Federal Republic of Nigeria
|
||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Motto: "Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress" | ||||||
Anthem: Arise, O Compatriots |
||||||
Location of Nigeria (dark blue) – in Africa (light blue & dark grey) |
||||||
Capital | Abuja | |||||
Largest city | Lagos | |||||
Official languages | English | |||||
Major languages |
|
|||||
Other languages[1] | List
|
|||||
Ethnic groups (2013[2]) | ||||||
Demonym | Nigerian | |||||
Government | Federal presidential republic | |||||
- | President | Goodluck Jonathan | ||||
- | Vice-President | Namadi Sambo | ||||
Legislature | National Assembly | |||||
- | Upper house | Senate | ||||
- | Lower house | House of Representatives | ||||
Independence from the United Kingdom | ||||||
- | Unification of Southern and Northern Nigeria | 1914 | ||||
- | Declared and recognised | 1 October 1960 | ||||
- | Republic declared | 1 October 1963 | ||||
Area | ||||||
- | Total | 923,768 km2 (32nd) 356,667 sq mi |
||||
- | Water (%) | 1.4 | ||||
Population | ||||||
- | 2013 estimate | 174,507,539[6] (7th) | ||||
- | 2006 census | 140,431,790 | ||||
- | Density | 188.9/km2 (71st) 489.3/sq mi |
||||
GDP (PPP) | 2014 estimate | |||||
- | Total | $1.058 trillion[7] (20th) | ||||
- | Per capita | $6,082[7] (124th) | ||||
GDP (nominal) | 2014 estimate | |||||
- | Total | $594.257 billion[7] (21st) | ||||
- | Per capita | $3,416[7] (118th) | ||||
Gini (2010) | 48.8[8] high |
|||||
HDI (2013) | 0.504[9] low · 152nd |
|||||
Currency | Naira (₦) (NGN ) |
|||||
Time zone | WAT (UTC+1) | |||||
- | Summer (DST) | not observed (UTC+1) | ||||
Drives on the | right | |||||
Calling code | +234 | |||||
Internet TLD | .ng |
Nigeria /naɪˈdʒɪəriə/, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Nigeria is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in the north. Its coast in the south lies on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean.
Present-day Nigeria has been the site of numerous kingdoms and tribal states spanning over a millennium. The modern state has its origins in British colonization during the late 19th to early 20th centuries, with the merging of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate. During the colonial period, the British set up administrative and legal structures whilst retaining traditional chiefdoms. Nigeria achieved independence in 1960, but plunged into a two-year civil war several years later. It has since alternated between democratically-elected civilian governments and military dictatorships, with its 2011 presidential elections being viewed as the first to be conducted reasonably freely and fairly.[10]
Nigeria is often referred to as the "Giant of Africa", owing to its large population and economy.[11] With approximately 174 million inhabitants, Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and the seventh most populous country in the world. Nigeria has one of the largest populations of youth in the world.[12][13] The country is inhabited by over 500 ethnic groups, of which the three largest are the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba. Regarding religion, Nigeria is divided roughly in half between Christians, who live mostly in the southern and central parts of the country, and Muslims, concentrated mostly in the northern and southwestern regions. A minority of the population practice religions indigenous to Nigeria, such as those native to Igbo and Yoruba peoples.
In 2014, Nigeria's economy (GDP) became the largest in Africa, worth more than $500 billion, and overtook South Africa to become the world's 21st largest economy.[14][15] Furthermore, the debt-to-GDP ratio is only 11 percent (8 percent below the 2012 ratio).[16] By 2050, Nigeria is expected to become one of the world's top 20 economies.[17] The country's oil reserves have played a major role in its growing wealth and influence. Nigeria is considered to be an emerging market by the World Bank[18] and has been identified as a regional power in Africa.[17][19][20] It is also a member of the MINT group of countries, which are widely seen as the globe's next "BRIC-like" economies. It is also listed among the "Next Eleven" economies set to become among the biggest in the world. Nigeria is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the African Union, OPEC, and the United Nations among other international organizations.
Since 2002, the North East of the country has seen sectarian violence by Boko Haram, an Islamist movement that seeks to abolish the secular system of government and establish Sharia law in the country.[21][22] Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in May 2014 claimed that Boko Haram attacks have left at least 12,000 people dead and 8,000 people crippled.[23] At the same time, neighboring countries, Benin, Chad, Cameroon and Niger joined Nigeria in a united effort to combat Boko Haram in the aftermath of a world media highlighted kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls and the spread of Boko Haram attacks to these countries.[24]
Etymology[]
The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British journalist Flora Shaw, who later married Baron Frederick Lugard, a British colonial administrator. The origin of the name Niger, which originally applied only to the middle reaches of the Niger River, is uncertain. The word is likely an alteration of the Tuareg name egerew n-igerewen used by inhabitants along the middle reaches of the river around Timbuktu prior to 19th-century European colonialism.[25][26]
History[]
Early (500 B.C.-1500)[]
The Nok people of Northern Nigeria produced the earliest terracotta sculptures found in the country.[27] The Nok civilization flourished between 500 B.C. and 200 A.D.[28] In the northern part of the country, Kano and Katsina have a recorded history dating to around 999 AD. Hausa kingdoms and the Kanem-Bornu Empire prospered as trade posts between North and West Africa.
The Yoruba kingdoms of Ife and Oyo in southwestern Nigeria became prominent in the 12th[29][30] and 14th[31] centuries, respectively. The oldest signs of human settlement at Ife's current site date back to the 9th century,[29] and its material culture includes terracotta and bronze figures.
Oyo, at its territorial zenith in the late 17th to early 18th centuries, extended its influence from western Nigeria to modern-day Togo. The Edo Kingdom of Benin is located in southwestern Nigeria. Benin's power lasted between the 15th and 19th centuries. Their dominance reached as far as the city of Eko (an Edo name later changed to Lagos by the Portuguese) and further.[32]
The Kingdom of Nri of the Igbo people consolidated in the 10th century and continued until it lost its sovereignty to the British in 1911.[33][34] Nri was ruled by the Eze Nri, and the city of Nri is considered to be the foundation of Igbo culture. Nri and Aguleri, where the Igbo creation myth originates, are in the territory of the Umeuri clan. Members of the clan trace their lineages back to the patriarchal king-figure Eri.[35] In West Africa, the oldest bronzes made using the lost-wax process were from Igbo Ukwu, a city under Nri influence.[33]
Middle Ages (1500–1800)[]
At the beginning of the 19th century, Usman dan Fodio directed a successful jihad and created and led the centralised Fulani Empire (also known as the Sokoto Caliphate). The territory controlled by the resultant state included much of modern-day northern and central Nigeria; it lasted until the 1903 break-up of the Empire into various European colonies.
For centuries, various peoples in modern-day Nigeria traded overland with traders from North Africa. Cities in the area became regional centers in a broad network of trade routes that spanned western, central and northern Africa. In the 16th century, Spanish and Portuguese explorers were the first Europeans to begin significant, direct trade with peoples of modern-day Nigeria, at the port they named Lagos and in Calabar. Europeans traded goods with peoples at the coast; coastal trade with Europeans also marked the beginnings of the Atlantic slave trade.
Traditionally, peoples captured in war were made slaves by the conquerors. Usually, the captives were taken back to the conquerors' territory as forced labor; after time, they were sometimes acculturated and absorbed into the conquerors' society.
Slavery also existed in the territories comprising modern-day Nigeria;.[36] its scope was broadest towards the end of the 19th century. According to the Encyclopedia of African History, "It is estimated that by the 1890s the largest slave population of the world, about 2 million people, was concentrated in the territories of the Sokoto Caliphate. The use of slave labor was extensive, especially in agriculture."[37]
A changing legal imperative (transatlantic slave trade outlawed by Britain in 1807) and economic imperative (a desire for political and social stability) led most European powers to support widespread cultivation of agricultural products, such as the palm, for use in European industry.
British Nigeria (1800–1960)[]
The slave trade was engaged in by European state and non-state actors such as Great Britain, the Netherlands, Portugal and private companies, as well as various African states and non-state actors. With rising anti-slavery sentiment at home and changing economic realities, Great Britain outlawed the international slave trade in 1807. Following the Napoleonic Wars, Great Britain established the West Africa Squadron in an attempt to halt the international traffic in slaves.[38] It stopped ships of other nations that were leaving the African coast with slaves; the seized slaves were taken to Freetown, a colony in West Africa originally established for the resettlement of freed slaves from Britain.
In 1885, British claims to a West African sphere of influence received recognition from other European nations. The following year, it chartered the Royal Niger Company under the leadership of Sir George Taubman Goldie. In 1900 the company's territory came under the control of the British government, which moved to consolidate its hold over the area of modern Nigeria. On 1 January 1901, Nigeria became a British protectorate, and part of the British Empire, the foremost world power at the time. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the independent kingdoms of what would become Nigeria fought a number of conflicts against the British Empire's efforts to expand its territory. By war, the British conquered Benin in 1897, and, in the Anglo-Aro War (1901–1902), defeated other opponents. The restraint or conquest of these states opened up the Niger area to British rule.
In 1914, the British formally united the Niger area as the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Administratively, Nigeria remain divided into the northern and southern Protectorates and Lagos Colony. Inhabitants of the southern region sustained more interaction, economic and cultural, with the British and other Europeans owing to the coastal economy.
Christian missions established Western educational institutions in the Protectorates. Under Britain's policy of indirect rule and validation of Islamic tradition, the Crown did not encourage the operation of Christian missions in the northern, Islamic part of the country.[40] Some children of the southern elite went to Great Britain to pursue higher education. By independence in 1960, regional differences in "modern" educational access were marked. The legacy, though less pronounced, continues to the present-day. Imbalances between North and South were expressed in Nigeria's political life as well. For instance, northern Nigeria did not outlaw slavery until 1936 whilst in other parts of Nigeria slavery was abolished soon after colonialism.[41]
Following World War II, in response to the growth of Nigerian nationalism and demands for independence, successive constitutions legislated by the British government moved Nigeria toward self-government on a representative and increasingly federal basis. By the middle of the 20th century, a great wave for independence was sweeping across Africa. Nigeria achieved independence in 1960.
Independence (1960)[]
On 1 October 1960, Nigeria gained its independence from the United Kingdom. Nigeria's government was a coalition of conservative parties: the Nigerian People's Congress (NPC), a party dominated by Northerners and those of the Islamic faith, and the Igbo and Christian-dominated National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) led by Nnamdi Azikiwe. Azikiwe became Nigeria's maiden Governor-General in 1960. The opposition comprised the comparatively liberal Action Group (AG), which was largely dominated by the Yoruba and led by Obafemi Awolowo.[42] The cultural and political differences between Nigeria's dominant ethnic groups – the Hausa ('Northerners'), Igbo ('Easterners') and Yoruba ('Westerners') – were sharp.
An imbalance was created in the polity by the result of the 1961 plebiscite. Southern Cameroon opted to join the Republic of Cameroon while Northern Cameroons chose to remain in Nigeria. The northern part of the country was now far larger than the southern part. In 1963, the nation established a Federal Republic, with Azikiwe as its first president. When elections were held in 1965, the Nigerian National Democratic Party came to power in Nigeria's Western Region.
Civil war (1967–1970)[]
The disquilibrium and perceived corruption of the electoral and political process led, in 1966, to several back-to-back military coups. The first coup was in January 1966 and was led by Igbo soldiers under Majors Emmanuel Ifeajuna and Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu. It was partially successful; the coup plotters murdered Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Premier Ahmadu Bello of the Northern Region and Premier Ladoke Akintola of the Western Region. But, the coup plotters struggled to form a central government. President Nwafor Orizu handed over government control to the Army, then under the command of another Igbo officer, General JTU Aguiyi-Ironsi.
Later, the counter-coup of 1966, supported primarily by Northern military officers, facilitated the rise of Lt. Colonel Yakubu Gowon to head of state. This sequence of events led to an increase in ethnic tension and violence.
In May 1967, the Eastern Region declared independence as a state called the Republic of Biafra, under the leadership of Lt Colonel Emeka Ojukwu.[43] The Nigerian Civil War began as the official Nigerian government side (predominated by soldiers from the North and West) attacked Biafra (Southeastern) on 6 July 1967 at Garkem. The 30 month war, with a long siege of Biafra and its isolation from trade and supplies, ended in January 1970.[44] Estimates of the number of dead in the former Eastern Region are between 1 and 3 million people, from warfare, disease, and starvation, during the 30-month civil war.[45]
France, Egypt, the Soviet Union, Britain and others were deeply involved in the civil war behind the scenes. Britain and the Soviet Union were the main military backers of the Nigerian government while France and others aided the Biafrans. Nigeria used Egyptian pilots for their air force.[46][47]
Military juntas (1970–1999)[]
During the oil boom of the 1970s, Nigeria joined OPEC and the huge revenue generated made the economy richer. Despite huge revenues from oil production and sale, the military administration did little to improve the standard of living of the population, help small and medium businesses, or invest in infrastructure. As oil revenues fuelled the rise of federal subventions to states, the federal government became the centre of political struggle and the threshold of power in the country. As oil production and revenue rose, the Nigerian government became increasingly dependent on oil revenues and the international commodity markets for budgetary and economic concerns. It did not develop other sources of the economy for economic stability. That spelled doom to federalism in Nigeria.[48]
Beginning in 1979, Nigerians participated in a brief return to democracy when Olusegun Obasanjo transferred power to the civilian regime of Shehu Shagari. The Shagari government became viewed as corrupt and incompetent by virtually all sectors of Nigerian society. The military coup of Muhammadu Buhari shortly after the regime's fraudulent re-election in 1984 was generally viewed as a positive development.[49] Buhari promised major reforms, but his government fared little better than its predecessor. His regime was overthrown by another military coup in 1985.[50]
The new head of state, Ibrahim Babangida, declared himself president and commander in chief of the armed forces and the ruling Supreme Military Council. He set 1990 as the official deadline for a return to democratic governance. Babangida's tenure was marked by a flurry of political activity: he instituted the International Monetary Fund's Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) to aid in the repayment of the country's crushing international debt, which most federal revenue was dedicated to servicing. He enrolled Nigeria in the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, which aggravated religious tensions in the country.[51]
After Babangida survived an abortive coup, he pushed back the promised return to democracy to 1992. Free and fair elections were finally held on 12 June 1993, with a presidential victory for Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola. Babangida annulled the elections, leading to mass civilian violent protests which effectively shut down the country for weeks. Babangida finally kept his promise to relinquish office to a civilian-run government, but not before appointing Ernest Shonekan as head of the interim government.[52] Babangida's regime has been considered the most corrupt, and responsible for creating a culture of corruption in Nigeria.[53]
Shonekan's caretaker regime was overwhelmed in late 1993 by the military coup of General Sani Abacha. Abacha used violence on a wide scale to suppress the continuing civilian unrest. He shifted money to offshore accounts in various western European banks and voided coup plots by bribing army generals. Several hundred million dollars in accounts traced to him were discovered in 1999.[54] The regime came to an end in 1998 when the dictator was found dead amid questionable circumstances.
His successor, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, adopted a new constitution on 5 May 1999, which provided for multiparty elections. On 29 May 1999 Abubakar transferred power to the winner of the elections, Obasanjo, who had since retired from the military.[55]
Democratization (1999–)[]
Nigeria regained democracy in 1999 when it elected Olusegun Obasanjo, the former military head of state, as the new President of Nigeria. This ended almost 33 years of military rule (from 1966 until 1999), excluding the short-lived second republic (between 1979 and 1983) by military dictators who seized power in coups d'état and counter-coups during the Nigerian military juntas of 1966–1979 and 1983–1998. Although the elections which brought Obasanjo to power in 1999 and again in 2003 were condemned as unfree and unfair, Nigeria has shown marked improvements in attempts to tackle government corruption and to hasten development.
Ethnic violence for control over the oil-producing Niger Delta region and inadequate infrastructures are some of the issues in the country. Umaru Yar'Adua of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) came into power in the general election of 2007. The international community has been observing Nigerian elections to encourage a free and fair process, and condemned this one as being severely flawed.[56]
Yar'Adua died on 5 May 2010. Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was sworn in as Yar'Adua's replacement on 6 May 2010,[57] becoming Nigeria's 14th Head of State, while his vice-president, Namadi Sambo, an architect and former Kaduna State governor, was chosen on 18 May 2010, by the National Assembly. His confirmation followed President Jonathan's nomination of Sambo to that position.[58][59]
Goodluck Jonathan served as Nigeria's president till 16 April 2011, when a new presidential election in Nigeria was conducted. Jonathan of the PDP was declared the winner on 19 April 2011, having won the election with a total of 22,495,187 of the 39,469,484 votes cast, to stand ahead of Muhammadu Buhari from the main opposition party, the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), which won 12,214,853 of the total votes cast.[60] The international media reported the elections as having run smoothly with relatively little violence or voter fraud, in contrast to previous elections.[10]
Government and politics[]
Nigeria is a Federal Republic modelled after the United States,[61] with executive power exercised by the president. It is influenced by the Westminster System model in the composition and management of the upper and lower houses of the bicameral legislature. The president presides as both Head of State and head of the national executive; the leader is elected by popular vote to a maximum of two 4-year terms.[6]
The president's power is checked by a Senate and a House of Representatives, which are combined in a bicameral body called the National Assembly. The Senate is a 109-seat body with three members from each state and one from the capital region of Abuja; members are elected by popular vote to four-year terms. The House contains 360 seats, with the number of seats per state is determined by population.[6]
Ethnocentrism, tribalism, religious persecution, and prebendalism have affected Nigerian politics both prior and subsequent to independence in 1960. Kin-selective altruism has made its way into Nigerian politics, resulting in tribalist efforts to concentrate Federal power to a particular region of their interests.[62] Nationalism has also led to active secessionist movements such as MASSOB, Nationalist movements such as Oodua Peoples Congress, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta and a civil war. Nigeria's three largest ethnic groups (Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba) have maintained historical preeminence in Nigerian politics; competition amongst these three groups has fuelled corruption and graft.[63]
Because of the above issues, Nigeria's political parties are pan-national and secular in character (though this does not preclude the continuing preeminence of the dominant ethnicities).[63][64] The major political parties at present include the ruling People's Democratic Party of Nigeria, which maintains 223 seats in the House and 76 in the Senate (61.9% and 69.7% respectively); the opposition All Nigeria People's Party has 96 House seats and 27 in the Senate (26.6% and 24.7%). About twenty minor opposition parties are registered.
The immediate past president, Olusegun Obasanjo, acknowledged fraud and other electoral "lapses" but said the result reflected opinion polls. In a national television address in 2007, he added that if Nigerians did not like the victory of his handpicked successor, they would have an opportunity to vote again in four years.[65]
Template:Nigerian symbols As in many other African societies, prebendalism and high rates of corruption continue to constitute major challenges to Nigeria. All major parties have practised vote rigging and other means of coercion in order to remain competitive. In 1983, the policy institute at Kuru concluded that only the 1959 and 1979 elections to that time were conducted with minimal vote rigging.[66]
Law[]
There are three distinct systems of law in Nigeria:
- Common law, derived from its British colonial past, and a development of its own after independence;
- Customary law, derived from indigenous traditional norms and practice, including the dispute resolution meetings of pre-colonial Yorubaland secret societies and the Ẹ̀kpẹ̀ and Ọ̀kọ́ńkọ̀ of Igboland and Ibibioland;
- Sharia law, used only in the predominantly Muslim northern states of the country. It is an Islamic legal system that had been used long before the colonial administration. In late 1999, Zamfara emphasized its use, with eleven other northern states following suit. These states are Kano, Katsina, Niger, Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Gombe, Sokoto, Jigawa, Yobe, and Kebbi.[67]
The country has a judicial branch, the highest court of which is the Supreme Court of Nigeria.[6]
Foreign relations[]
Upon gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria made African unity the centrepiece of its foreign policy and played a leading role in the fight against the apartheid government in South Africa.[68] One notable exception to the African focus was Nigeria's close relationship developed with Israel throughout the 1960s. The latter nation sponsored and oversaw the construction of Nigeria's parliament buildings.[69]
Nigeria's foreign policy was tested in the 1970s after the country emerged united from its own civil war. It supported movements against white minority governments in the Southern Africa sub-region. Nigeria backed the African National Congress (ANC) by taking a committed tough line with regard to the South African government and their military actions in southern Africa. Nigeria was also a founding member of the Organisation for African Unity (now the African Union), and has tremendous influence in West Africa and Africa on the whole. Nigeria has additionally founded regional cooperative efforts in West Africa, functioning as standard-bearer for the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and ECOMOG, economic and military organisations, respectively.
With this African-centred stance, Nigeria readily sent troops to the Congo at the behest of the United Nations shortly after independence (and has maintained membership since that time). Nigeria also supported several Pan African and pro-self government causes in the 1970s, including garnering support for Angola's MPLA, SWAPO in Namibia, and aiding opposition to the minority governments of Portuguese Mozambique, and Rhodesia.
Nigeria retains membership in the Non-Aligned Movement. In late November 2006, it organised an Africa-South America Summit in Abuja to promote what some attendees termed "South-South" linkages on a variety of fronts.[70] Nigeria is also a member of the International Criminal Court, and the Commonwealth of Nations. It was temporarily expelled from the latter in 1995 when ruled by the Abacha regime.
Nigeria has remained a key player in the international oil industry since the 1970s, and maintains membership in Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which it joined in July 1971. Its status as a major petroleum producer figures prominently in its sometimes volatile international relations with both developed countries, notably the United States, and the developing countries of China, Jamaica, and Ghana and Kenya in Africa.[71]
Millions of Nigerians have emigrated at times of economic hardship, primarily to Europe, North America and Australia. It is estimated that over a million Nigerians have emigrated to the United States and constitute the Nigerian American populace. Individuals in many such Diasporic communities have joined the "Egbe Omo Yoruba" society, a national association of Yoruba descendants in North America.[72]
Military[]
The Nigerian Military are charged with protecting The Federal Republic of Nigeria, promoting Nigeria's global security interests, and supporting peacekeeping efforts especially in West Africa. This is in support of the doctrine sometimes called Pax Nigeriana.
The Nigerian Military consist of an army, a navy, and an air force.[6] The military in Nigeria have played a major role in the country's history since independence. Various juntas have seized control of the country and ruled it through most of its history. Its last period of rule ended in 1999 following the sudden death of former dictator Sani Abacha in 1998. His successor, Abdulsalam Abubakar, handed over power to the democratically elected government of Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999.
As Africa's most populated country, Nigeria has repositioned its military as a peacekeeping force on the continent. Since 1995, the Nigerian military, through ECOMOG mandates, have been deployed as peacekeepers in Liberia (1997), Ivory Coast (1997–1999), Sierra Leone 1997–1999.[73] Under an African Union mandate, it has stationed forces in Sudan's Darfur region to try to establish peace.
Geography[]
Nigeria is located in western Africa on the Gulf of Guinea and has a total area of 923,768 km2 (356,669 sq mi),[74] making it the world's 32nd-largest country (after Tanzania). It is comparable in size to Venezuela, and is about twice the size of the U.S. state of California. It shares a 4,047-kilometre (2,515 mi) border with Benin (773 km), Niger (1497 km), Chad (87 km), Cameroon (1690 km), and has a coastline of at least 853 km.[75] Nigeria lies between latitudes 4° and 14°N, and longitudes 2° and 15°E.
The highest point in Nigeria is Chappal Waddi at 2,419 m (7,936 ft). The main rivers are the Niger and the Benue, which converge and empty into the Niger Delta. This is one of the world's largest river deltas, and the location of a large area of Central African Mangroves.
Nigeria has a varied landscape. The far south is defined by its tropical rainforest climate, where annual rainfall is 60 to 80 inches (1,524 to 2,032 mm) a year.[76] In the southeast stands the Obudu Plateau. Coastal plains are found in both the southwest and the southeast.[77] This forest zone's most southerly portion is defined as "salt water swamp," also known as a mangrove swamp because of the large amount of mangroves in the area. North of this is fresh water swamp, containing different vegetation from the salt water swamp, and north of that is rain forest.[78][78]
Nigeria's most expansive topographical region is that of the valleys of the Niger and Benue river valleys (which merge into each other and form a "y" shape).[77] To the southwest of the Niger is "rugged" highland. To the southeast of the Benue are hills and mountains, which form the Mambilla Plateau, the highest plateau in Nigeria. This plateau extends through the border with Cameroon, where the montane land is part of the Bamenda Highlands of Cameroon.
The area near the border with Cameroon close to the coast is rich rainforest and part of the Cross-Sanaga-Bioko coastal forests ecoregion, an important centre for biodiversity. It is habitat for the drill monkey, which is found in the wild only in this area and across the border in Cameroon. The areas surrounding Calabar, Cross River State, also in this forest, are believed to contain the world's largest diversity of butterflies. The area of southern Nigeria between the Niger and the Cross Rivers has lost most of its forest because of development and harvesting by increased population, with it being replaced by grassland (see Cross-Niger transition forests).
Everything in between the far south and the far north, is savannah (insignificant tree cover, with grasses and flowers located between trees). Rainfall is more limited, to between 500 and 1,500 millimetres (20 and 60 in) per year.[76] The savannah zone's three categories are Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, Sudan savannah, and Sahel savannah. Guinean forest-savanna mosaic is plains of tall grass interrupted by trees. Sudan savannah is similar but with shorter grasses and shorter trees. Sahel savannah consists of patches of grass and sand, found in the northeast.[78] In the Sahel region, rain is less than 500 millimetres (20 in) per year and the Sahara Desert is encroaching.[76] In the dry north-east corner of the country lies Lake Chad, which Nigeria shares with Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
Environmental issues[]
Nigeria's Delta region, home of the large oil industry, experiences serious oil spills and other environmental problems, which has caused conflict.
Waste management including sewage treatment, the linked processes of deforestation and soil degradation, and climate change or global warming are the major environmental problems in Nigeria. Waste management presents problems in a mega city like Lagos and other major Nigerian cities which are linked with economic development, population growth and the inability of municipal councils to manage the resulting rise in industrial and domestic waste. This huge waste management problem is also attributable to unsustainable environmental management lifestyles of Kubwa Community in the Federal Capital Territory, where there are habits of indiscriminate disposal of waste, dumping of waste along or into the canals, sewerage systems that are channels for water flows, etc.
Haphazard industrial planning, increased urbanisation, poverty and lack of competence of the municipal government are seen as the major reasons for high levels of waste pollution in major Nigerian cities. Some of the 'solutions' have been disastrous to the environment, resulting in untreated waste being dumped in places where it can pollute waterways and groundwater.[79]
In 2005 Nigeria had the highest rate of deforestation in the world, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).[80] In 2005 12.2%, the equivalent of 11,089,000 hectares had been forested in Nigeria. Between 1990 and 2000, Nigeria lost an average of 409,700 hectares of forest every year equal to an average annual deforestation rate of 2.38%. Between 1990 and 2005, in total Nigeria lost 35.7% of its forest cover, or around 6,145,000 hectares.[81]
Subdivisions[]
Major cities | |
City | Population |
---|---|
Lagos | 7,937,932 |
Kano | 3,848,885 |
Ibadan | 3,078,400 |
Kaduna | 1,652,844 |
Port Harcourt | 1,320,214 |
Benin City | 1,051,600 |
Maiduguri | 1,044,497 |
Zaria | 1,018,827 |
Nigeria is divided into thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory, which are further sub-divided into 774 Local Government Areas (LGAs). The plethora of states, of which there were only three at independence, reflect the country's tumultuous history and the difficulties of managing such a heterogeneous national entity at all levels of government. In some contexts, the states are aggregated into six geopolitical zones: North West, North East, North Central, South East, South South, and South West.[82][83]
Nigeria has six cities with a population of over 1 million people (from largest to smallest: Lagos, Kano, Ibadan, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Benin City). Lagos is the largest city in sub-Saharan Africa, with a population of over 8 million in its urban area alone. However, these figures are regularly disputed in Nigeria.[84]
States:
Economy[]
Nigeria is classified as a mixed economy emerging market, and has already reached lower middle income status according to the World Bank,[85] with its abundant supply of natural resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, transport sectors and stock exchange (the Nigerian Stock Exchange), which is the second largest in Africa.
Nigeria was ranked 30th in the world in terms of GDP (PPP) in 2012. Nigeria is the United States' largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa and supplies a fifth of its oil (11% of oil imports). It has the seventh-largest trade surplus with the US of any country worldwide. Nigeria is the 50th-largest export market for US goods and the 14th-largest exporter of goods to the US. The United States is the country's largest foreign investor.[86] The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected economic growth of 9% in 2008 and 8.3% in 2009.[87][88][89] The IMF further projects an 8% growth in the Nigerian economy in 2011.[90]
February 2011: According to Citigroup, Nigeria will get the highest average GDP growth in the world between 2010–2050. Nigeria is one of two countries from Africa among 11 Global Growth Generators countries.[91]
Previously, economic development had been hindered by years of military rule, corruption, and mismanagement. The restoration of democracy and subsequent economic reforms have successfully put Nigeria back on track towards achieving its full economic potential. As of 2014 it is the largest economy in Africa, having overtaken South Africa.
During the oil boom of the 1970s, Nigeria accumulated a significant foreign debt to finance major infrastructural investments. With the fall of oil prices during the 1980s oil glut Nigeria struggled to keep up with its loan payments and eventually defaulted on its principal debt repayments, limiting repayment to the interest portion of the loans. Arrears and penalty interest accumulated on the unpaid principal which increased the size of the debt.
After negotiations by the Nigeria authorities, in October 2005 Nigeria and its Paris Club creditors reached an agreement in which Nigeria repurchased its debt at a discount of approximately 60%. Nigeria used part of its oil profits to pay the residual 40%, freeing up at least $1.15 billion annually for poverty reduction programmes. Nigeria made history in April 2006 by becoming the first African Country to completely pay off its debt (estimated $30 billion) owed to the Paris Club.
Agriculture[]
70% of Nigerians are employed in agriculture.[92] Agriculture used to be the principal foreign exchange earner of Nigeria.[93]
Major crops include beans, sesame, cashew nuts, cassava, cocoa beans, groundnuts, gum arabic, kolanut, maize (corn), melon, millet, palm kernels, palm oil, plantains, rice, rubber, sorghum, soybeans and yams.[94]
Cocoa is the leading non-oil foreign exchange earner.[94] Rubber is the second-largest non-oil foreign exchange earner.[94]
Prior to the Nigerian civil war, Nigeria was self-sufficient in food.[94] Agriculture has failed to keep pace with Nigeria's rapid population growth, and Nigeria now relies upon food imports to sustain itself.[94]
Oil[]
Nigeria is the 12th largest producer of petroleum in the world and the 8th largest exporter, and has the 10th largest proven reserves. (The country joined OPEC in 1971). Petroleum plays a large role in the Nigerian economy, accounting for 40% of GDP and 80% of Government earnings. However, agitation for better resource control in the Niger Delta, its main oil producing region, has led to disruptions in oil production and prevents the country from exporting at 100% capacity.[95]
The Niger Delta Nembe Creek Oil field was discovered in 1973 and produces from middle Miocene deltaic sandstone-shale in an anticline structural trap at a depth of 2–4 km.[96] In June 2013, the company announced a strategic review of its operations in Nigeria, hinting that assets could be divested. While many international oil companies have operated there for decades, by 2014 most were making moves to divest their interests, citing a range of issues including oil theft. In August 2014, Shell Oil Company said it was finalizing its interests in four Nigerian oil fields.[97]
Overseas remittances[]
Next to petrodollars, the second biggest source of foreign exchange earnings for Nigeria are remittances sent home by Nigerians living abroad.[98] In 2014, 17.5 million Nigerians reside in foreign countries, with the UK and the USA having more than 2 million Nigerians each.[98]
According to the International Organization for Migration, Nigeria witnessed a dramatic increase in remittances sent home from overseas Nigerians, going from USD 2.3 billion in 2004 to 17.9 billion in 2007, representing 6.7% of GDP. The United States accounts for the largest portion of official remittances, followed by the United Kingdom, Italy, Canada, Spain and France. On the African continent, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Chad, Libya and South Africa are important source countries of remittance flows to Nigeria, while China is the biggest remittance-sending country in Asia.
Services[]
Nigeria has one of the fastest growing telecommunications markets in the world, major emerging market operators (like MTN, Etisalat, Zain and Globacom) basing their largest and most profitable centres in the country.[99] The government has recently begun expanding this infrastructure to space based communications. Nigeria has a space satellite which is monitored at the Nigerian National Space Research and Development Agency Headquarters in Abuja.
Nigeria has a highly developed financial services sector, with a mix of local and international banks, asset management companies, brokerage houses, insurance companies and brokers, private equity funds and investment banks.[100]
Mining[]
Nigeria also has a wide array of underexploited mineral resources which include natural gas, coal, bauxite, tantalite, gold, tin, iron ore, limestone, niobium, lead and zinc.[101] Despite huge deposits of these natural resources, the mining industry in Nigeria is still in its infancy.
Manufacturing[]
Nigeria has a manufacturing industry which includes leather and textiles (centred Kano, Abeokuta, Onitsha, and Lagos), Nigeria currently has an indigenous auto manufacturing company; Innoson Motors located in Nnewi. It produces Buses and SUVs.car manufacturing (for the French car manufacturer Peugeot as well as for the English truck manufacturer Bedford, now a subsidiary of General Motors), t-shirts, plastics and processed food.
Nigeria in recent years has been embracing industrialization, It currently has an indigenous vehicle manufacturing company, Innoson Motors (IVM) which manufactures Rapid Transit Buses, Trucks and SUVs with an upcoming introduction of Cars.[102] Nigeria also has few Electronic manufacturers like Zinox, the first Branded Nigerian Computer and Electronic gadgets (like tablet PCs) manufacturers.[103] In 2013, Nigeria introduced a policy regarding import duty on vehicles to encourage local manufacturing companies in the country.[104][105] In this regard, some foreign vehicle manufacturing companies like Nissan have made known their plans to have manufacturing plants in Nigeria.[106] Ogun is considered to be the current Nigeria's industrial hub, as most factories are located in Ogun and more companies are moving there, followed by Lagos.[107][108][109]
Government satellites[]
The Nigerian government has commissioned the overseas production and launch of four satellites. The Nigeriasat-1 was the first satellite to be built under the Nigerian government sponsorship. The satellite was launched from Russia on 27 September 2003. Nigeriasat-1 was part of the world-wide Disaster Monitoring Constellation System.[110] The primary objectives of the Nigeriasat-1 were: to give early warning signals of environmental disaster; to help detect and control desertification in the northern part of Nigeria; to assist in demographic planning; to establish the relationship between malaria vectors and the environment that breeds malaria and to give early warning signals on future outbreaks of meningitis using remote sensing technology; to provide the technology needed to bring education to all parts of the country through distant learning; and to aid in conflict resolution and border disputes by mapping out state and International borders.
NigeriaSat-2, Nigeria's second satellite, was built as a high-resolution earth satellite by Surrey Space Technology Limited, a United Kingdom-based satellite technology company. It has 2.5-metre resolution panchromatic (very high resolution), 5-metre multispectral (high resolution, NIR red, green and red bands), and 32-metre multispectral (medium resolution, NIR red, green and red bands) antennas, with a ground receiving station in Abuja. The NigeriaSat-2 spacecraft alone was built at a cost of over £35 million. This satellite was launched into orbit from a military base in China.[110]
NigComSat-1, a Nigerian satellite built in 2004, was Nigeria's third satellite and Africa's first communication satellite. It was launched on 13 May 2007, aboard a Chinese Long March 3B carrier rocket, from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in China. The spacecraft was operated by NigComSat and the Nigerian Space Agency, NASRDA. On 11 November 2008, NigComSat-1 failed in orbit after running out of power because of an anomaly in its solar array. It was based on the Chinese DFH-4 satellite bus, and carries a variety of transponders: 4 C-band; 14 Ku-band; 8 Ka-band; and 2 L-band. It was designed to provide coverage to many parts of Africa, and the Ka-band transponders would also cover Italy.
On 10 November 2008 (0900 GMT), the satellite was reportedly switched off for analysis and to avoid a possible collision with other satellites. According to Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited, it was put into "emergency mode operation in order to effect mitigation and repairs".[111] The satellite eventually failed after losing power on 11 November 2008.
On 24 March 2009, the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Science and Technology, NigComSat Ltd. and CGWIC signed another contract for the in-orbit delivery of the NigComSat-1R satellite. NigComSat-1R was also a DFH-4 satellite, and the replacement for the failed NigComSat-1 was successfully launched into orbit by China in Xichang on December 19, 2011.[112][113] The satellite according to Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan which was paid for by the insurance policy on NigComSat-1 which de-orbited in 2009, would have a positive impact on national development in various sectors such as communications, internet services, health, agriculture, environmental protection and national security.[114]
Society[]
Demographics[]
Population in Nigeria[115] | |||
---|---|---|---|
Year | Million | ||
1971 | 55 | ||
1980 | 71 | ||
1990 | 95 | ||
2000 | 125 | ||
2004 | 138 | ||
2008 | 151 |
Population in Nigeria increased from 1990 to 2008 by 57 million a 60% growth rate.[115] Almost half of the country's population is 14 years old or younger.[116] Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and accounts for about 18% of the continent's total population, however, exactly how populous is a subject of speculation.[117]
The United Nations estimates that the population in 2009 was at 154,729,000, distributed as 51.7% rural and 48.3% urban, and with a population density of 167.5 people per square kilometre. National census results in the past few decades have been disputed. The results of the most recent census were released in December 2006 and gave a population of 140,003,542. The only breakdown available was by gender: males numbered 71,709,859, females numbered 68,293,08. On June 2012, President Goodluck Jonathan said that Nigerians should limit their number of children.[118]
According to the United Nations, Nigeria has been undergoing explosive population growth and has one of the highest growth and fertility rates in the world. By their projections, Nigeria is one of eight countries expected to account collectively for half of the world's total population increase from 2005–2050.[119] By 2100 the UN estimates that the Nigerian population will be between 505 million and 1.03 billion people (middle estimate: 730 million).[120] In 1950, Nigeria had only 33 million people.[121]
One in four Africans is a Nigerian.[122] Presently, Nigeria is the seventh most populous country in the world. 2006 estimates claim 42.3% of the population is between 0–14 years of age, while 54.6% is between 15–65; the birth rate is significantly higher than the death rate, at 40.4 and 16.9 per 1000 people respectively.[123]
Nigeria's largest city is Lagos. Lagos has grown from about 300,000 in 1950[124] to an estimated 15 million today, and the Nigerian government estimates that city will have expanded to 25 million residents by 2015.[125]
Ethnic groups[]
A Hausa harpist | Igbo men | Yoruba drummers |
Nigeria has more than 250 ethnic groups, with varying languages and customs, creating a country of rich ethnic diversity. The largest ethnic groups are the Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo and Fulani, accounting for more than 70% of the population, while the Edo, Ijaw, Kanuri, Ibibio, Ebira, Nupe, Gwari, Itsekiri, Jukun, Urhobo, Igala, Idoma and Tiv comprise between 25 and 30%; other minorities make up the remaining 5%.[126]
The middle belt of Nigeria is known for its diversity of ethnic groups, including the Pyem, Goemai, and Kofyar. The official population count of each of Nigeria's ethnicities has always remained controversial and disputed as members of different ethnic groups believe the census is rigged to give a particular group (usually believed to be northern groups) numerical superiority.[84][127][128]
There are small minorities of British, American, East Indian, Chinese (est. 50,000),[129] white Zimbabwean,[130] Japanese, Greek, Syrian and Lebanese immigrants in Nigeria. Immigrants also include those from other West African or East African nations. These minorities mostly reside in major cities such as Lagos and Abuja, or in the Niger Delta as employees for the major oil companies. A number of Cubans settled in Nigeria as political refugees following the Cuban Revolution.
In the middle of the 19th century, a number of ex-slaves of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian descent[131] and emigrants from Sierra Leone established communities in Lagos and other regions of Nigeria. Many ex-slaves came to Nigeria following the emancipation of slaves in the Americas. Many of the immigrants, sometimes called Saros (immigrants from Sierra Leone) and Amaro (ex-slaves from Brazil)[132] later became prominent merchants and missionaries in these cities.
Languages[]
There are 521 languages that have been spoken in Nigeria (nine of which are now extinct).
In some areas of Nigeria, ethnic groups speak more than one language. The official language of Nigeria, English, was chosen to facilitate the cultural and linguistic unity of the country, owing to the influence of British colonisation that ended in 1960.
Many French speakers from surrounding countries have influenced the English spoken in the border regions of Nigeria and some Nigerian citizens have become fluent enough in French to work in the surrounding countries. The French spoken in Nigeria may be mixed with some native languages but is mostly spoken like the French spoken in Benin. French may also be mixed with English as it is in Cameroon. Most of the population speaks English and their native language.
The major languages spoken in Nigeria represent three major families of languages of Africa: the majority are Niger-Congo languages, such as Igbo, Yoruba and Fulfulde; Kanuri, spoken in the northeast, primarily in Borno and Yobe State, is part of the Nilo-Saharan family; and Hausa is an Afro-Asiatic language.
Even though most ethnic groups prefer to communicate in their own languages, English as the official language is widely used for education, business transactions and for official purposes. English as a first language is used only by a small minority of the country's urban elite, and it is not spoken at all in some rural areas. Hausa is the most widely spoken of the 3 main languages spoken in Nigeria itself (Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba) but unlike the Yorubas and Igbos, the Hausas tend not to travel far outside Nigeria itself.
With the majority of Nigeria's populace in the rural areas, the major languages of communication in the country remain indigenous languages. Some of the largest of these, notably Yoruba and Igbo, have derived standardised languages from a number of different dialects and are widely spoken by those ethnic groups. Nigerian Pidgin English, often known simply as 'Pidgin' or 'Broken' (Broken English), is also a popular lingua franca, though with varying regional influences on dialect and slang. The pidgin English or Nigerian English is widely spoken within the Niger Delta Regions, predominately in Warri, Sapele, Port Harcourt, Agenebode, Ewu, and Benin City.[133]
Religion[]
Nigeria is a religiously diverse society, with Islam and Christianity being the most widely professed religions. According to recent estimates, 50% of Nigeria's population adheres to Islam (mainly Sunni). Christianity is practiced by 48% of the population (74% Protestant, 25% Catholic, 1% other Christian[135]). Adherents of Animism and other religions collectively represent 1.4% of the population.[134]
All religions represented in Nigeria were practiced in every major city in 1990. Islam dominated the north and had a number of supporters in the South Western, Yoruba part of the country. Nigeria has the largest Muslim population in sub-Saharan Africa. Protestantism and local syncretic Christianity are also in evidence in Yoruba areas, while Catholicism dominates the Igbo and closely related areas. Both Protestantism and Catholicism dominated in the Ibibio, Annang, and the Efik kiosa lands.
The 1963 census indicated that 47% of Nigerians were Muslim, 35% Christian, and 18% members of local indigenous congregations; the results of this census were disputed however. If accurate, this indicated a sharp increase since 1953 in the number of Christians (up 13%); a slight decline among those professing indigenous beliefs, compared with 20%; and only a modest (4%) increase of Muslims.
