The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo, announced that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) authorities have finalized plans to lift travel restrictions between the UAE and Nigeria.
Speaking at a welcome dinner for delegates attending the International Air Transport Association (IATA) 80th Annual General Meeting and World Air Transport Summit in Dubai over the weekend, Keyamo stated that the issues concerning visa denials by the UAE have been resolved.
He added that an official announcement would be made soon, noting that the remaining steps involve fine-tuning the processes for lifting the visa ban.
He said: “The issue of visa has been resolved, just the announcement remains. They want to dot the I’s and cross the T’s. The announcement will be made in a couple of weeks.
“The UAE is considered as a very important partner in Nigeria. Nigerians have a lot of stakes here in the UAE with a lot of investments. What we are doing is to make sure that we make it easy for millions of Nigerians who have put a lot of pressure on us to ensure that we open up this route again. Second, to make the visa application easier. I am sure you can see the way I was received here. That is to tell you how they value Nigeria.
“I was on the same ride with the ruler of Dubai, the Minister and the head of Emirates Group and all the top shots of Emirates. There was no other person given that privilege here. That is to tell you how much they value us and they want Nigeria to see it in that light. They have opened up again to us. They have started to trust us again, and I want to say thank you to them. I will take it from here on.”