15.8 million passengers travelled through Nigerian airports in 2021: Official
ABUJA, Nigeria (The Informant247) – No fewer than 15.8 million passengers travelled through Airports in Nigeria in 2021, officials said, signifying a 69 per cent rise in air passenger rate.
“Our figure this year is even much higher. In 2020, it was down, in 2021 we got about a 70% increase. Our recovery is very, very rapid both in terms of passenger movement and cargo,” the Managing Director of Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Capt. Rabiu Yadudu said, stressing that the growth of air transport statistics has improved rapidly after the COVID-19 pandemic.
He disclosed that the passenger figure rose from 9.3 million in 2020 to 15.8m in 2021, showing an increase of 69% while aircraft movement increased by over 46% after COVID-19.
On cargo movement, Yadudu said 191,000 tons of cargo were recorded in 2020, but rose to 381,000 tons in 2021, adding that the authority is working with other stakeholders in the air cargo logistics value chain to improve cargo export.
“We have already met with the National Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) team and we have agreed that once an airport is a sunrise to sunset, it has to remain sunrise to sunset. It is for all stakeholders to respect that particular provision and operate accordingly,” he added.
Apart from the five major airports in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Kano, which operate 24 hours, the others classified as sunset airports operate between 7 am and 6 pm (sunset).
