify their insistence on collecting ticket payments only in foreign currency.
“If a foreign airline continues to take dollars for ticket sales, it should be stopped and investigated,” he added.