The International Air Transport Association reported that as of September 2023, airlines have $1.68 billion stuck in Africa, part of a global total of $2.36 billion in trapped funds.
Kamil Alawadhi, the Regional Vice-President for Africa and the Middle East, revealed this during the African Airlines Association 55th Annual General Assembly in Uganda last Thursday. He highlighted that this situation has adversely affected the expansion of foreign airlines within the continent.
Alawadhi noted that operators have been actively engaging with governments across the continent to facilitate the release of these funds.
“As of September, $1.68 billion of airline funds are blocked across Africa out of $2.3 billion globally.
“The numbers are alarming, and this impact on connectivity is devastating,” he said.
In the first week of November, Iwitnesslive reported that the Central Bank of Nigeria commenced the clearing of a $10 billion forex backlog to commercial banks and airline operators.
