Business

Nigerian airlines can’t survive current economic crisis – Fairfax Africa boss alerts

Published

3 months ago

August 26, 2024

Nigerian airlines can’t survive current economic crisis – Fairfax Africa boss alerts

The Fairfax Africa Fund, backers of the ill-fated national carrier, Nigeria Air, has issued a stark forecast, predicting the collapse of all domestic airlines currently operating in Nigeria amidst the country’s worsening economic crisis. According to Zemedeneh Negatu, Global Chairman of Fairfax Africa Fund, only one airline among Nigeria’s domestic carriers has a chance of weathering the economic storm.

Negatu’s foreboding projection follows a statement by Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, in which he described Nigeria’s aviation sector as being on “life support.”

Addressing Okonkwo’s concerns, Negatu expressed that the current state of domestic airlines is dire, insisting that no amount of government bailouts—no matter how generous—could save the majority of them from inevitable collapse.

“None of Nigeria’s airlines operating today, except one, will survive even if they were to be given tens of millions of dollars in government (taxpayer) bailouts in perpetuity,” Negatu asserted, without elaborating on the specific reasons behind this grim outlook.

However, the Fairfax chairman did not stop at predictions.

He leveled serious accusations against two leading Nigerian airlines—Air Peace and United Nigeria Airlines—alleging that they had orchestrated the failure of Nigeria Air through legal actions spearheaded by the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON). Negatu claimed that Nigeria Air would have been a lifeline for the industry, potentially stabilising it and attracting significant foreign investment, but that these efforts were thwarted by what he described as self-serving interests masked as patriotism.

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“Promoting self-interest under the guise of ‘patriotism’ is not a viable long-term business strategy,” Negatu declared. “The efforts by United Nigeria and Air Peace to block a substantial Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Nigeria, including significant American investment, will deter others from considering the much-needed FDI in the sector.”

Negatu’s comments come in the wake of a landmark judgment on August 5, 2024, by Justice Lewis Allagoa of the Federal High Court in Lagos. The court ruled the sale of shares in Nigeria Air to Ethiopian Airlines as illegal, citing multiple violations of existing laws, including the Companies and Allied Matters Act and Securities and Exchange Commission regulations. The court invalidated the entire bidding process, revoked Nigeria Air’s Air Transport License, and permanently barred the former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, and Ethiopian Airlines from further involvement in the project.

Reacting to Negatu’s dire forecast and allegations, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, spokesperson for the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), dismissed the claims as misguided. He pointed out that the harsh economic conditions affecting the aviation sector are a reality everyone is grappling with and not a result of Fairfax’s predictions.

“It doesn’t take a soothsayer to know that the economic environment in Nigeria is harsh and doesn’t only affect the aviation sector,” Okonkwo told Daily Sun.

He added: “If anything happens to airline operators in Nigeria, it won’t be because of Negatu’s prediction but due to the broader economic environment. The survival of Nigeria’s aviation sector so far is because the ‘evil’ intentions of Ethiopian Airlines and their collaborators under the guise of Nigeria Air failed. If it had succeeded, it would have sent the aviation industry to an early grave.”

On the accusation that Air Peace and United Nigeria spearheaded the downfall of Nigeria Air, Okonkwo was emphatic in his defense. He acknowledged that both he and Allen Onyema, Chairman of Air Peace, are indeed members of the AON, the body that took the federal government and Ethiopian Airlines to court, effectively safeguarding the aviation sector from what he described as a catastrophic plan.

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“Ethiopian Airlines had the opportunity in court to present evidence of their investment, and if they had done so, the outcome—which permanently banned them from owning shares—would have been different,” Okonkwo argued.

He continued: “We can understand Negatu’s pain because from being a transaction advisor, he was to get three percent shares from Nigeria Air for doing nothing and also be the only person to do all the procurement. He is a cry baby and if he says that Air Peace and United Nigeria are the ring leaders, then we are very proud to be part of the AON which saved Nigeria from their dubious transactions. We consider ourselves heroes because they couldn’t contradict any accusations that the AON made against them in court which are that the transaction is dubious and they just wanted monopoly which would have drained our economy.

