African airlines flock to Nigeria on single market

African airlines are flocking to Nigeria to leverage opportunities offered by the game changer, the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM).

SAATM is an initiative of the African Union to create a single air transport market in Africa, aiming to liberalise civil aviation and promote economic integration. It is aimed to facilitate the African Continental Free Trade (AfCFTA).

The SAATM aims to remove restrictions on air travel within Africa, allowing airlines to operate more freely across the continent.

Sierra Leone’s new flag carrier, Air Sierra Leone, in January, commenced flight operations into Nigeria.

Air Algerie also recently commenced direct flight from Algiers, the capital of Algeria, to Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city.

Similarly, Nigeria and Tanzania are set to strengthen bilateral ties with the planned launch of direct flights between the two countries.

Recently, Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, disclosed that Air Peace is in discussion with the Namibian government over the possibility of direct flights between Nigeria and Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.

South African airlines recently increased frequencies to daily flights into Lagos.

“The African airlines we see showing interest in the Nigerian market are trying to reap from the benefits of SAATM. Keyamo has ensured Nigeria becomes a strong player in SAATM. Almost all of these airlines are using the Fifth Freedom. Some are going beyond Abuja, while others are flying from other African countries before coming into Nigeria,” said Olumide Ohunayo, industry analyst and director of research at Zenith Travels.

Fifth freedom in aviation refers to the right of an airline to pick up and drop off passengers between two foreign countries, even if the flight originates or ends in the airline’s home country.

Ohunayo said the influx of more African carriers into Nigeria is part of the benefits of SAATM, noting that it creates more seats on the international route.

Ohunayo also said the absence of trapped funds and the ease to sell tickets and remit funds have also made Nigeria an attractive market for foreign carriers.

“Due to the closeness of official and black market rates, it is now easy for airlines to sell and remit their funds, rather than waste time going to the central bank to access the official rate. With this, we are going to have more connections, more flights and more seats on the international route available to the Nigerian passengers. When you have more seats, people will love to travel,” he added.

Africa’s low connectivity

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Africa has the lowest air connectivity in the world. Among the 1,431 pairs of African Union countries, just 19 percent have significant direct service (at least once a week annually). Out of these, 35 percent have daily or more frequent service, while only 13 percent have service twice daily or more.

Although 38 out of 54 African countries have signed up to the SAATM, most are said to be slow on implementation.

Travelling from Accra to Brazzaville, Congo, often involves multiple stops such as going through Ethiopia and then Rwanda or Uganda. Worse still, they transit through Europe or the Middle East at times.

The journey from Accra to Brazzaville, covering just 200km, takes more than 24 hours. In contrast, a traveller heading from Accra to Johannesburg, over 4000 km away, arrives hours earlier.

This is often the case with several other African countries.

Seyi Adewale, chief executive officer, Mainstream Cargo Limited, said Africa has come to a reasonable decision that intra-Africa trade is the veritable and viable solution to growth and economic prosperity within the continent, noting that the impact of AfCFTA cannot be neglected.

Adewale said commendation must also be given to the Federal Ministry of Aviation under Festus Keyamo, the present minister, who appears to have keyed into key initiatives, aligning Nigeria as a leading promoter of intra-Africa connectivity and revising policies and /or Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs) accordingly.

“The major benefits of the development include reducing the cost of intra African trade and the associate of ease of doing business with states. Also, travel and tourism within Africa will be enhanced, thereby reducing the net financial outflows from the continent. Importantly, this may boost regional currency usage and indeed an African currency in the longer term,” he said.

Out of 30 international airlines operating in Nigeria, only 11 are African carriers. They include African World Airline, Air Côte d’Ivoire, Asky, Cronos, Egypt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways, Royal Air Maroc, South African Airways, Taag Angola and Uganda Air.

Alex Nwuba, president, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association of Nigeria/former chief executive officer, Associated Airlines, said Nigeria remains a major economy and represents a major market for passengers.

“According to data by the African Airlines Association, (AFRAA) for 2022, only North Africa, represents over 22 percent of air travelers. While North Africa has strong carriers that can move passengers, the entire West Africa, and in particular Nigeria, requires international carriers to move very large numbers of passengers. This is why we see the strong demand for access to the Nigerian market,” Nwuba said.

“It prevents the need to fly east to go west. It enables the opportunity for choices of destinations until Nigeria can, like many regions, float airlines that address market needs.”

By creating a single market, SAATM seeks to improve intra-African air connectivity, making travel between African countries easier and faster.

The initiative is expected to boost intra-Africa trade and tourism, as well as stimulate economic growth and job creation.