Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, has said there are no immediate solutions to the lingering crises rocking the country’s aviation sector.
The Minister disclosed this during an emergency meeting with the Airline Operators Association of Nigeria (AON) in Abuja on Tuesday.
He said the variables impacting the crises in the aviation sector are beyond the industry’s control.
“There is no immediate solution,” Mr Sirika said.
Domestic airline operators within the past months have lamented the sudden increase in aviation fuel, threatening to halt operations.
Background
Airlines had earlier increased their flight base fare to N50,000 and above since February, with many Nigerians criticising the move.
However, the lingering scarcity of aviation fuel and forex has forced some airlines to shut down operations.
Mr Sirika on Tuesday said there is no short-term solution because of the challenges, adding that what ails the industry is a global problem.
“Energy crisis is real and it is global. Today there are aviation fuel problems all over the world. From America to New Zealand. It is aggravating in Nigeria because we don’t produce the product,” the minister said.
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He also explained that the situation was further compounded by the lingering scarcity of foreign exchange because the source of earning forex has dwindled.
He reiterated that the Nigerian government had in the past sourced 10,000 metric tonnes of Aviation Fuel for the airlines and that the government is willing to do more.
“As we speak, the government is in the process of finding a permanent solution to this issue” he assured.
According to the minister, some of the solutions in view include, “importation of the product at appropriate price, accelerating the refurbishment of our refineries and also wait for the coming on stream of Dangote Refinery to boost supply of the product.”
“But that cannot be soon,” he added.
“So when you ask how soon, I wouldn’t know when Dangote will come on stream, I wouldn’t know how soon the refineries will be filled. I wouldn’t know when imports would become sufficient. But the government is working towards all these to happen” he said.
Mr Sirika said he will be meeting with relevant stakeholders including the Central Bank of Nigeria to see how the airlines can access dollars at the official market rate rather than the black market rate.
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In his remarks, AON President, Abdulmunaf Sarina, said the aviation fuel crisis began from N180 per litre and that it is now pegged at N1000 per litre.
He said the forex crisis is also a huge burden on the Industry.
“The rate at which the dollar is escalating now is very alarming. Every day, a difference between 10-15 Naira is added at the parallel market. Last Monday, it was N610 but today, it is N670 to one dollar” he said.
He urged the Minister to intervene.
Similarly, Allen Oyeama, AON Vice President, said the Airline operators are satisfied with the government intervention so far.
“We, the airline operators, are satisfied with the approach the government is bringing to the table. I told you, Mr President, in order to alleviate our suffering, approved 10,000MT of fuel. Another 5,000 has come in. We are about to start accessing that. We are pleased with the approach for the long run” he said.
“It is not easy to give a timeline to issues like this because the challenge is global. Even American airlines are threatened too. It’s not only Nigeria. Which is why we are eating the government. But we are pleased so far.”
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