FG Will Not Reverse Cashless Policy at Airports, Says Keyamo

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has reaffirmed that the Federal Government will not abandon the cashless payment system introduced by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) at major airports across the country.

Keyamo made this known during an on-the-spot assessment at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, where he monitored the implementation of a temporary hybrid toll payment system.

The minister explained that the hybrid arrangement was introduced following President Bola Tinubu’s directive to temporarily suspend the strict enforcement of the cashless system due to operational challenges.

According to him, the government is reviewing the system to ensure revenue collection continues while easing traffic congestion at airport toll gates.

“We went back to the drawing board to see what we can do for now. We want to ensure we continue collecting revenue and at the same time reduce traffic around the toll gates. That is why we introduced the hybrid system,” Keyamo said.

He explained that travellers who already purchased the cashless cards can continue to use them, noting that payments made through the cards are automatically remitted to the Treasury Single Account (TSA).

However, he added that a limited number of users who are yet to adapt to the system are temporarily allowed to make cash payments until full migration to the cashless system is achieved.

Keyamo stressed that the government remains committed to eliminating cash transactions at airports, warning that attempts to frustrate the policy will not succeed.

“There is no going back on the cashless system. Anyone who believes they can frustrate it because they prefer cash collections should forget it. The Federal Government has already issued a directive that no agency should collect cash,” he said.

The minister also revealed that President Tinubu has given him a deadline to fully implement the cashless policy across airports.

He added that the directive has prompted him to take full responsibility for the implementation process.

“Mr. President made it clear that I have a deadline to ensure we go fully cashless. As he is pushing me, I will also push those under me. I have now taken full control of the process,” Keyamo stated.

While acknowledging that the hybrid system is temporary, the minister noted that discussions are ongoing with concessionaires to introduce fully automated services at airport toll gates.

According to him, the hybrid arrangement cannot be sustained because it still allows cash handling, which he said encourages corruption.

“For over 50 years, FAAN collected cash at various points, and people became used to that system. But we will not allow that to continue,” he said.