The United Arab Emirates has counted the Nigerian government claim that it lifted a year-long visa ban on Nigerian travelers.
“There are no changes on the Nigeria/UAE travel status so far”, an official from the Gulf state told CNN.
The UAE had in October 2022 said it will no longer issue visas to citizens from Nigeria and 19 other African nations even as it fell short from providing further details.
Flights between Nigeria and UAE stopped last year after Dubai’s Emirates airline suspended its operations in Nigeria citing trapped revenues.
The Nigerian government last week said that they have reached an agreement that would pave the way for the lifting of the visa ban, including the immediate resumption of flights between both countries.
“Furthermore, by this historic agreement, both Etihad Airlines and Emirates Airlines are to immediately resume flight schedules into and out of Nigeria, without any further delay,” a statement by Nigeria’s presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale said.
Ngelale in a follow-up statement, said officials from both countries will need more time to finalize agreement details, contradicting his earlier statement.
“Given the agreement struck between the two Heads of State, there is need to allow cabinet officials from both sides to work out the finer details and finalize the cross-sectoral agreements,” he said, adding that “Everyone can now allow the process to work itself out organically, devoid of speculation.”
