Travel/Tourism
Jumia, Amadeus Launch Africa’s First Flight Marketplace
By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke
Leading travel technology company, Amadeus, has partnered with Jumia for a new flights marketplace on Jumia that will be a step further towards making travel in Africa simple and affordable.
The platform aims to enable travel agents, airlines, and travel websites to bring all flight content online, to offer customers the best available prices for their flights.
Current statistics indicate that 90 percent of the flight market is still offline while only 10 percent exists online. This comes in the wake of increased flight bookings on Jumia’s flights portal, with an explosive growth of 400 percent between July 2017 and July 2018.
“Jumia is continuously investing significantly in developing innovative products for travellers and flight content providers that will enable them to revolutionize their operations and increase revenue,” says Sérgio Figueiredo, Jumia’s Head of Flights. “We understand the market and address its needs. A competitive platform will harmonize all content providers to offer low rates and fees in a bid to meet an increasing traveller demand for unbeatable services at the lowest price,” he adds.
The marketplace will also provide analytical information that flight ticket providers can use to identify new opportunities, routes and help them tailor make packages for their flight target customers.
For Omolara Adagunodo, the Managing Director of Jumia’s Hotel and Flight services in Nigeria, she said: “We have always offered the best available rates to our customers. We have already done these with hotels. Now, we want to do same with flights by becoming the first port of call for travellers looking to book affordable flights. We are, therefore, excited to be working with our partners to bring the flight market online.”
“We are delighted to be working with Jumia to deliver the online choice and marketplace experience that travellers love. Air travel is booming globally, with growth among passengers in Africa projected to outstrip that of every other region by 2035,” commented Francesca Benati, Executive Vice President for Online Travel in Western Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Travel Channels, Amadeus.
Mrs Benati added, “To meet this growing demand, Jumia has selected Amadeus ePower delivered via Web Services, which offers a mobile and tablet-friendly online booking experience. It is designed to help consumers find the best deals faster, thanks to our market-leading shopping and booking technology. I am excited about this winning partnership which will benefit travellers throughout Africa.”
Jumia benchmarks its competitive prices against the largest competitors daily. Between August and the first half of September, 341 routes have been benchmarked with a clear win over its online competitors. Moreover, 48 percent of those benchmarks, Jumia has the Best Available Rate (BAR) for the cheapest and direct flight recommendations.
Jumia considers a route benchmark as BAR, only when its price is cheaper than other competitors with more than 60 percent on the benchmarks hits.
Jumia Flights Marketplace is already the preferred sales channel for many Flight content providers and the preferred buying channel for many travellers on key routes. Currently, Africa’s aviation industry supports 6.8 million jobs and $72.5 billion in economic activity.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
About 14.12 per cent stake in Ikeja Hotel Plc has been acquired by Honeywell Group Limited, a notice on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited has revealed.
Honeywell Group took up the part of the hospitality firm through one of its affiliates known as HGL Real Estate Limited.
Ikeja Hotel, in the disclosure filed with the NGX on July 2, 2026, said the stake comprised 305,323,525 units of its equities.
“Ikeja Hotel hereby notifies the Nigerian Exchange Limited and the general public that it has received notification from HGL Real Estate Limited, an affiliate of Honeywell Group Limited, that it has acquired 305,323,525 units of Ikeja Hotel Plc’s shares, representing 14.12 per cent shareholding in the company,” the notice stated.
Ikeja Hotel is one of Nigeria’s leading hospitality investment and hotel management companies with premium hospitality assets.
It operates two leading hospitality organisations in Lagos, the Sheraton Lagos Hotel and Balmoral Convention Centre.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
About 10 hospitality establishments, including hotels and restaurants, were sealed on Wednesday by officials of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA).
The affected businesses are located in different locations in the Alimosho Local Government Area of the metropolis, Business Post learned from a statement from the agency.
It was stated that they were sealed by LASEPA for persistent violations of environmental regulations despite repeated warnings, abatement notices, and several opportunities to comply with the agency’s directives.
According to the notice, the enforcement exercise was carried out in line with the directives of the Lagos State government to ensure strict compliance with environmental laws and to safeguard public health.
The affected facilities were said to have breached various environmental regulations, including noise pollution, air pollution, unlawful discharge of untreated effluent, obstruction of official duties, among others.
LASEPA closed the premises of Granduer Meridian at Obasa Akiniyi Street, Oluwaga, Ipaja for non-compliance with the agency’s directives; Lasola (Spazio Bar), located on Ipaja Road, Fatolu Bus Stop, Ipaja, was sealed for noise pollution and non-compliance with directives; Millennium Restaurant, located at Gate Bus Stop, Ipaja, Ayobo, was shut down for non-compliance with directives; O2 Exquisite Suites & Tower on Jimoh Akinremi Street, Jimoh Bus Stop, Akowonjo, was sealed for non-compliance with directives; and Chirozz Hotel & Suites, located on Samuel Street, Akowonjo, by Vulcanizer Bus Stop, Egbeda, was closed for noise pollution and non-compliance with directives.
In addition, House 7 Hotel, located at Remi Akande Street, Egbeda, was sealed for non-compliance with LASEPA’s directives; House 48 on Isiba Oluwo Street, Egbeda, was sealed for non-compliance with directives; Exclusive Hotel, located at Ishan Kimishe, Akesan Bus Stop, was shut down by non-compliance with directives; Sabola Ventures Limited, Iocated at Km 11, LASU–Isheri Road, Igando, was shut down for operating without evidence of an Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP), and discharging untreated effluent into public drains; and City Int’l Motel, located at Chief Olu-Adegbite Street, off Oladun Street, Council Bus Stop, Idimu, was sealed for non-compliance with directives.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Emirates has become the first airline cargo carrier to deploy the Boeing 777-300ERSF passenger-to-freighter converted aircraft.
The aircraft (A6-EBK) will enter commercial service with a flight from Hong Kong to Dubai carrying over 100 tonnes of cargo, a statement from the airline operator stated.
The converted Emirates Boeing 777-300ERSF offers 100 tonnes of payload capacity and 811 m³ of cargo volume, representing a 25 per cent increase in cargo volume over the Boeing 777-F production freighter.
At 47 pallet positions, the converted aircraft also accommodates 10 additional pallet positions when compared with the Boeing 777-F production freighter, making it ideal for transporting volumetric cargo such as e-commerce goods, which currently constitute around 20 per cent of global air cargo tonnage with further growth projected in the next few years.
The converted Boeing 777-300ERSF is the sixth new freighter, following five Boeing 777-F production freighters, to join Emirates SkyCargo’s fleet since March 2026.
As part of its ambitious expansion strategy, Emirates SkyCargo will also be taking delivery of five additional Boeing 777-F aircraft as well as one additional converted Boeing 777-300ERSF by December 2026.
Emirates SkyCargo will also be introducing three additional converted Boeing 777-ERSFs into its fleet in 2027.
“The induction of the first converted Emirates Boeing 777-300ERSF into operational service represents the next step in the expansion of our fleet and operational agility.
“We are optimising our fleet assets by converting older Boeing 777-300ER passenger aircraft to meet the growing demand for air cargo capacity to transport goods rapidly across the world,” Emirates SkyCargo’s Divisional Senior Vice President, Badr Abbas, commented.
“Combined with our growing fleet of Boeing 777-F production freighters, we have already been able to scale our global freighter network from just over 40 destinations in February this year to 62 destinations currently and growing.
“We are providing our global customers with scalable cargo capacity and ultimate flexibility and connectivity when moving cargo to and through our hub in Dubai,” Abbas added.
