Cashless policy: Failed electronic transfers persist, users frustrated, FAAN works on solution to crisis

•          Minister apologises, assures policy success
•         Why contactless payments are faster-FAAN MD
•         Travellers lament delays, bottlenecks

For decades, the sound of the Nigerian airport experience was defined by the clinking of coins and the rustling of naira notes at toll gates.

But as of March 1, 2026, that sound has been replaced by the digital beep of scanners and, more recently, the frustrated honking of horns.

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has officially banned physical cash, but the policy has led to complaints of delays and gridlock that extend over 500 meters. Some motorists who paid by debit card accused toll collectors of charging N1000 instead of N500 for SUVs

From the sprawling car parks of Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) to the VIP lounges in Abuja, “Operation Go Cashless” is no longer a pilot programme—it is the law of the land.

 Like any systemic overhaul in a nation of 200 million, the transition is proving to be a high-stakes balancing act between modernisation and terminal-side chaos.

By partnering with Paystack to implement NFC-enabled “Tap and Go” cards, FAAN aims to eliminate the need for human handling of cash—a move experts predict could boost revenue by up to 75% in the first year.

By routing every kobo through the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the leakages, a polite term for petty corruption and unrecorded collections, are effectively plugged.

The Managing Director of FAAN, Mrs Olubunmi Kuku, stated that once stabilised, contactless payments are theoretically faster than counting change, reducing the time spent at access gates from minutes to seconds.

She disclosed that as the system stabilises, the success of “Operation Go Cashless” won’t be measured by how much money is collected, but by how quickly a traveller can move from the toll gate to the boarding gate without reaching for their wallet.

Despite the lofty goals, the rollout on Sunday, March 1, was anything but seamless. At the MMIA toll gate in Lagos, queues stretched back several metres, with some travellers reportedly abandoning their cars to catch flights on the back of Okadas (commercial motorcycles) that charged a 200% premium.

While FAAN insists that cards are available, on-the-spot registration at the gates has created a massive bottleneck. Many travellers arrived unaware that their standard bank cards might struggle with the specific NFC terminals.

Experts said frequent flyers might find the system easy, but occasional travellers from rural areas or older citizens often find the mandatory registration process daunting.

Reports of failed electronic transfers and slow POS confirmations turned the 30-second tap into a 20-minute ordeal for many motorists.

In the days leading up to the launch, viral scam alerts circulated on WhatsApp, claiming the Go-Cashless SMS notifications were phishing links designed to drain bank accounts—a claim FAAN had to frantically debunk.

Olu Majekodunmi, a frequent traveller stranded in the Sunday gridlock, said, “Nobody is against progress, but you don’t introduce a system that prevents people from catching flights”.

He said airports are time-sensitive environments; every minute of a glitch is a missed connection.

He further stated that effective change management requires public education campaigns, multiple payment options during the transition, robust system testing under peak conditions, and visible on-the-ground support teams to guide users.

Digital transformation at critical infrastructure points such as airports, he said, must be frictionless, resilient, and customer-centric, with efficiency as the goal.

FAAN has appealed for patience and deployed task forces in branded shirts to assist with gate-side registrations.

The authority maintained that the current “small inconvenience” is a necessary price for a world-class experience tomorrow.

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, apologised to Nigerians for the temporary gridlocks at FAAN airport gates nationwide following the full implementation of the cashless toll policy.

He said, “I am using this occasion to apologise to Nigerians for all the gridlocks they faced today (Sunday) across the country at the gates of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria. Today, we went cashless in line with the policy of this government to eliminate the collection of cash at toll gates.”

He explained that the move aligns with the Federal Government’s broader reforms to enhance transparency and revenue optimisation, noting that no previous administration had fully implemented the cashless gate system.

“The President gave us an ultimatum, and today we went cashless at all the gates. We have been announcing this before now — please get your FAAN cards so that when you get to the gate, you just tap and the barrier opens. If you go to any FAAN gate and you want to pay cash, I am sorry, you’re going to experience embarrassment and gridlock because nobody will allow you to pass through.”

While acknowledging the initial challenges, the Minister urged Nigerians to embrace the reform in the interest of improved service delivery and enhanced revenue generation for national development.

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Wole Shadare