As Nigeria looks to deepen its African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) market penetration, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Jumoke Oduwole, has urged exporters to take advantage of the recently-activated dedicated air cargo corridor linking Lagos to five key cities across East and Southern Africa.

She stressed that the pathway offers exporters substantially discounted freight rates as part of the broader strategy to accelerate the country’s participation in regional and continental trade expansion.

The initiative, executed in partnership with RwandAir Cargo and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Bureau for Africa, makes available rebated cargo rates that are between 50 and 75 per cent cheaper than prevailing commercial air freight options, the minister said.

She described it as a significant cost intervention that directly addresses one of the most persistent barriers to Nigerian export competitiveness in the continent.

The corridor covers five routes connecting Lagos, each with a tiered pricing structure designed to accommodate both small-scale and high-volume exporters. Shipments below 1,000 kilogrammes and those above that threshold attract different per-kilogramme rates, while a minimum charge applies in all cases.

On the Lagos to Kigali, Rwanda route, the minimum charge is $100. Shipments below 1,000 kilogrammes are billed at $1.4 per kilogramme, while those above 1,000 kilogrammes attract a reduced rate of $1.2 per kilogramme, she explained.

“The Lagos to Nairobi route carries the same minimum charge of $100. Below 1,000 kilogrammes, the rate is $1.7 per kilogramme, dropping to $1.5 per kilogramme for larger consignments.

“For the Lagos to Harare, Zimbabwe route, the minimum charge is $110. The rate is $1.8 per kilogramme for shipments below 1,000 kilogrammes and $1.6 per kilogramme above that threshold.

“The Lagos to Lusaka (Zambia route) also carries a $110 minimum charge, with identical per-kilogramme rates of $1.8 below 1,000 kilogrammes and $1.6 above it,” she noted.

The Lagos to Johannesburg route is said to attract the highest minimum charge at $120. Rates are $1.9 per kilogramme for shipments below 1,000 kilogrammes and $1.7 per kilogramme above that volume, she said.

Three of the destinations, Kigali, Harare, and Lusaka, are newly-activated routes, expanding the geographic footprint of Nigeria’s formal air cargo network in Rwanda, Zimbabwe, and Zambia for the first time under this programme.

Nairobi and Johannesburg represent existing points of connectivity now enhanced with the rebated rate structure.

By partnering with RwandAir, the ministry said it has effectively unlocked onward connectivity to markets across Central, East and Southern Africa, well beyond the five primary destinations listed.

A consignment flown into Kigali, for instance, can be routed onward to Bujumbura, Entebbe, Dar es Salaam or Lilongwe under RwandAir’s existing network, broadening the effective reach of each Lagos departure.

The minister noted that the commercial impact of the rebated rates is material. At the announced pricing, a 500-kilogramme shipment of processed foods or manufactured goods from Lagos to Nairobi, for instance, would attract a freight cost of approximately $850, she noted.

For exporters of high-value, time-sensitive goods, fresh produce, pharmaceuticals, fashion apparel, and light manufacturing, the cost differential is transformative and removes a key impediment to price competitiveness.