14-Year-Old Stowaway Found At Lagos Airport Was Tired Of Nigeria

A 14-year-old stowaway who was found unconscious inside one of the airlines of United Nigeria at the domestic wing of the Lagos airport was tired of Nigeria and wanted to travel out, the operators of the MMA2 terminal, Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, has said.

A statement by Head of Media of the company, Oluwatosin Onalaja, on Sunday, identified the stowaway (name withheld) as an orphan from Kwara State but based in the Badagry area of Lagos.

“At around 6:10a.m. on Sunday 4th September 2022, United Nigeria (the Airline) informed Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd (BASL) of a 14-year-old stowaway boy found unconscious inside one of their aircraft,” Onalaja said in the statement.

The spokesman for the company said the boy told investigators that he gained access into the airside through an opening at Ile- Zik, the perimeter fence along Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.

He said the orphan passed through General Aviation Terminal, Air Force hanger and walked down to MMA2 where he hid himself at the Apron. “He saw staff on duty at GAT and Air Force hanger but dodged them and passed through the bush,” the statement noted.

“The incident boy was brought out of the aircraft and taken to the MMA2 clinic for first aid medical attention. He was later transferred for further treatment to the FAAN clinic where he regained consciousness at about 10:20a.m.

“We are an active part of the ongoing investigation to ascertain exactly what happened and to aid the prevention of any such occurrence in the future,” Onalaja said.

According to the statement, the boy has been discharged from the hospital and taken to the FAAN Crime Office at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport along with United Nigeria Security Guard for further questioning.

By Kayode Oyero 

ChannelsTV

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More children out of school in Nigeria than in war-torn Ethiopia, Congo

A report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), has put the number of out of school children in Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari at a whopping 20.2 million.

The report published on Thursday on the website of the United Nations agency, noted that out of an estimated 244 million out-of-school children around the world, Nigeria alone accounts for over 20 million of the total, which is above 10 percent of the entire figure.

According to the figure, Nigeria has more out-of-school children than war-torn African countries like Ethiopia with 10.5 million out-of-school children, Congo with 5.9 million and drought-ravaged Kenya which has only 1.8 million out-of-school children.

An accompanying statement by UNESCO’s Director-General, Audrey Azoulay, noted that sub-Saharan Africa remains the region with the most children and youths out of school, with a total of 98 million children with Nigeria churning up about 47 percent of the figure.

“It is also the only region where this number is increasing: out-of-school rates are falling more slowly than the rate at which the school-age population is growing.

“Important data gaps have been filled in countries that have large out of school numbers but where no administrative data of good quality has been available for over a decade, such as Nigeria which has an estimated 20.2 million children and youth out of school, Ethiopia (10.5 million), the Democratic Republic of Congo (5.9 million) and Kenya (1.8 million),” the UNESCO chief said.

“In view of these results, the objective of quality education for all by 2030, set by the United Nations, risks not being achieved. We need a global mobilization to place education at the top of the international agenda,” Azoulay added.

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Dubai's Emirates to resume Lagos flights after Nigeria releases funds

Emirates will resume some flights to Nigeria this month after the Central Bank of Nigeria released a portion funds the Dubai airline had earned in the country but had not been able to repatriate.

An airline spokesperson said flights to Lagos will resume from Sept. 11, though it is not possible to resume flights to Abuja in September because resources had already been stood down.

"We continue to engage with the Nigerian authorities to ensure the repatriation of our outstanding and future funds may continue without hindrance," the spokesperson said, welcoming what it said was the central bank's move to release a portion of its blocked funds.

The airline did not say how much money had been released or how much remained blocked.

The state-owned carrier last month announced it was suspending all flights to Nigeria from Sept. 1 after it said it had made no progress with local authorities to access its funds.

Nigeria's Central Bank later said it had released $265 million to airlines to settle outstanding ticket sales.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA), the largest airline group, had said that by July Nigeria was blocking airlines from repatriating $464 million in revenue.

By Alexander Cornwell

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