Nigeria’s push to diversify its economy beyond crude oil is finding renewed expression in the aviation sector, where air cargo is being repositioned as a strategic driver of non-oil exports. Through reforms spearheaded by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the government is introducing new infrastructure, tightening revenue systems and pursuing institutional coordination — even as industry stakeholders question the long-term sustainability of the effort.
At stake is more than airport logistics. For a country endowed with vast agricultural resources but constrained by weak supply chains, the success or failure of air cargo reforms could significantly shape its export trajectory.
From Passenger Focus to Cargo Priority
For decades, Nigeria’s aviation ecosystem has revolved primarily around passenger movement, with cargo operations relegated to secondary status. Terminals filled with travellers and recurring concerns about flight delays and safety dominated policy attention, while the freight value chain remained fragmented and underdeveloped.
That narrative began to change in December 2024 when the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, created a dedicated Cargo Development Directorate within FAAN. The move followed recommendations from an earlier Aviacargo Committee tasked with mapping out how Nigeria could climb from fourth to first position in Africa’s air cargo rankings.
The Directorate was conceived as the operational “driver” of that repositioning process — a structural intervention meant to tackle inefficiencies that have long undermined export competitiveness.
Infrastructure Milestones and Expansion Plans
One of the most visible achievements of the new directorate is the commissioning, in May 2025, of a dedicated domestic cargo terminal at the General Aviation Terminal in Lagos. Designed to improve handling capacity and efficiency, the facility aims to reduce congestion and improve export processing timelines.
The authority plans to replicate this model in Abuja and Kano, creating a network of modern cargo processing hubs across key gateways. Officials say the Lagos facility strengthens the city’s position as a cargo nerve centre and is intended to attract both domestic and international freight operators, decentralising cargo movement nationwide.
Beyond bricks and mortar, FAAN resumed direct cargo revenue collection at the cargo terminal of Murtala Muhammed International Airport after a 15-year hiatus. Officials from the Directorate of Cargo Development and Services were deployed to cargo release points to curb leakages and enhance accountability.
Earlier in the year, authorities also began enforcing rules against commercial goods being transported through passenger channels as excess baggage, a practice that had allowed shippers to bypass proper cargo processing fees. The crackdown led to the seizure of some goods and subsequent legal disputes, temporarily slowing enforcement momentum.
In parallel, FAAN proposed raising cargo handling charges from N7 to N25 per kilogram. The proposal triggered strong opposition from freight forwarders and exporters, culminating in protests and negotiations. A compromise tariff of N15 per kilogram was eventually agreed upon. While authorities maintain that tariff adjustments are necessary to fund improved services, critics warn that higher costs could price Nigerian exports out of competitive markets.
Bridging the Farm-to-Airport Gap
Nigeria remains a leading producer of agricultural commodities such as yams, peppers, mangoes, okra and leafy vegetables. Yet exporters frequently struggle to access global markets due to poor logistics, weak cold chains and bureaucratic bottlenecks. Large portions of harvests are lost to spoilage before reaching airports.
Aviation expert Alex Nwuba explains that the Aviacargo Committee identified systemic inefficiencies, particularly fractured coordination among airport agencies and cumbersome export processes that discourage producers.
“The committee’s report laid out what Nigeria must do to move from fourth to first position,” he notes, adding that the Cargo Directorate was established specifically to implement those recommendations.
According to Nwuba, the Directorate’s work includes building warehouses across major gateways, expanding airport services and engaging states in key producing regions. He estimates that up to 80 per cent of agricultural produce can be lost between farm and airport — a statistic that underscores the urgency of aggregation centres, cold-chain facilities and streamlined certification mechanisms.
The Directorate has convened meetings with stakeholders including the Nigeria Customs Service, freight forwarders, ground handlers, cooperatives and regulatory agencies in a bid to dismantle operational silos. Engagement with agencies responsible for agricultural quarantine, food safety, standards and customs clearance is aimed at ensuring that exported goods meet international quality benchmarks and are not rejected abroad.
Nwuba cites yam exports as a telling example: although Nigeria is the world’s largest producer, Ghana is more frequently recognised in export markets — partly because Nigerian yams are transported by road to Ghana and exported by air from there. For him, the solution lies in fixing domestic logistics so that Nigeria retains both recognition and revenue.
He also stresses that increased cargo throughput directly supports airport sustainability. “Airports earn from throughput,” he argues. “If you stretch more revenue from what is passing through, airports become more profitable and sustainable.”
Digital Reform and Broader Trade Corridors
Experts have called for complementary digital reforms, including single-window clearance systems and integrated cargo villages, to align Nigeria’s air freight ecosystem with global standards.
The cargo push also aligns with broader federal ambitions to expand intra-African trade. A recently unveiled intra-African air cargo corridor offering discounted rates is designed to lower logistics costs and reduce reliance on traditional Europe–Middle East export routes.
Yet macroeconomic headwinds persist. Exchange rate instability, high operating costs and limited aircraft availability continue to constrain growth. In 2025, rising freight costs reportedly contributed to a decline in air cargo exports — a reminder that logistics reforms must be paired with wider economic stability.
Data, Viability and Fiscal Concerns
While proponents see a structured roadmap for repositioning Nigeria’s cargo sector, aviation expert and CEO of Centurion Security Limited, John Ojikutu, offers a more sceptical assessment.
He questions whether cargo traffic data justifies the scale of current reforms, noting that Nigeria’s annual air cargo volumes over the past decade have hovered below 300,000 tonnes, sometimes under 200,000 tonnes. For him, any serious reform should demonstrate sustained annual increases over four to five years.
“Have we seen that increase?” he asks. Without transparent, verifiable statistics showing consistent growth, he warns that expansion efforts risk becoming avenues for public spending without measurable returns.
Ojikutu recalls advising airlines during periods of low passenger demand to convert unused capacity into cargo operations, only to be told that outbound cargo volumes were insufficient. He emphasises that Nigeria imports significantly more by air than it exports, creating an imbalance that leaves aircraft departing with limited loads.
His concerns extend beyond cargo to broader airport capital expenditure. He questions the economic logic of large-scale renovation and runway reconstruction projects, arguing that spending projections must align with traffic growth and realistic revenue streams. He advocates concessioning cargo terminals to private operators who could generate fixed annual returns without burdening government finances.
In his view, increasing per-kilogram charges without growing actual volumes risks “killing the industry” by masking stagnant throughput with higher tariffs.
A Reform Effort at a Crossroads
Nigeria’s air cargo reforms represent one of the most structured attempts in recent years to reposition the aviation sector as a logistics enabler of trade rather than merely a landlord of passenger terminals. Dedicated facilities, tighter revenue oversight, stakeholder engagement and infrastructure expansion signal a departure from years of inertia.
Yet the reforms are unfolding amid legitimate questions about traffic data, cost competitiveness and fiscal prudence. Success will depend not only on new terminals and revised tariffs but on measurable growth in export volumes, efficient farm-to-airport logistics and macroeconomic stability.
Nigeria’s agricultural base is substantial, and global demand for perishables remains robust. Whether the Cargo Directorate can translate ambition into sustained throughput will determine if the country’s non-oil export aspirations truly take flight — or remain grounded by structural constraints.