Over 25 foreign airlines flying into Nigeria are said to have lost a combined sum of $240m following the adoption of a new foreign exchange policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The International Air Transport Association, IATA had in May put the unremitted ticket sales proceeds in Nigeria by international airlines at $600m.
But the movement of the CBN’s interbank exchange rate from N197 per dollar to over N280 per dollar, following the adoption of the new forex policy, has made the foreign airlines to lose at least 40 per cent of the $600m.
The Chief Executive Officer, Kenya Airways, Mbuvi Ngunze, told Bloomberg that the sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest carrier was expected to start receiving payments for outstanding fares from the CBN this month.
Other foreign carriers are also expected to complete the repatriation of the outstanding ticket sales proceeds this month.