“The then administration signed that the government will indemnify ET from every debt they would have accrued. In the agreement, ET wasn’t supposed to invest money to buy aircraft on behalf of the partnership. The airline would continue to lease to the partnership on wet lease, so the money they would have been indemnified against would have been in billions of dollars to buy aircraft for ET, which they would in turn, lease to Nigeria. ET and their Nigerian dubious collaborators would have been the only ones profiting. There would have been nothing for Nigerians to gain,” Okonkwo said.

In a rapidly-changing landscape, the battle for the soul of Nigeria’s aviation industry remains fierce, with accusations and counter-accusations flying between stakeholders. As the dust settles on the Nigeria Air debacle, the future of the country’s aviation sector hangs in the balance, clouded by economic uncertainty and the specter of past controversies.

Nigerian airlines can’t survive current economic crisis – Fairfax Africa boss alerts

Related Topics:economic crisis Nigerian airlines

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Top 5 crypto apps that work with Nigerian Bank accounts

Published

6 hours ago

November 12, 2024

Trends Admin

Top 5 crypto apps that work with Nigerian Bank accounts

Nigeria is the number one country by crypto adoption in Africa and the second largest in the world.

Cryptocurrency is a revolutionary idea in the country and resonates well with the country’s large demographic of young people.

Despite mixed signals from the Nigerian authorities as regards crypto regulation, the sector is still thriving in the country and cryptocurrency is fast becoming an everyday means of transaction.

Earlier this year, Nigerian authorities led a crackdown on crypto entities accusing them of currency manipulation and other unregulated activities.

The highlight of the era was the prolonged dispute between Nigerian authorities and Binance Limited which led to the detention of a Binance executive for 7 months.

The crackdown led to an investor flight in the crypto space with Binance closing down its Peer to Peer feature and Kucoin and OKX pulling out of the Nigerian market.

The investor flight led to a shortage of crypto apps that the Nigerian crypto community can use for their day-to-day transactions.

Despite the vacuum, some crypto apps and resources are filling in the gap in the market while ensuring a smooth experience for Nigerian traders and crypto enthusiasts.

Some of these apps work with Nigerian banks making their services more tailored and relative to the Nigerian end user.

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In this Nairametrics article, we are going to look at the Top 5 crypto apps that directly work with Nigerian bank accounts

Yellow Card

Yellow Card is a pan-African crypto exchange that allows users to buy, sell, and Trade cryptocurrencies. The crypto exchange supports Nigerian Banks in its services and users can sell their crypto assets and withdraw them in Naira into the Nigerian banks.

The exchange has an instant transfer feature where sold cryptocurrencies can be sent to your Nigerian bank account directly. This makes for convenient use amongst Nigerian and African users.

Quidax 

Quidax is another cryptocurrency exchange that supports Nigerian bank accounts. The exchange allows users to buy cryptocurrencies with Nigerian bank accounts.

This process occurs via Bank transfers or a Quidax Bank Account number which is usually the User’s bank account number.

Quidax is one of the two crypto exchanges to receive a full license from the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission under Emomotimi Agama.

Busha 

Busha is a cryptocurrency exchange platform that allows users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies with the naira. The Indigenous crypto exchange supports Nigerian bank accounts for payouts.

Busha Users can make deposits to Merchant’s Nigerian Bank accounts through their Naira wallet on the platform.

Busha is the second of the two crypto exchanges to receive a full license from the Nigerian SEC.

Local Traders 

Local Traders is a P2P crypto exchange platform gaining some popularity in the Nigerian crypto space. The platform offers over 750 payment options including traditional Nigerian bank accounts.

Nigerians using the platform for P2P transactions can send money directly to their Nigerian Bank accounts through Bank transfer and Paystack.

The P2P sector in Nigeria took a hit following the discontinuation of Binance Naira P2P. platforms like local traders are filling the void.

Koyn 

Koyn is a crypto app that facilitates the sale of major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Tether. The app is gaining ground in the Nigerian crypto market due to its ease of use.

The crypto app supports Nigerian bank accounts and readily converts crypto naira which can be easily withdrawn to Nigerian bank accounts.

The app has a dedicated rate calculator which varies according to the given market price for the day.

