Nigerian aviation industry is currently facing a significant challenge as the country misses out on the $1.3 billion Single African Air Transport Market opportunity due to lack of international transit hubs at major airports.
The Single African Air Transport Market initiative, a flagship African Union project, aims to liberalise air travel across the continent, fostering economic integration and stimulating tourism and trade.
Nigeria’s aviation industry, despite being a signatory to SAATM, is being left behind due to the absence of dedicated transit zones that facilitate seamless international connections.
Industry stakeholders, including the Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, and the Managing Director of Aero Contractors, Capt Ado Sanusi, expressed their frustration with the current situation.
Onyema said, “We need to feed our international operations with passengers from across the region.
“Customs and immigration should understand that these are transit passengers. They don’t need visas. Look at small Togo; they don’t even have domestic operations, but Asky is thriving because they have made it easy for passengers to come in, connect, and leave. That is what brings money. That is how they attract traffic.”
Sanusi also emphasised the need for a redesign of the airport infrastructure to facilitate baggage transfer and passenger movement without forcing transit travellers through immigration procedures.
“The Lagos airport can be transformed into a hub, but we need to invest in airport design. It should allow passengers to be in transit without going through immigration and all.”
The operators drew comparisons to smaller West African nations, such as Togo, where airlines like Asky have built successful operations around streamlined international transit systems.
“You can see examples of many countries operating different successful hubs; you don’t need to go out of Africa. Just see Lome here and how they’ve transited thousands of passengers through a simple process,” Sanusi added.
He said, lack of transit hubs is not only affecting the aviation industry, but also the economy, adding that a well-structured transit hub would bring substantial economic benefits, including increased duty-free sales, service fees, and enhanced international connectivity for Nigeria.
He averred that as the country continues to struggle with inefficient transit systems, the potential benefits of SAATM remain unrealised, stressing that full implementation of the initiative is projected to increase intra-African air traffic by 51 percent and cut average airfares by 26 billion.
According to the International Air Transport Association, SAATM also holds the potential to raise Africa’s airline industry GDP by $1.3bn annually.
The stakeholders in the industry are however, calling for urgent action to address the issue and unlock Nigeria’s aviation potential.
They stated that by investing in airport design and streamlining transit procedures, Nigeria can transform its airports into major transit hubs, boosting the economy and increasing connectivity with the rest of Africa.