Doyin Abiola, MKO’s Widow and Nigeria’s First Female Newspaper Editor, Dies at 82

 

The first former female Managing Director and Publisher of the National Concord newspapers, and wife of the late Chief MKO Abiola, Dr. Doyin Abiola, has passed.

She died yesterday at about 9.15pm. She was aged 82 years. She was also the first Nigerian woman to be an editor of a Nigerian national daily.

The deceased started work with the Daily Sketch Newspaper in 1969, during which she started a column in the newspaper called Tiro, where she addressed sundry issues of public concern, including gender matters.

In 1970, she left Daily Sketch Newspaper and traveled to the United States to pursue a master’s degree programme in Journalism.

Upon her return, she was employed as a Features Writer at Daily Times and rose to become the Group Features Editor. She later went to New York and obtained a PhD in communications and political science in 1979.

After her PhD programme, she returned to the Daily Times and was deployed to the editorial board, where she worked with other experienced editors like Stanley Macebuh, Dele Giwa and Amma Ogan.

It was, however, to be a short stay as the newly formed National Concord newspaper invited her to be its pioneer daily editor. She then moved to be an editor of National Concord.

She was promoted to be the Managing director/editor-in-chief in 1986, and became the first Nigerian woman to become the editor in chief of a daily newspaper in Nigeria.

Mrs. Abiola’s career at National Concord Newspaper spanned three decades. She also served in various capacities in the media industry in Nigeria.

She was the Chairperson of the Awards Nominating panel at the first Nigerian Media Merit Award to be hosted in the country, and also a member of Advisory Council, Faculty of Social and Management Sciences, Ogun State University.

She was a recipient of Diamond Awards for Media Excellence (DAME) for her lifelong devotion to advancing the frontiers of knowledge and strengthening the media as a pillar of democracy.

The Trustees of DAME unanimously approved her selection as a recipient of its Lifetime Achievement Award at the 24th DAME Ceremony.

She was the second woman to receive a DAME Lifetime Achievement Award after Mrs. Omobola Onajide) and was later granted Eisenhower Fellowship in 1986.

Arise

Nigerian customs seize over 1,600 parrots and canaries in major wildlife trafficking bust

Nigerian customs said they seized more than 1,600 parrots and canaries that were being transported from Lagos international airport to Kuwait without a permit, in one the biggest wildlife trafficking seizures in years.

The seizure is a sign of positive change in the fight against illegal wildlife trade, as Nigeria is a major hub in the global trade in protected species, Mark Ofua, West Africa spokesperson for the international non-governmental organization Wild Africa, told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Customs agents seized ring-necked parakeets and green and yellow fronted canaries, two protected species, at the airport on July 31, the agency said in a statement late Monday.

Nigeria is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES.

The statement by the customs agency said the shipment were not accompanied by a CITES permit and other documents required to prove the birds were legally obtained.

Nigerian customs said an investigation to find those responsible for the illicit cargo is ongoing, and that the birds will be handed to the National Parks Service for rehabilitation and release into the wild.

Ofua said Nigeria’s porous borders, widespread corruption, and weak enforcement make it a key transit point for ivory, pangolin scales and other wildlife products destined for Asia.

Global illegal wildlife trafficking is valued at $8–10 billion annually, he added.

By Ope Adetayo, AP

Nigerian fishermen hold fast to tradition amid rapid urban growth

 

In the shadow of luxury apartment buildings under construction on the shores of the reservoir, Maniru Umar dips his oar into the water, pushing his shallow, wooden canoe forward through thick reeds.

Out of a mix of pride and necessity, Umar and his fellow fishermen in Nigeria's rapidly expanding capital still do things the old-fashioned way, two-men crews working in a deft balancing act as they throw out nets over the side.

"I grew up fishing with my father," said Umar, 20. "As long as I'm still fishing, I'll teach my son how to fish as well."

Across Africa's most populous nation, city living isn't easy. Despite vibrant tech, oil and finance sectors, Nigeria's graft-plagued economy has long struggled to provide enough jobs for its more than 200 million-strong population.

As the country rapidly urbanises, passing down their craft has become both a cultural lifeline and economic lifeline for Abuja's fishermen.

"We only focus on primary and secondary school," said Kabir Suleiman, chairman of the fishermen's village, a settlement of one-room shacks tucked on the rocky shore of Jabi Lake, around 10 minutes drive from downtown Abuja.

Sending children to university is seen as a waste, he said, in a country where graduates often trickle back into the informal sector anyway.

According to the World Bank, Nigeria only tipped into a majority-urban population in 2019 – a marker the United States passed about a century ago.

On the whole, only sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia have yet to tip from majority rural to majority urban – and into the drastically different economy that shift brings.

"Nigeria could do a better job of utilising the intellectual, the physical, the behavioural strength of its young and urbanising population," said Ikemesit Effiong, a partner at SBM Intelligence, a Lagos-based consultancy, noting more than half the country is under the age of 30.

Nigeria's urban poor are increasingly made up of people moving from the countryside, he said – but due to lacklustre public service delivery, they're often unable to access the fruits of urbanisation, from paved roads to clinics and schools.

Evicted for luxury housing

The 200 or so fishermen's relationship with Abuja's growth has been mixed.

There are far more people to sell fish to in the capital than in the countryside. The city is also safe from "bandits", armed kidnapping gangs that rove the rural hinterlands.

It was urbanisation that brought them here in the first place: the government built the Jabi reservoir dam in 1981. Fishermen from the countryside soon followed.

But regular check-ins from the agriculture ministry have been replaced by the government selling off plots of land for development, Suleiman said.

Nigeria's staggering economic inequality looms over them as luxury housing goes up just feet away from their settlement, which has been displaced twice in three years.

Construction workers have at times cleared paddies and other vegetation – key fish habitats, Umar said.

But he also wondered if the growing population of fishermen is leaving less fish to catch.

Modern boats dot the lake, rented out by revellers keen for a cruise.

In recent weeks, the fishermen say, surveyors have come to the village, saying it too is being sought by property developers.

Next door is a new restaurant, gated off from the settlement.

Above the entrance gate is a sign: Fisherman Village, Jabi Lake Resort.

The actual Jabi fishermen, meanwhile, have their sights set on self-preservation, no matter what.

"This is our job," Suleiman said. "This is our business, this is the business our fathers have been doing, our parents have been doing."

France24

Video - Revived railway in Nigeria’s Plateau State eases commuter costs

In Nigeria’s north-central Plateau State, a refurbished intra-city rail line is providing relief to residents grappling with soaring fuel prices following the 2023 petrol subsidy removal. Launched by local authorities, the revitalized rail system offers affordable commuting options, boosting mobility and supporting the local economy.

CGTN Africa

Video - Lagos launches major food security drive

Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city, has launched a $327 million "Produce for Lagos" initiative, to cut food waste and boost local supply. The program links farmers across Nigeria directly to Lagos markets with improved logistics and guaranteed offtake. Authorities hope it will reduce post-harvest losses, cut import reliance, while creating thousands of jobs.

CGTN Africa