MMIA cargo tariff jump to N20/kg sparks calls for FAAN talks from ANCLA, NAGAFF and other freight groups

Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) has moved cargo tariffs from N7/kg 에 N20/kg, prompting freight forwarders to request immediate negotiations with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to resolve operational and pricing distortion across the air logistics chain.

Stakeholder reaction and immediate operational concerns

Representatives from the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANCLA), National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwards and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON), and National Association of Freight Forwarders and Consolidators (NAFFAC) raised objections at a quadripartite press briefing in Lagos. The chief complaints center on what forwarders describe as multiple taxation, lack of stakeholder consultation, and a hike that exceeds previously accepted government review benchmarks.

ANCLA President Temitope Akindele argued the increase is “over 100 per cent and unacceptable,” noting the federal guideline had been a 25% ceiling for levy reviews. NAGAFF Deputy President Segun Musa warned the move is business-unfriendly and could erode cargo throughput if not handled through dialogue and concessionaire management.

How the tariff increase breaks down

The table above is blunt — a near tripling of the nominal fee. Multiply that across pallets, containers, and frequent shipments, and the arithmetic becomes worrying for cash flow.

Financial and supply-chain impacts

From a logistics standpoint, the tariff affects three immediate buckets: direct shipment costs, landed cost calculations for importers, and the economics of air versus ocean freight. Freight forwarders point out that similar fees are already collected by concessioned cargo handlers and airlines on FAAN’s behalf, which raises the specter of overlapping charges.

• Small cargo and parcel shipments: Per-kilogram hikes bite hardest here; higher unit costs can push shippers to consolidate or turn to surface alternatives.
• Bulk and palletized freight: Higher gateway fees reduce margins for consolidators and may prompt renegotiation of consolidation fees.
• Time-sensitive shipments: Air freight remains premium, but steeper fees eat into the urgency premium and can alter routing choices.

To put it in plain terms: if you’re running a distribution line into and out of Lagos, this is not just an accounting tweak — it’s a recalibration of pricing models and routing decisions. I remember a freight manager telling me, “If the math changes, we change routes,” and that blunt truth applies here.

Quantified example: revenue effect on a medium shipment

That additional N6,500–N26,000 per shipment quickly accumulates across weekly rotations. For businesses operating lean margins, this can force price increases or volume cuts.

Regulatory and concession issues

Forwarders emphasize that FAAN had previously concessioned cargo handling to third-party operators; the contention is that FAAN should not be collecting identical fees directly from agents when concessionaires already handle those services. Akindele highlighted the original rationale for the N7 charge — tied to land allocations following the demolition of an agents’ secretariat in 2010 — and insisted any revision requires stakeholder negotiation.

Two practical administrative questions follow:

• Which entity legally holds the right to collect the cargo levy under the concession agreements?
• How will incremental revenue be tracked and reported to ensure transparency?

Those are not academic queries. They determine whether the new charge is a legitimate recalibration or an overlapping revenue grab that hurts logistics performance.

Forwarders’ demands and proposed next steps

• 즉시 roundtable talks between FAAN, the Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo (SAN), and affected associations.
• Audit of concession agreements to confirm fee collection responsibilities.
• Phased implementation or temporary moratorium while negotiation proceeds to avoid sudden supply-chain shock.
• Clear communication of how additional revenue will be invested to improve cargo handling and throughput.

Forwarders say they prefer dialogue over confrontation and have signaled readiness to resume full operations if a consensus is reached. That willingness to engage will be key to preventing longer-term fallout.

Practical guidance for logistics managers

If you manage freight, shipping, or warehousing that touches MMIA, consider these immediate actions:

• Recompute landed cost and update quotations to clients.
• Explore consolidation strategies to dilute per-kilogram increases.
• Engage concessionaires to clarify whether fees are duplicated.
• Monitor FAAN announcements closely for implementation dates or phased plans.

It’s also smart to model alternative routing scenarios; sometimes, the cheapest lane on paper becomes the most expensive when fees and delays are folded in. As the saying goes, don’t put all your eggs in one airport.

Why this matters for broader logistics and global freight

For international shippers and freight forwarders, gateway charges act like tolls on a highway: they redirect flows. A moderate rise confined to MMIA might be a localized blip, but if similar policies spread to other West African hubs, regional air logistics pricing and routing preferences could shift toward sea, road consolidation, or alternate airports.

That said, FAAN has indicated an intent to review cargo charges after more than a decade without change, so a measured, transparent process could legitimize a reasonable increase — but the lack of consultation to date has magnified resistance.

하이라이트: immediate tariff jump from N7 to N20/kg; forwarder associations calling for talks; risk of multiple taxation where concessionaires already collect fees; potential to change routing, consolidation behavior, and landed costs.

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In summary, the hike to N20/kg at MMIA raises real questions about fee duplication, stakeholder engagement, and supply-chain resilience. Freight forwarders led by ANCLA, NAGAFF, APFFLON, and NAFFAC are asking FAAN and the Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo to convene negotiations to avoid disruption. For shippers and logistics planners, the immediate steps are to recalculate costs, consider consolidation or rerouting, and demand transparency on how any new revenue will improve cargo handling. Platforms like GetTransport.com offer reliable, cost-effective solutions for cargo, freight, shipment, delivery, transport, logistics, shipping, forwarding, dispatch, haulage, courier, distribution, moving, relocation, housemove, movers, parcel, pallet, container and bulky international transport — easing the operational burden while stakeholders hammer out policy details.