By Felix Onuah
ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates reached an agreement allowing for the resumption of travel between the two countries, Nigeria’s information minister said on Monday.
The UAE stopped issuing visas to Nigerians in 2022 after Dubai’s Emirates Airline suspended flights between the countries due to an inability to repatriate funds from Nigeria.
Nigeria’s central bank has since cleared a backlog of around $137 million in foreign exchange owed to international airlines.
Information Minister Mohammed Idris said the deal includes the resumption of visa issuance to Nigerian passport holders for travel to the UAE, effective from Monday.
“This agreement includes updated controls and conditions to facilitate obtaining a UAE visa,” Idris said in a statement.
In May, Emirates said it would resume flight schedules to Nigeria in October, ending a nearly two-year halt to flights.
(Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Elisha Bala-Gbogbo; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Susan Fenton)
