The International Air Transport Association (Iata) reports that airport funds blocked from repatriation amounted to $4,9 billion (R62.1bn) in 2017.
This follows their earlier report that African countries blocked $1,2 billion (R14,4bn).
The association has revealed that the top five markets with blocked funds are:
• Venezuela, where airlines have been unable to repatriate $3.78 billion (R47.9billion)
• Angola, where approximately $386 million (R3.6bn) remains blocked
• Sudan where $170 million (R2.2bn) is blocked
• Bangladesh, where $95 million (R1.2bn) is blocked
• Zimbabwe, where $76 million (R963m) is blocked
According to Alexandre de Juniac, Iata’s director general and ceo, the organisation has seen some success in resolving the backlog. “The $600 million (R7.7bn) backlog in Nigeria has been cleared. And we have made $120 million (R1.5bn) of progress from a peak of over $500 million (R6.3bn) in Angola.”
He added that the economic crisis in Venezuela will make a short-term resolution unlikely, however, he believes that the progress in Nigeria and Angola will encourage other states to address the issue timeously.