Koyn is patronized mostly by Nigerians who don’t want to go through the hassle of direct P2P.

The crypto industry in Nigeria is still lagging in much-needed infrastructure to meet up with the demand in the Nigerian market. This is partly due to an unclear regulatory framework from relevant Nigerian authorities for investors and crypto end users in the country.

The issuing of Full licenses to Busha and Quidax marks a significant step forward in the Nigerian crypto space as regards regulation and its role in creating an enabling environment for growth.

Top 5 crypto apps that work with Nigerian Bank accounts

Railway

Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route

Published

6 hours ago

November 12, 2024

Trends Admin

Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has announced the introduction of additional train trips on its Lagos-Ibadan Train Service (LITS) route, exclusively for Fridays and Saturdays.

This initiative increases weekend trips from two to three, offering commuters greater travel flexibility.

The announcement, made via the NRC’s official X (formerly Twitter) handle on Tuesday, revealed that the new Lagos-to-Ibadan trip will depart at 1:40 pm, complementing the existing schedules of 7:45 am and 4:00 pm.

For the Ibadan-to-Lagos route, the additional trip is set for 10:50 am, joining the regular departures at 8:00 am and 4:30 pm.

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“Catch our extra Friday & Saturday train trips on LAGOS – IBADAN TRAIN SERVICE (LITS).

“LAGOS to IBADAN:

“•⁠Times: 7:45am, 1:40pm, 4:00pm

“IBADAN to LAGOS:

“•⁠Times: 8:00am, 10:50am, 4:30pm,” NRC’s tweet read in part.

This tweet by the Nigerian Railway Corporation further noted that the new schedule complements the existing Sunday-to-Thursday trips, which remain unchanged with departure times at 8:00 am and 4:00 pm from both Lagos and Ibadan.

This move by the NRC to expand the schedule is aimed at accommodating increased demand, particularly during weekends, and providing greater flexibility for commuters traveling between Lagos and Ibadan.

The move is expected to ease travel pressures and improve convenience for passengers on one of Nigeria’s busiest rail routes.

Travelers are encouraged to take advantage of the additional services and book tickets early via the e-ticketing website. to secure their spots, especially as the Lagos-Ibadan rail route continues to grow in popularity.

Nigerian railway adds extra train to Friday, Saturday trips on Lagos-Ibadan route

Business

NNPCL to deliver 12 CNG stations, LNG mini plants

Published

14 hours ago

November 12, 2024

Trends Admin

NNPCL to deliver 12 CNG stations, LNG mini plants

Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC Ltd), has stated that the company has finalised plans to deliver 12 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Mother Stations and Mini LNG Plants as part of efforts to increase the existing 1.6 billion cubic feet of gas supply for the domestic market.

In a statement issued on Monday, the NNPCL’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer (CCCO), Olufemi Soneye, quoted Kyari as saying this at the opening ceremony of the 42nd Nigeria Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) Annual International Conference and Exhibition, themed “Resolving the Nigeria Energy Trilemma: Energy Security, Sustainable Growth, and Affordability,” held in Lagos.

He said, “The energy trilemma is a profound responsibility we shoulder as stewards of Nigeria’s energy future. NNPC Ltd is working tirelessly to improve our supply chain, develop new refining capacities and expand our retail network.”

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He added that the NNPC Ltd is set to collaborate with private refineries to ensure affordable and sustainable petroleum products supply, naira-for-crude transactions as parts of efforts to stabilise the naira as well as regulate forex markets which he said will bring about expansion of gas infrastructure such as the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline and the Obiafu-Obrikom-Oben (OB3) Gas Pipelines projects and the development of cleaner energy alternatives, such as Liquiefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).

He continued, “Currently, NNPC Ltd supplies over 1.6 billion standard cubic feet (bscf) of gas per day to the domestic market through infrastructure we either own outright or operate with partners. This distribution network is entirely managed on NNPC Ltd.’s balance sheet.”

While reacting to the claims that national oil company is sabotaging the efforts of domestic refineries, the NNPCL boss said the NNPC Ltd is part-owners of the Dangote Refinery describing it as an investment and strategic move aimed at strengthening domestic fuel supply across the country.