Business

NCAA Declares 44,712 Luggages Missing On Nigeria’s Airlines

Published

7 years ago

March 11, 2019

At least, 44,712 luggages were declared missing among 29 local and international airlines that operated in Nigeria’s airports in 2018, a report obtained from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has revealed.
The report further revealed that in 2018, there were at least 15,645 flights operated on international routes, while another 59,818 flights were operated on the domestic routes within the period.
NCAA stated that its Consumer Protection Directorate (CPD) received a total number of 161 complaints from air travellers in 2018 with 99 of such complaints resolved by the directorate.
The breakdown indicated that the CPD received 74 complaints on the international scene and resolved 36 of such, while 87 complaints were received from the local operating airlines with 63 of such resolved within the period under review.
According to the report, Air France led the pack with 6,175 missing luggage on the international scene, while Air Peace led the other eight indigenous carriers on the local scene with 66 missing baggage within the period under review.
The report, however, indicated that 41,498 of the missing luggage were later retrieved by their owners, while the other 3,214 luggage could not be recovered by the airport authorities.
Apart from Air France with the 6,175 missing luggage, on the international scene, other airlines involved in missing luggage were KLM with 5,088; African World Airlines, 308; Air Cote d’Ivoire, 670; Air Namibia, 221; Arik Air, 172 and Asky, 1,167;
Continuing : British Airways, 4,273; Cam Air-Co, 109; Cronos Air, one; Delta Air Lines, 3,473; Egypt Air, 2,448; Emirates, 1,725; Ethiopian Air, 1,946; Etihad, 472; Kenya, 1,152, and Lufthansa with 3,750 missing luggage.
Others were Mediana, 218; Med-View, 25; Middle East, eight; Mid Africa, 112; Qatar Airways, 1,238; Royal Air Maroc, 2,624; RwandAir, 1,234; South African Airways, 762; Turkish Air, 4,348, and Virgin Atlantic had 1,166 missing luggage within the period.
On the local scene, out of the eight local airlines that operated within the period under review, seven out of them, except Azman Air, had issues of missing baggage in 2018.
According to the report, Air Peace had 66 missing luggage with 63 of them recovered within the period, while Arik Air recorded 59 missing luggage with 55 of them recovered.
Also, Dana Air had 34 of its air passengers’ luggage missing with 32 of them recovered between January and December, 2018; Aero Contractors had six missing luggage with all of them recovered within the period.
Besides, Max Air recorded four missing luggage with all of them recovered, while Med-View and Overland Airways also had two luggage of their passengers missing within the period, but were later recovered.
In all, 173 luggage were declared missing in 2018, but 164 of them were recovered with nine not returned to their owners till date, according to the report.
Besides, the report indicated that in 2018, no fewer than 734 flights were cancelled among operating airlines, international and local.
Of these numbers, 190 were cancelled on the international scene, while a massive 544 occurred within the local airlines.
In all, there were 85 air returns in 2018; 25 among international carriers and 60 among the local operating airlines.
According to NCAA, all the operating airlines recorded 70 overbooking between January and December 2018 with international airline recording 11, while 58 of such occurred among the eight local carriers.
The regulatory agency in the report further stated that air travellers on local and international scenes experienced 92 numbers of luggage pilfering across the airport with 63 of such recorded on the international scene, while the other 29 was on the local scene.
The regulatory agency’s report emphasised that in the past year, all the international airports in the country recorded a total number of 1,994,099 in-bound passengers and 2,084,980 out-bound passengers, thereby bringing the total of international passengers to 4,079,079.
On the local scene, a total number of 10,092,643 were in-bound and out-bound passengers.
Of these numbers, 5,033,669 were in-bound passengers, while the other 5,058,974 were out-bound passengers.
The record showed that the entire Nigerian airports recorded 14,171,722 passenger movements in the past year.

Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Business

FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

Published

5 days ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.

Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.

According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.

Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.

“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.

The minister noted the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.

According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.

Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.

He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.

“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.

