Extortion, harassment and multiple charges from aviation and other agencies at the airport are causing Nigeria a yearly revenue loss of over $250 million.
The huge revenue would have accrued from deepening participation in the nation’s air freighting of agro-cargo export produce.
The Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA), Prof. Adesoji Adesugba, said this in a paper he presented at the second edition of the Aviation and Cargo Conference (CHINET 2022) at the weekend in Lagos.
Adesugba said government agencies at the airports erected many obstacles which constitute a disservice to the export/import of agro-cargo produce in the country.
Until these hurdles are crossed, he said, government efforts to attract more revenue into the gross domestic product (GDP) will not materialise.
Adesugba noted that 11 out of the 16 charges levied at the airports on businesses involved in agro-cargo are illegal.
The NEPZA boss insisted that such unfriendly charge regime was responsible for many international cargo airlines preferring to fly empty out of the country.
He said: “Among the 16 sundry charges tracked for goods coming in or departing the country via airports, only five are officially recognised. Nigeria’s import-to-export airfreight ratio imbalance stood at 87:13 from available statistics.
“The implication, according to cargo agencies, is the loss of at least about $250 million on
Adesugba listed other challenges as: lack of modern infrastructure, lack of corporate governance, policy and regulation, high cost of aviation fuel, inadequate funding and resources, high cost of operation, insecurity, insurance and corruption.
The NEPZA boss said to support the aviation industry and stimulate multiplier effects in the economy, the Federal Government, in May 2021, designated the four major international airports – Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt – as Special Economic Zones to enable the companies operating at the airports to enjoy the benefits of the free zone scheme.
He added that airports special economic zones are designed to accelerate investment in the Aviation sector and its value chain.
Adesugba also said the zones are expected to improve the utilisation of the airports, generate more revenues for the government as well as attract more local and foreign direct investment and increase aviation contribution to the GDP.
According to him, ASEZ can grow the aviation and cargo export in Nigeria with the incentives and concessions available in the Nigeria Free Zones with specific concepts, such tax holidays, one-stop approvals as well as 100 per cent foreign ownership of businesses.
Adesugba advocated “complete tax holiday from all Federal, state and local government taxes, rates, Customs duties and levies, one-stop approvals for all permits operating licences and incorporation papers” for those doing businesses at the airports.
The NEPZA boss also called for “duty-free, tax-free import of raw materials and components for goods destined for re-export” for such businesses.
