The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that a total of 15,225,627 travellers passed through Nigeria’s airports in 2021, amounting to a combined growth of 101.02% in domestic and international travel.
The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) released the data on Wednesday, after being verified and validated by the NBS; the report shows that the total number of international passengers who went through Nigerian airports in 2021 was 2,219,146, compared to 1,408,026 passengers in 2020 – thereby, representing a 57.61% growth rate. For domestic passengers, the total number in 2021 was 13,006,481 as against 9,069,295 in 2020, which represents a 43.41% growth rate.
Pertaining to domestic travel, the number of arrivals in 2021 came to 6,533,740 which was higher than what was recorded in 2020 (4,870,072). Moreso, departure stood at 6,472,741 in 2021, compared to 4,199,223 in 2020. Similarly, the total number of international arrivals in 2021 stood at 1,109,621 as against 690,765 recorded in 2020. International departures came to 1,109,525 in 2020, compared to 717,261 in 2020.
The data showed that Abuja, Lagos, Kano, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Owerri recorded the highest traffic rate, while Katsina, Kaduna, Ibadan and Jos recorded the lowest traffic.
A total of 4,758,843 passengers passed through the domestic terminal of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport of Abuja, while 4,093,712 passengers went through the domestic terminals of the Murtala Muhammed Airport of Lagos. The domestic terminals of Port Harcourt International Airport recorded 900,728 passengers, with Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport and Akanu Ibiam International Airport having 545,749 and 508,513 passengers respectively.
Others are: Owerri (583,464); Benin Airport (433,017); Margaret Ekpo Airport (197,998); Yola (175,699); Maiduguri (197,898); Ilorin (148,109); Akure (113,625); Sokoto (137,511); Kaduna (73,110); Jos (57,020); Ibadan (51,172); Katsina (30,313).
Pertaining to international travel, Lagos recorded the highest traffic with 1,595,522 passengers, while Abuja had 565,062 passengers. Port Harcourt recorded 14,519 passengers, Kano had 39,441 passengers, while Enugu and Maiduguri reported 4,532 and 68 passengers respectively.
