KEY POINTS
- Jet A1 fuel prices in Nigeria rose from N900 to over N3,000 per liter since February.
- President Tinubu has mandated urgent consideration of debt discounts for domestic airline operators.
- A committee will review levies, taxes and fees on domestic airline tickets going forward.
Nigeria’s airlines almost went dark this week. A jet fuel price surge and mounting debts pushed operators to the edge, and the government has now stepped in with a rescue package still being finalized.
The federal government is weighing debt waivers and tax relief to prevent a shutdown of domestic airline operations. Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo announced the plan after a high-level meeting in Abuja on Wednesday evening.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria had planned to suspend all flight operations on April 20. That shutdown was called off only after government engagement and a commitment to urgent negotiations.
What triggered the crisis
Jet A1 fuel prices have tripled in two months. The fuel cost about N900 per liter in February. By April, operators were paying over N3,000 per liter. Global supply disruptions linked to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East drove the increase, and airlines have absorbed most of the hit.
Keyamo said he briefed President Bola Tinubu directly after the meeting. Tinubu mandated immediate consideration of relief measures.
“I had the privilege of meeting Mr President to brief him about the meeting, and Mr President mandated us to quickly bring a request to him,” Keyamo said. “The first request that he will consider and grant is a generous discount on the debts the airlines are owing the aviation agencies, NAMA, FAAN, NCAA, and so on and so forth.”
The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority are the three main creditors. The discount percentage has not been fixed. Tinubu will make the final call.
What comes next
The second relief track is structural. Keyamo said Tinubu has asked for a committee to review levies, taxes and fees on domestic tickets.
“He wants to set up a committee to address the issues of levies, taxes and fees on domestic tickets once and for all,” Keyamo said.
Tinubu commended airlines for holding fares steady despite rising costs. That restraint, Keyamo added, is part of why the government moved quickly. The sector employs thousands of Nigerians, and a sustained shutdown would have ripple effects across travel, commerce and tourism.
The relief package buys time. Whether it fixes the underlying fuel cost problem depends on how the global oil market moves in the weeks ahead.
