The Nigerian government has announced the lifting of the ban on Emirates Airline flights into the country.
The country’s aviation minister, Hadi Sirika, disclosed on Tuesday that the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will commence visa issuance to Nigerians based on some conditions.
“UAE has written to state that they agree to issue visas to Nigerians, consequently decision has been reached to allow Emirates to fly into Nigeria. Commencement of the visa issuance is condition precedent,” Sirika shared on his Twitter page.
Nigeria had banned Emirates Airlines from operating in the country on September 21.
Sirika had also disclosed that were discussions on the ban on other international airlines.
At the onset of international flight operations in the country after the COVID-19 lockdown, Nigeria announced that it would apply the rule of reciprocity before giving approval to international airlines to operate in the country.
Following the decision of the government, Air France, KLM, Etihad Airways, RwandAir, Air Namibia, Royal Air Maroc, Lufthansa, Cabo Verde, TAAG Angola and South African Airways did not receive approval to operate in the country.
The aviation minister pointed that Air France and KLM airlines were not granted approval for flight operations because “tourist visa’s holders are not allowed entry” in their originating countries.
Nigeria has faced an uphill task to clean up its public image in the international circles following the activities of some unscrupulous Nigerians in foreign lands and even more critically, its low ranking on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index means that many countries view the citizens in negative light.
