Angola's new president has $500m bill from world airlines

Angola still owes more than $500m to international airlines including Emirates, Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, one of many items in the in-tray of new President Joao Lourenco as he tries to revive the economy. Africa’s second-biggest oil producer is withholding repatriation of the funds amid a persistent shortage of foreign-currency reserves, according to the IATA. Alexandre de Juniac, the industry body’s CEO, has this week held meetings with Angolan government ministries about how to recover the cash, IATA said. Airlines have been struggling to get ticket revenue out of oil dependent countries such as Angola, Nigeria and Egypt after a 2014 collapse in the crude price dried up reserves of dollars, euros and other major currencies. Emirates said in October 2016 it could scrap flights to some African locations, and followed up on the threat in July when it cut journeys to Luanda, the Angola capital, from Dubai to three a week from five. The lingering problem is one of a number of headaches for Lourenco, who became president in September after ending the almost four-decade rule of Jose Eduardo dos Santos. He’s vowed to fight corruption and end state monopolies, and has earned the nickname “relentless remover” after firing two of dos Santos’s children from senior positions at the state oil company and sovereign wealth fund. Other airlines waiting for cash are Ethiopian Airlines, South African Airways, Air Namibia and Air Brussels. <br/>