In addition to the protocols business passengers have had to go through to get to their business destinations as a result of Covid-19 since the resumption of international flights, the recent ban on Emirates Airline by the Federal Government of Nigeria and non-issuance of visas by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Nigerians may be adding to their woes.
BusinessDay’s checks show that UAE stopped issuing visas to Nigerians, so the Federal Government decided to reciprocate by banning Emirates Airline, the UAE airline, from operating into Nigeria.
Some business passengers and tour operators told BusinessDay that this was affecting their operations but commended the Federal Government for standing by Nigerians by reciprocating the same treatment.
However, business travellers worst hit by these decisions have pleaded with both governments to come to their aid as this is adding to the troubles the impact of Covid-19 is having on their operations.
“When the Federal Government announced September 5th as the new date for resumption of international flights after five months of shutting down the airspace, we were all hopeful that business would resume as usual. Sadly, barely two weeks after the resumption of flights, the UAE stopped issuing visas to Nigerians and the Federal Government stopped Emirates from operating in Nigeria.
“Dubai is a top destination for business people. Our businesses have been shut down since lockdown. These decisions are only making things worse for us. We plead with both governments to sit together and come up with a solution,” Emeka Onuaha, a businessman dealing on textiles, says.
Further checks show that before the Covid-19, Dubai was the biggest destination for Nigerian travellers with over 20 flights a day terminating in Dubai from Lagos and Abuja.
It is believed that over 300,000 Nigerians pass through Dubai every year for business, tourism and medical purposes, among others.
Tayo Ojuri, managing partner – Aglow Aviation Support Services Limited, states that most Nigerians visit Dubai for business and tourism, and Dubai is a connecting destination to other destinations.
According to Ojuri, these policy decisions will affect the plans of business travellers and the cost implications are very high.
“Many passengers travel through Emirates and connect flights from Dubai to Asia, Europe and America. The ban and visa restrictions have implications for investors who come into Nigeria to invest. Sadly, Emirates does not have code-share agreements with other airlines on African routes. So, this decision is affecting their operations and I believe with time, the UAE and the Federal Government of Nigeria will resolve the issue,” he says.
Bernard Bankole, president, National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), notes that the decision to ban Emirates is affecting the business of travel agencies, but we are solidly behind the government on this decision.
“Government’s decision to reciprocate the same treatment by the UAE government to Emirates, the UAE airline, is quite commendable. The government is protecting the interest of the people. It may cause temporal pains for us but it is in the interest of the citizens of Nigeria.
“Emirates connect passengers to 180 destinations across the world and Nigeria constitutes one of the highest passenger traffic for the airline. The decision is indeed affecting the airline and I am sure very soon, it will be resolved,” Bankole states.
Before the resumption of international flights, the Nigerian government released a schedule for airlines to operate from Nigeria. From the schedule, Emirates is supposed to operate 12 weekly flights, which constitutes about two daily flights from Lagos and Abuja, apart from Tuesdays and Saturdays, which are one daily flight from Abuja.
The airline, supposed to carry an average of 200 passengers on each flight, is losing revenues accrued to processing 400 passengers on a daily basis.
With an average of between N200,000 and N250,000 as cost of flight ticket per passenger on each flight, the airline may be losing between N80 million and N100 million on the two daily flights.
However, Emirates Airline on Saturday said it was working closely with the Nigerian and the UAE governments on the ban and would give updates on the progress of talks between the two as soon as possible.
