Emirates earns N24bn from Nigerian ticket sales in 2014

-
Emirates Airlines, which operates more than 14 weekly flights to and from Nigeria, has realised N24 billion from ticket sales in the country in 2014, stakeholders disclosed on Tuesday.
Akin Olateru, an aviation lawyer, who disclosed this at the launch of a travel portal by Sesby’s Travel and Tours in Lagos, lamented that Nigeria was yet to realise the economic potentials that lie in the Aviation sector, adding that a developed aviation sector could help add to job creation and revenue from taxes to the Nigerian government as money from crude oil sales fall.
According to him, the aviation sector is a technical one that must be harnessed with seasoned professionals and good infrastructure as it is done in other parts of the world.
He said over the years, Nigeria has been putting a round peg in a square hole as it concerns aviation adding that foreign airlines which have good infrastructure in their bases come to the country and make billions of naira.
He lamented that most airlines in Nigeria cannot fly more than 10 hours in a day because the infrastructure is limiting them.
“Emirates ticket sales were in excess of N24 billion in 2014. It is noteworthy to say that Aviation is a visible sector but the management so far is poor, we need to encourage good managers and train people to do the right job and the right time, sometimes, just because Emirates has solid airport infrastructure, people just go to Dubai for sightseeing and tourism.
For an airport to drive traffic there must be infrastructure and good management, most airlines’ and airports operations are limited in Nigeria,” he said.
Usman Muhktar, director general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation had lamented that Nigeria has Bilateral Air Services Agreement, (BASA) with 78 countries, but that not all of the BASAs are being utilised.
The Emirates group in 2014 recorded the second highest profit ever of AED 5.5 billion (US$ 1.5 billion), while it made steady revenue and business growth with significant investment in the business at AED 20.2 billion (US$ 5.5 billion).
Also speaking at the event, Adeola Sesby-Banjoh, managing director of Sesby’s Travels and Tours, lamented that the sector is faced with numerous challenges.
For instance, she said travel agencies in Nigeria were faced with series of challenges ranging from infiltration of commercial institutions to lack of credit facilities.
She argued that it was impossible for the agencies to leave their primary assignment and start collecting money from people to save.
“We have lot of infiltrations such as banks which have now taken over our jobs, they should focus on their primary assignment” she added.
culled:businessdayonline.com
 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Healthy diet for the rainy season

-
Image
Along with the showers comes the risk of various diseases like food poisoning, diarrhoea, dysentery and cholera. Again, in rainy season, digestion is generally weak. Therefore, you should eat less. It is also essential to fast once a week or fortnight. People eat some incorrect food during this time and fall sick. To protect your health, follow this dietary guideline: •Avoid heavy, salty food, as it promotes water retention and bloating. It is better to have medium or low salt food •Eat foods which are drying in nature, the most popular being corn, and oats, among others. Eating watery foods like rice and watermelon creates swelling in the body •Maintain the general hygiene while eating out and definitely avoid roadside vendors, as very few people have the high immunity to handle the bacterial overload at such places •The milk is the better diet in this season. Drink butter milk, as it improves digestion. Oily food should be taken in less quantity •Eat li...
Read more

Managing lactose intolerance in children

-
A concerned mom shared her experience with other mothers about the likely causes of diarrhoea in children: “When my daughter was two months old, she started having diarrhoea. I let this go on for a couple of days and then took her to our family doctor. The doctor told me that she has gastroenteritis (infectious diarrhoea). I was given oral re-hydration solution and Flagyl syrup. After a couple of days, she still wasn’t any better and I was at my breaking point. So, I scheduled an appointment with another doctor in order to get a second opinion. The new doctor that I now call my daughter’s pediatrician said that she didn’t think that the baby has gastroenteritis. She said that she was likely to be lactose intolerant and had colic. She told us that when a baby is developing intolerance to cow’s milk, a symptom of that is diarrhoea. So, she advised us to change her baby formula, and, immediately, the diarrhoea stopped.” Lactose (milk) intolerance happens whe...
Read more

When fibroid co-exists with pregnancy

-
Image
                        Dr. Samuel Adebayo Uterine fibroid, also known as Leiomyoma, is a benign (non-cancerous) tumour of the uterus (womb). Fibroids are the most common benign tumours in females and they occur during the reproductive years. They occur in up to 50 per cent of women. The exact cause of this tumour is unknown; but some factors are associated with increased chance of developing uterine fibroid. A family history is a factor. History of fibroid developing in women of the same family or race plays a role in a woman’s life. African women have between two and three times chances of developing fibroid than white women. Also, African women develop fibroid at a younger age, usually in their 20s and above, unlike white or caucasian women where fibroid may occur in their 30s or 40s. No pregnancy or low pregnancy rate increases the risk, just as early onset of menses...
Read more