…As Reps moves to recover $7bn from foreign, domestic airlines
By Charles Ebi
Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria ,FAAN, says it has issued more than 70,000 Go Cashless cards as part of efforts to ease congestion and stabilise operations following disruptions caused by the rollout of its nationwide cashless payment policy at airports.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE TV, monitored by AljazirahNigeria correspondent, FAAN’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Henry Agbebire, acknowledged the initial difficulties and apologised to affected passengers.
“I think first I should start by apologising. We express our profound apology for the distress some of our road users and passengers have gone through in the last two days.
“But the good news is we had to mitigate and make efforts to ensure that the pressure right now has reduced a bit. Things got better today, and we are hoping that in a few days, just a few days from now, things will normalise”, he assured.
Agbebire further emphasised the scale of adoption since enforcement began.
“But interestingly, as I speak to you, we’ve done over 70,000 total cards, and gradually we believe the tension will go down as the government’s Go Cashless program becomes more aggressively recognised and utilised”, he clarified.
He disclosed that while FAAN began sensitisation and card onboarding as far back as October last year, many passengers delayed registration until the enforcement date, leading to heavy traffic at airport gates.
“To put a context to this, we started sometime in October last year to sensitise people. We launched what we call the Go Cashless card at FAAN. From that point on, we started sensitising, advertising, and onboarding people.
“Between October last year and the 28th of February, we had on-boarded about 30,000 cards. But it looked like a lot of people, as is typical in Nigeria, wait for the last minute. When the deadline came, because this is a Federal Government directive, March 1, was a no-go-back date.
“Suddenly, we had to roll out, and the pressure was heavy. A lot of people on the road that day had not registered. So, we deployed people to register them to get a card. That was a problem. We gave other options, but unfortunately, that is what it is, and we found ourselves in this situation”, he explained.
According to him, the rush intensified immediately after the policy took effect.
“And interestingly, in the last three days, we have on-boarded another 40,000”.
Agbebire noted that although four payment options are available, the Go Cashless card remains the fastest and most efficient at access gates.
“There are several options four of them, actually. But the Go Cashless card is the simplest and easiest. That’s why we on-boarded that quite early, so we had enough time for people to get a card. Now, it is contactless. When you get to the access gate, you need the bars to open as fast as possible. When we on-boarded the card, we felt it was the fastest, and we had to ensure we promoted that regularly
“However, passengers or road users can also use their debit cards. The debit card is slightly slower; it could take a minute or two at the POS, and that could lead to traffic buildup. But we also encourage people to get their E-tags. You can get it for a year, and that could give you access straight away when you get to the access gate.
“We also have what we call the VIP E-tags for vehicles that are regular in that area; they are registered and can also use that. So, in the absence of the Go Cashless card, you can use your E-tag or your ATM/debit card. Like I said, that is slower, and that’s why we have the slow pace”.
He added that FAAN expects traffic conditions to improve significantly within a week and advised travellers to factor in extra time before departure.
“We are quite hopeful, probably in a week. But I must say this: we’ve issued regular travel advisories. To a large extent, it’s typical that when you’re travelling internationally, you should get to the airport three hours before your flight.
“We’ve had to advise that people please put into consideration another 30 minutes, maybe one hour, so you don’t miss your flight. We are very concerned about such passengers because we are a transforming organization and customer experience is key for us. Whatever we are doing, we are ensuring that what is necessary is being done and we are working towards this”, he said.
FAAN’s Go Cashless policy took effect on March 1, 2026, ending cash payments at airport toll gates, car parks, and executive lounges in line with directives from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The initiative, launched in partnership with Paystack, was first announced in September 2025 and began at major airports in Lagos and Abuja.
The authority said the system is designed to make transactions “faster, safer, and more convenient”, while improving transparency and potentially increasing revenue by up to 75 per cent through reduced cash handling.
However, the first day of implementation witnessed traffic congestion at the Lagos and Abuja airports, with some passengers missing flights as motorists without prepaid cards resorted to slower POS payments, causing delays at access points.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has initiated moves aimed at recovering about $7bn allegedly owed to the Federal Government by some foreign airlines operating in the country.
According to the Reps committee chairman on Finance, Abiodun Faleke, the amount had accumulated since 2023.
Faleke made the disclosure on Tuesday in Abuja during a review of the 2023–2025 revenue monitoring exercise of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria ,FAAN.
The committee chairman expressed further revealed that some domestic airlines are also indebted to the Federal Government.
The move followed a presentation by the Managing Director of FAAN, Olubunmi Kuku when she appeared before the committee.
Mrs Kuku told the committee that the agency was able to recover only N8.8 billion from the N25.86bn owed by airlines, leaving an outstanding balance of N17.7 billion.
The agency’s presentation to the committee showed that FAAN generated N191.4 billion from a revenue target of N292.9 billion, leaving a shortfall of N101.5 billion.
The Managing Director said the huge debts were owed by both foreign and domestic airlines, including ones that have gone out of operations.
She disclosed that the International Air Transport Association ,IATA, is the body responsible for remitting certain revenues accruing from foreign airlines.
But IATA, she said had not been efficient in its responsibilities, causing delays in recovery.
The Reps committee members were however not impressed with the Managing Director’s explanations, in view of the country’s huge public debt profile, arising from foreign loans.
The lawmakers also faulted the agency’s accounting system and picked holes in its revenue performance figures as presented by the Managing Director.
“We are aware that when President Bola Tinubu took over, there was over $7bn owed in the international carriers. So, we want a full record of all your debts in 2023, 2024, and 2025. And when the call is made, we want to know those who are owing.
“The issue of passenger data is critical. Apart from this, we want to know how many airlines are actually coming to Nigeria. How many flights did you receive in 2023, 2024, and 2025. How many passengers. And I am sure you have the manifests”, Faleke said.
The chairman subsequently directed the FAAN management team to reappear before the committee with a comprehensive statement of indebtedness from 2023 to 2025.
He ordered that the documents must include detailed manifests of foreign and domestic airlines operating within the period under review, clearly indicating the debtor airlines.
The debts were incurred through default in landing and parking fees, passenger service charges, terminal navigation charges and other regulatory levies.
It was revealed that some domestic airlines that have since packed failed to settle huge financial obligations to FAAN.
On the other hand, global aviation agencies charged with collecting the levies from foreign airlines failed to do so most of the time.
