The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said the border closure and quarantines are affecting air travel across countries, as it called on the government to reopen the borders to continue with relief measures to sustain airlines during the COVID-19 crisis.
But the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) said the country has gained so much from the partial border in the last one year.
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IATA, which represents some 290 airlines carrying 80 per cent of global air traffic, in a report on Tuesday, said this was evident in a disappointing “peak (Northern Hemisphere) summer travel season” that saw minimal improvements compared to the May-June period.
It said four in five potential travellers stayed home, based on comparisons with the year-ago period.
In July 2020, traffic was 79.8% below 2019 levels while international traffic in July 2020 was 91.9% below 2019 levels., IATA’s Director General and CEO, Alexandre de Juniac, said in the report.
However, Customs said, one year into the ongoing joint border drill, codenamed ‘Exercise SWIFT RESPONSE ’, said that it has made it more difficult for terrorists and other criminals to acquire arms and ammunition, while criminal elements find it challenging to enter Nigeria.
A statement by the NCS spokesman, Joseph Attah, said the exercise which started on August 20, 2019, has also boosted production of agricultural products, especially local rice, tomatoes, maize, poultry etc and this has stimulated the growth of the agricultural sector and economy.
As at 31st August 2020, Customs said it nabbed 1,243, irregular immigrants and 622 suspected smugglers, while seizures made are worth over N11.030 billion.
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