The Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc has said direct flights from China into Nigeria return empty weekly due to low patronage in the air cargo business.
The Executive Director, Business Development and Commercial, Saheed Lasisi, NAHCO, said the business of exporting goods by air was growing in Nigeria, particularly because of the current issues at the seaports.
“Direct flights from China come three to four times weekly and return empty,” he said this on Thursday at a webinar facilitated by the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce.
According to him, although the air cargo business is gradually improving, there is a need for investors to tap into the air cargo opportunity.
According to Lasisi, flights from China come into Nigeria three to four times weekly, but return empty because people are yet to tap into the opportunity available to them.
“NAHCO’s aim is to increase transportation by air to 40 per cent in the second quarter of 2021,” he said.
The Managing Director, Abx World, Capt. John Okakpu, said the flights returned empty weekly because many Nigerians failed to follow the laid-down process.
He said many Nigerian products were rejected in the European market because the places they came from could not be traced.
“Packaging is not enough. You need to get your farmers certified and trained before you talk about global gaps,” he added.
