The International Air Transportation Association (IATA) is disappointed by Nigeria’s lack of action to address the repatriation of airline funds after Dubai-based Emirates announced the suspension of services to the country from September.

The association expressed concern over $464 million worth of foreign airlines’ funds currently trapped in the country, which increased from $450 million in July, the association said in a tweet.

The refusal by Nigeria to allow foreign airlines to repatriate their earnings is responsible for the development, it said.

IATA’s many warnings that failure to restore timely repatriation will hurt Nigeria with reduced air connectivity are proving true with the withdrawal of Emirates from the market, the association said in a tweet.

“Airlines can’t be expected to fly if they can’t realize revenue from ticket sales. Loss of connectivity harms the economy, hurts investor confidence, and impacts jobs and people’s lives. The government of Nigeria needs to prioritize the release funds before more damage is done,” another tweet read.

In an earlier statement, Emirates announced that it had put a hold on flight operations to Nigeria due to its inability to repatriate funds from the West African country.

“Emirates has tried every avenue to address our ongoing challenges in repatriating funds from Nigeria, and we have made considerable efforts to initiate dialogue with the relevant authorities for their urgent intervention to help find a viable solution,” the airline said.

“Therefore, Emirates has taken the difficult decision to suspend all flights to and from Nigeria, effective September 1, 2022, to limit further losses and impact on our operational costs that continue to accumulate in the market,” it added.

In June, Reuters reported that Nigeria’s move to withhold the airlines’ earnings follows the restrictions on access to foreign currency against investors seeking to repatriate their profits as the nation tackles a severe dollar shortage.

(Editing by Seban Scaria seban.scaria@lseg.com )