Nigeria approves airline to fly directly to China

The Nigerian government has granted an airliner, Air Peace, a license to operate international flights from southeast city of Enugu to China and other areas, an official said Thursday.

The recognition would open a new vista in the economy of the state, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, the state governor during the closing ceremony of the First Enugu Investment Summit.

The governor said by approving the license of the airline, President Muhammadu Buhari had shown himself as having the interest of all sections of the country at heart.

Ugwuanyi said the state would never be the same again having had a successful summit that attracted investors across the world.

"We have not only showcased the vast potentials in the state, but from reactions of participants, it does appear that we have been able to provoke an unprecedented interest from investors across the world," he added.

"The journey to economic prosperity has commenced. The light of the economic dawn that has been lit through this summit will never be allowed to die," he said.

Ugwuanyi thanked delegates who made the summit a success and pledged to create an enabling environment for interested investors.

Earlier in his presentation, the Chairman of Air Peace Ltd, Allen Onyema, said the airline would soon commence flights from the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu to China.

The chairman said it was time for Nigeria to be a hub for West and Central African sub-regions.

"President Muhammadu Buhari in his magnanimity on March 31, 2016 approved for us the right to fly to five different countries and we decided now to make Enugu State the hub," he said.

Onyema said Air Peace would fly to India, United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Atlanta in the U.S. and China, adding that the China flight would commence in a few months.

"There is no other airline in West and Central Africa that flies direct to China," he added.

"We will use our airline to bring passengers from countries in West and Central Africa to Enugu and move them to China," Onyema said.

"We are going to deploy a cargo plane that will do nonstop flights to Enugu," Onyema said.

Source: XINHUA