The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said that passenger traffic between Lagos and Toronto recorded a 28 per cent year-on-year growth in 2024, making it one of Nigeria’s fastest-rising long-haul markets and a strong candidate for direct flight services in the near future.

Area Manager and Head of Account Management for West and Central Africa at IATA, Dr Samson Fatokun, said this yesterday as a member of the panel of discussants at the 2025 FAAN National Aviation Conference (FNAC) in Lagos.
Fatokun said the sharp rise in traffic on routes such as Lagos–Toronto, Lagos–Manchester and Lagos–New York signalled increasing passenger demand that Nigerian airports and airlines should strategically harness.

He explained that several Nigerian routes appear prominently on global lists of unserved or underserved destinations, yet have strong commercial potential based on passenger movement patterns.

“Between 2023 and 2024, Lagos–Toronto traffic grew by 28 per cent. That is massive. Lagos–New York grew by 19 per cent. These numbers are not old; they are based on very recent origin-destination data,” he said.

Besides, Fatokun warned that Nigeria’s rising number of airports, including new concessioned and state-owned facilities, may struggle financially unless airport owners adopt robust and data-driven route development strategies.
He said the country was entering an era of airport competition, citing the emergence of multiple airports within Lagos and neighbouring Ogun State’s plans to compete for the same aviation market.
He maintained that the survival and profitability of all these airports depended largely on the quality of their route development strategy, stressing that without it, an airport becomes moribund and a constant drain on government finances.

According to him, many Nigerian airports remained unserved or underserved and lacked the traffic needed for sustained commercial operations.
He noted that the situation was evident in major terminals such as Abuja, where counters remained empty for long hours during the day.
He, however, noted that Nigeria was not performing poorly compared to other African nations, but insisted the country still had significant gaps in its domestic, regional and international connectivity.

He observed that several foreign airlines that already fly into Africa, such as Singapore Airlines, still avoided Nigeria, an indication that more work was needed to deepen international route opportunities.
Faokun emphasised the need for closer collaboration between airports and airlines to turn high-potential data into operational routes, which would, in turn, increase revenue for airports through passenger traffic, retail sales and ancillary services.

Also, the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines (UNA), Prof. Obiora Okonkwo, in his contribution, said Nigerian airlines were willing and ready to open new routes, but faced serious structural challenges.
He listed high taxes, multiple charges, expensive loans and limited access to aircraft as major obstacles.

Okonkwo said that despite these constraints, Nigerian airlines had made significant efforts in regional connectivity, particularly in West Africa.
He explained that Ghana remained the biggest regional market for Nigeria.