CBN Payment Of Verified FX Claims Very Small Compared to Outstanding Says AFARN President

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has cleared the backlog of foreign exchange owed to foreign airlines in the country.

Confirming the figures yesterday, the Acting Director of Corporate Communications at the CBN, Mrs Hakama Sidi Ali, said the latest amount of $64.44 million paid to the airlines, brought the total verified amount paid to that sector to $136.73 million.

According to her, the Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, is committed to ensure that the verified backlog of payments across all other sectors was cleared and confidence was restored in the Nigerian foreign exchange market.

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Mrs. Sidi Ali also says the CBN is working with stakeholders to ensure liquidity improves within the forex market, thereby reducing pressure on the Naira.

However, foreign airlines confirmed that some trapped funds were received yesterday but said it was not true that all the trapped funds have been paid.

President of the Association of Foreign Airline Representatives in Nigeria (AFARN), Kingsley Nwokoma, while demanding a breakdown of the “verifiable bids,” said what has been paid so far is still “very tiny” compared to what the airlines are being owed.