He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.

“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.

Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.

“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.

“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.

She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.

Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).

“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.

“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.

Business

Customs Impound N2.35bn Cocaine, 15 Trailers of Rice

Published

5 days ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Operations Unit (FOU) Zone ‘A’, Ikeja, has impound Cocaine Substance valued at ?2.35 billion alongside 15 trailer-loads of foreign rice and a wide range of contraband across the South-West.

This was disclosed to Newsmen during a press briefing in Lagos by Controller of the Unit, Comptroller Gambo Aliyu,

Aliyu revealed that the seizures were made over an eight-week period, underscoring intensified enforcement efforts.

According to him, operatives foiled 473 smuggling attempts within the period, leading to the confiscation of 8,794 bags of 50kg foreign rice, 22 used vehicles, 328 bales of used clothing, and 31,705 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).

He said other seized items include a Mercedes-Benz vehicle and various food products such as poultry, vegetable oil, spaghetti, and sugar.

Aliyu clarified that the rice displayed at the briefing represented cumulative interceptions made at different locations and times across the zone.

“All the rice you see here are accumulative of seizures carried out at different places, at different times, and through different interdictions,”

Beyond the economic implications, the Comptroller emphasized the social cost of drug trafficking, warning that narcotics continue to destroy families and fuel criminal activities.

“It may surprise you to know that many homes are broken due to drugs.

” Our mandate is to cut off the supply chain, and that is exactly what we are doing,”.

Similarly Customs operatives at the Gbaji outpost intercepted a 71 year-old suspect along the Lagos-Abidjan corridor with 6.35kg of cocaine concealed in a Toyota Highlander.

The drugs, comprising both powdered and crystalline forms, were valued at ?2.35 billion.

Under a special enforcement drive, codenamed “Operation Hawk,” the unit also seized 3,340 parcels of synthetic cannabis, popularly known as “Ghanaian loud,” weighing 1,540kg.

The substances, along with three suspects, have been handed over to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for further investigation and prosecution.

In a related operation, officers intercepted four cylinders of mercury hidden in a vehicle along the same corridor. Aliyu described the substance as hazardous and subject to international regulation.

Overall, the Duty Paid Value (DPV) of the seizures stands at approximately ?5.5 billion, reflecting the scale of enforcement activities.

Additionally, the unit recovered ?97.7 million through Demand Notices issued on under-declared consignments.

Aliyu reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to deploying modern technology—including geospatial intelligence, drone surveillance, and real-time tracking—to strengthen border security and clamp down on smuggling networks.

CHINEDU WOSU

Business

Dangote, Nicolai Tangen To Partner In strategic sectors

Published

5 days ago

May 13, 2026

The Tide

Chief Executive Officer of Norges Bank Investment Management, Nicolai Tangen ( manager of the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund) has expressed interest in partnering with Dangote Group to expand investments across Africa, particularly in strategic sectors such as power, energy, renewable energy, agriculture, fertiliser and cement.

This was made known during a meeting of Chief Executive of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote with Nicolai Tangen, the manager of Norwegian investment institution (with assets estimated at about $1.9 trillion) .

Also present at the meeting were Svein Tore Holsether, Chief Executive Officer of Yara International, and Terje Pilskog, Chief Executive Officer of Scatec, a global renewable energy company.

The engagement reflects growing international investor confidence in Africa’s industrial and infrastructure potential, as well as the increasing role of indigenous conglomerates such as Dangote Group in driving large-scale economic transformation across the continent.

Industry observers say the proposed collaboration could create significant opportunities for investments in critical sectors linked to energy transition, food security, industrialisation and infrastructure development.

The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, regarded as one of the world’s leading institutional investors, has in recent years increased its focus on emerging markets, with Africa seen as a major frontier for long-term investment and value creation.

Analysts believe a partnership between Norges Bank Investment Management and Dangote Group could unlock substantial capital flows into infrastructure and industrial projects across Africa, helping to accelerate economic growth and regional integration.

Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos