"Nigeria or not, I don't believe ATC would knowingly clear an a/c to land on an unserviceable runway." itain'tnecessarilyso!!
Flew for five years out of Lagos Avman, ATC is still in the stone age, it's a two-week course for them just to learn to key the mike at the right time. Worst incident for me was, in conditions of low vis, cleared into position for T/O in a Dakota (DC-3) and looked up to see a UTA four-holer doing a low overshoot/goaround. They had simultaneously cleared us to take off and him to land, perhaps to save time?? Pretty clever!! The UTA Capt. filed papers with everyone in authority he could think of, I blessed the man and shut up--I lived there!! Had visions of what a DC-3 might look like after its bigger DC-8 sibling did a full body press on it. Also flew with indigenous co-pilot trainees (There are 17 states in the country and 21 major local dialects). Unless the copilot and atc controller were from the same area, they could not always understand one another--both speaking English!! WeatherWISE, three months of the year, during the low-vis dusty conditions of the annual hamutan, a pilot who regularly uses Nigerian airports had better be big on situational awareness and have a strong survival instinct. You guys know the National Motto there?? "If you can't beat 'em, eat 'em!!"