Africlaim has the vision of helping air passengers all around Africa understand and enforce their right to flight delay compensation - Chibuzor Ofulue, Co-founder Africlaim.

‘I still have lots of hope in my country  Nigeria’

He is a Loughborough University graduate in International Business and right now, he is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Air Transport Management. He is also the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Africlaim. His business acumen and resourcefulness have greatly contributed to the success of Africlaim and other start-ups he has been involved in over the years. Welcome to the world of Chibuzo Ofulue, a young optimistic Nigerian who has great hopes in his country Nigeria. He firmly believes that things will be okay in the nearest future.

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As a co-founder of  Africlaim, what is it all about?

Africlaim was founded in 2016 with the vision of helping air passengers all around Africa understand and enforce their right to flight delay compensation – which is usually neglected around this part of the world. Our mission is to make claiming flight delay compensation a completely hassle-free process for our customers, while also offering the best pay-out rates worldwide. With Africlaim, you get a real value for your money & time. Africlaim is the first of its kind in Africa. Our website is www.africlaim.com. It is a platform designed to make the claim filing process much easier for passenger involved in delayed, cancelled and overbook flights. Passengers may be entitled to as much as $700 for their flight delays.

 Can Africlaim succeed in our country?

Yes, it can work in any country, Nigeria inclusive. Flight delays happen worldwide, so It can work in any country where you have an airport.

But you know Nigeria is unique when it comes to such, don’t you think so?

Yes, this country is unique because it offers a great amount of challenges. Hence, it does not  work as easy as it does in other places such as Europe. So, the way the company operates, there is a law that protects passengers. It is an European Union Law. It entitles passengers to about 600 Euros in flight delay compensation whenever they are involved in any flight disruption that meets a certain criteria.

How does this law cover Nigerians?

The law covers you if your flight took off or landed in the EU, or your flight was with an EU airline. For instance, if you were delayed on a flight from the United Kingdom to Nigeria, you are fully eligible for compensation as long as your delay meets some certain requirements. Or if you are involved on a delayed departure out of Nigeria on an EU airline (such as British Airways or Virgin Atlantic), you’re also covered by the law. It’s really that simple! The law is not specific to your citizenship. It is all about if your situation meets with  the criteria of compensation. So, yes it can work in Nigeria, it can cover Nigerians. (He nods)

Have you had challenges with Nigerian airlines with regards to Africlaim?

 Yes, we have had previous experiences with Nigerian airline carriers  like Arik and Medview Airlines. They tend to make the process lengthier and more difficult. it’s not easy dealing with fellow Nigerian companies. So, it can work but it will take just a longer process.

Now as a young Nigerian, do you have hope in this country?

Yes! A lot of hope!

Why? Even with the ways that things are going on?

What Nigeria is going through now, other countries have gone through it before. Our development as a country, I would say, has just been delayed a bit longer. So, there are just some elements that we hope will pass through with time. It’s just that strong sense of indiscipline in the country. Hopefully, with the whole era of globalization, the next generation of let me say leaders would learn from other parts of the world because now let me say the borders between countries have been virtually eliminated. Like now as a Nigerian, you know what is going on so well in America, you know what is going on in the whole world. So, with time, it will get better. I feel like the main thing holding the country back is lack of education. But a lot of people blame technology, light, water to mention but a few. But to me I think the main thing is education. If education is fixed, then people will learn how to do the right thing. Remember that education does not just mean learning stuff at school. It also includes learning how to be a responsible person or a better person for the society. So, once the average Nigerian or the average rate of literacy in the country is improved, there is a lot of hope. You can see  these days a lot of improvement in athletics and social life. This is simply because of influences from the western world. Like people are trying to do things in a better way. So, there is hope that things will be better in Nigeria. My hope in Nigeria has not waned.

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