Nigeria’s air freight logistics sector is experiencing rapid growth, driven by rising e-commerce activity and expanding trade among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Faisal Jarmakani, Managing Director of Aramex Nigeria, told Naijaonpoint.
He estimated the market to be worth over $8 billion, with activity concentrated in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Kano, and Lagos handling the largest share of volumes.
Having spent a decade operating in Nigeria’s air freight sector, Aramex Nigeria has built significant expertise across key cargo corridors, giving it a strong perspective on the trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the market.
In this exclusive interview with Naijaonpoint, Jarmakani discussed the structure of Nigeria’s air freight ecosystem, the busiest cargo routes, operational and cost challenges, bottlenecks in warehousing and last-mile delivery, and how technology and infrastructure improvements are influencing the next phase of the sector’s growth.
Naijaonpoint: From your perspective, what are the growth prospects for air freight logistics in Nigeria, and what factors are currently driving demand in this segment?
Faisal Jarmakani: Nigeria’s air freight logistics market is already sizable, estimated at over $8 billion, with activity heavily concentrated around Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Kano, and Lagos accounting for the largest share of volumes. This concentration reflects where trade, consumption, and international connectivity are strongest.
From a growth perspective, the outlook is medium-term. Demand fundamentals remain strong, and data indicate continued expansion over the coming years, even though growth will be uneven across routes and sectors.
The primary drivers of this growth are e-commerce and SME trade. As more Nigerian businesses participate in cross-border trade. We are also seeing a notable increase in export volumes, driven largely by Nigeria’s diaspora and the rapid expansion of B2B and C2C trade channels.
These segments are growing exponentially and tend to favor air freight because of shorter delivery timelines and higher shipment value density.
Overall, while infrastructure and cost challenges remain, the demand side for air freight in Nigeria is strong and expanding, particularly for time-sensitive, high-value, and cross-border shipments.
Naijaonpoint: What are the key challenges holding back the growth of air freight logistics in the country, and which solutions do you believe would make the biggest difference?
Faisal Jarmakani: The biggest constraints to the growth of air freight logistics in Nigeria are operational inefficiencies, cost structure, and last-mile execution, with airport processing remaining the most critical bottleneck.
First, inefficiencies in airport cargo processing significantly affect turnaround times. These include multiple clearance steps, overlapping regulatory agencies, documentation quality issues, physical inspections, and—most importantly—the lack of technology integration across agencies.
To put this in context, in markets like the UAE, when a shipment arrives at Dubai International Airport in the morning, it is often already out for delivery by the afternoon. Nigeria still has some distance to cover, but it is important to note that processing times have improved meaningfully in recent years, indicating that the country is moving in the right direction.
The second major challenge is cost structure. Nigeria remains relatively expensive compared to neighboring West African countries across handling, aviation-related charges, and last-mile costs.
This has real strategic implications, as some companies increasingly choose alternative West African hubs to optimize costs, even when Nigeria is their primary market.
This has real strategic implications, as some companies increasingly choose alternative West African hubs to optimize costs, even when Nigeria is their primary market.
The third key issue is fragmented addressing and last-mile delivery challenges. Poor address quality leads to failed deliveries, higher return rates, and increased cost per shipment.
This is compounded by technology gaps in real-time tracking, live delivery updates, and proof of delivery, all of which directly impact customer experience and operational efficiency.
From a solutions standpoint, the biggest gains would come from deeper digitization and inter-agency integration at airports, cost rationalization through policy and infrastructure improvements, and technology-driven address validation and last-mile optimization.
Addressing these areas would significantly reduce variability, lower costs, and unlock faster, more reliable air freight growth in Nigeria.
Naijaonpoint: Based on Aramex’s operations, which cargo routes are currently the busiest, and which routes have recorded the fastest growth in recent years?
Faisal Jarmakani: In Aramex Nigeria’s air-express and air freight mix, the busiest international inbound corridors are typically Asia, North America, and the UK/Europe, with China usually the largest driver because of cross-border e-commerce and SME sourcing. The top origin countries are China, USA, UK
Domestically, Lagos is our hub that feeds the top destinations like Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Kano.
Naijaonpoint: Air freight depends heavily on coordination with other transport modes. How does Aramex integrate heavy goods vehicles, light commercial vehicles, and motorbike couriers into its air freight operations?
Faisal Jarmakani: At Aramex, we position ourselves as both a logistics integrator and a technology-enabled company, operating an asset-light model that allows us to stay highly customer-centric while scaling efficiently.
In Nigeria, our busiest air-linked cargo flows are anchored around Lagos, which serves as the primary international gateway, feeding domestic routes into major commercial and population centers such as Abuja, Port Harcourt, and Kano.
These corridors consistently carry the highest volumes because they combine international imports and exports with strong domestic demand.
To support these flows, Aramex has invested in major hubs and micro-hubs strategically located in Lagos, Ibadan, Benin, Port Harcourt, Abuja, and Kano. These facilities are operated and controlled by Aramex, enabling tighter control over service quality and turnaround times.
In terms of growth, the fastest-expanding routes are those linked to cross-border e-commerce and SME trade, particularly inbound traffic into Lagos that is then distributed through these domestic corridors.
Our model relies on deep partnerships with mid-mile and last-mile operators, which allows us to scale quickly, optimize costs, and meet rising delivery expectations without heavy asset ownership.
Naijaonpoint: Where are the biggest inefficiencies in Nigeria’s multimodal logistics chain between airports, warehousing, and last-mile delivery, and how is Aramex strengthening its warehousing and fulfilment operations to support growing e-commerce demand?
Faisal Jarmakani: One of the biggest inefficiencies in Nigeria’s multimodal logistics chain sits between airports/SeaPorts and fulfilment operations, particularly around warehousing capacity
Today, there is a strong and growing demand for e-commerce and FMCG fulfilment, but the market still faces a shortage of well-run, technology-enabled warehouses and fulfilment centres.
This gap creates friction after cargo clears the airport—shipments may arrive on time, but delays then occur due to limited storage capacity, manual processes, poor inventory visibility, or slow order processing.
This inefficiency cascades into the last mile, where delayed handoffs from warehouses increase delivery failures, raise costs, and impact customer experience. In many cases, the bottleneck is not air transport itself, but what happens immediately after cargo lands.
From our perspective, this challenge also represents one of the biggest opportunities in the Nigerian logistics market. At Aramex, we are investing heavily in warehousing and fulfilment capabilities, focusing on process discipline, staff training, and the right operational tools—to help our clients scale sustainably and meet rising consumer expectations.
By strengthening this airport-to-warehouse-to-last-mile connection, logistics providers can unlock significant efficiency gains across the entire supply chain.
Naijaonpoint: Technology plays a major role in logistics efficiency. How does Aramex use technology to improve tracking, turnaround times, and customer experience in Nigeria?
Faisal Jarmakani: Technology is central to how Aramex improves efficiency and service quality, and we focus on three things customers care about most: visibility, speed, and customer experience.
On visibility, we provide real-time tracking across the shipment journey, supported by proactive notifications and alerts. This gives customers confidence and reduces uncertainty, particularly for time-sensitive air freight and e-commerce shipments.