The vast majority of Muslims in Nigeria are Sunni belonging to Maliki school of jurisprudence; however, a sizeable minority also belongs to Shafi madhhab. A large number of Sunni Muslims are members of Sufi brotherhoods. Most Sufis follow the Qadiriyya, Tijaniyyah and/or the Mouride movements. A significant Shia minority exists (see Shia in Nigeria). Some northern states have incorporated Sharia law into their previously secular legal systems, which has brought about some controversy.[136] Kano State has sought to incorporate Sharia law into its constitution.[137] The majority of Quranists follow the Kalo Kato or Quraniyyun movement. There are also Ahmadiyya and Mahdiyya minorities.[138]
According to a 2001 report[139] of The World Factbook by CIA, about 50% of Nigeria's population was Muslim, 40% were Christians and 10% adhered to local religions.[140] Other sources give higher estimates for the country's Christian population. A 2012 report on religion and public life by the Pew Research Center stated that in 2010, 49.3 percent of Nigeria's population was Christian, 48.8 percent was Muslim, and 1.9 percent were followers of indigenous and other religions, or unaffiliated.[141]
The 2010 census of Association of Religion Data Archives has also reported that 46.5 percent of the total population was Christian, slightly larger than the Muslim population (45.5 percent), while 7.7 percent were members of other religious groups.[142] However, these estimates should be taken with caution because sample data is mostly collected from major urban areas in the south, which are predominantly Christian.[143][144][145]
Among Christians, the Pew Research survey found that 74% were Protestant, 25% were Catholic, and 1% belonged to other Christian denominations, including a small Orthodox Christian community.[135] In terms of Nigeria's major ethnic groups, the Hausa ethnic group (predominant in the north) was found to be 95% Muslim and 5% Christian, the Yoruba tribe (predominant in the west) was 55% Muslim, 35% Christian and 10% adherents of other religions, while the Igbos (predominant in the east) and the Ijaw (south) were 98% Christian, with 2% practicing traditional religions.[146] The middle belt of Nigeria contains the largest number of minority ethnic groups in Nigeria, who were found to be mostly Christians and members of traditional religions, with a small proportion of Muslims.[147][148]
Leading Protestant churches in the country include the Church of Nigeria of the Anglican Communion, the Assemblies of God Church, the Nigerian Baptist Convention and The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations Since the 1990s, there has been significant growth in many other churches, particularly those of Evangelical theology. These include the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Winners' Chapel, Christ Apostolic Church (the first Aladura Movement in Nigeria), Deeper Christian Life Ministry, Evangelical Church of West Africa, Mountain of Fire and Miracles, Christ Embassy, The Synagogue Church Of All Nations. In addition, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Aladura Church, the Seventh-day Adventist and various indigenous churches have also experienced growth.[149][150] Other leading Protestant churches in the country are the Church of Nigeria of the Anglican Communion, the Assemblies of God Church, the Nigerian Baptist Convention and The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations.
The Yoruba area contains a large Anglican population, while Igboland is predominantly Catholic and the Edo area is composed predominantly of members of the Assemblies of God, which was introduced into Nigeria by Augustus Ehurie Wogu and his associates at Old Umuahia.
Further, Nigeria has become an African hub for the Grail Movement and the Hare Krishnas,[151] and the largest temple of the Eckankar religion is in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, with a total capacity of 10,000.
Health[]
Health, health care, and general living conditions in Nigeria are poor. Life expectancy is 52 years (average male/female) and just over half the population has access to potable water and appropriate sanitation; the percentage of children under five has gone up rather than down between 1990 and 2003 and infant mortality is 97.1 deaths per 1000 live births.[123] HIV/AIDS rate in Nigeria is much lower compared to the other African nations such as Kenya or South Africa whose prevalence (percentage) rates are in the double digits. In 2003, the HIV prevalence rate among 20 to 29-year-olds was 5.6%.[152]
Nigeria is the only country in Africa to have never eradicated polio, which it periodically exports to other African countries. A 2004 vaccination drive, spearheaded by the W.H.O. to combat polio and malaria, met with some opposition in the north,[153] but polio was cut 98% between 2009 and 2010.
Nigeria has been reorganising its health system since the Bamako Initiative of 1987 formally promoted community-based methods of increasing accessibility of drugs and health care services to the population, in part by implementing user fees.[154] The new strategy dramatically increased accessibility through community-based healthcare reform, resulting in more efficient and equitable provision of services. A comprehensive approach strategy was extended to all areas of health care, with subsequent improvement in the health care indicators and improvement in health care efficiency and cost.[155]
The Nigerian health care system is continuously faced with a shortage of doctors known as 'brain drain', because of emigration by skilled Nigerian doctors to North America and Europe. In 1995, it was estimated that 21,000 Nigerian doctors were practising in the United States alone, which is about the same as the number of doctors working in the Nigerian public service. Retaining these expensively trained professionals has been identified as one of the goals of the government.[156]
According to 2009 estimates, HIV prevalence in Nigeria is about 3.6% of the adult population.[157] Despite the low prevalence rate however, the 2011 UNAIDS Report indicates that Nigeria has the second highest number of new HIV infections in the world and lacks the necessary HIV-related investments to combat the disease.[158] Despite these short comings in 2014 Nigeria was the first west African country to effectively contain and eliminate the Ebola Threat that is ravaging the rest of West Africa.[159]
Education[]
Education is in a state of neglect. After the 1970s oil boom, tertiary education was improved so that it would reach every subregion of Nigeria. Education is provided free by the government, but the attendance rate for secondary education is only 29% (32% for males, 27% for females). The education system has been described as "dysfunctional" largely because of decaying institutional infrastructure. 68% of the population is literate, and the rate for men (75.7%) is higher than that for women (60.6%).[123]
Nigeria provides free, government-supported education, but attendance is not compulsory at any level, and certain groups, such as nomads and the handicapped, are under-served. The education system consists of six years of primary school, three years of junior secondary school, three years of senior secondary school, and four years of university education leading to a bachelor's degree.[160]
The rate of secondary school attendance is 32% for males and 27% for females. In 2004, the Nigerian National Planning Commission described the country's education system as "dysfunctional." Reasons for this characterisation included decaying institutions and ill-prepared graduates.[160]
Crime[]
Nigeria is home to a substantial network of organised crime, active especially in drug trafficking. Nigerian criminal groups are heavily involved in drug trafficking, shipping heroin from Asian countries to Europe and America; and cocaine from South America to Europe and South Africa. .[161] The various Nigerian Confraternities or "campus cults" are active in both organised crime and in political violence as well as providing a network of corruption within Nigeria. As confraternities have extensive connections with political and military figures, they offer excellent alumni networking opportunities. The Supreme Vikings Confraternity, for example, boasts that twelve members of the Rivers State House of Assembly are cult members.[162] On lower levels of society, there are the "area boys", organised gangs mostly active in Lagos who specialise in mugging and small-scale drug dealing. According to official statistics, gang violence in Lagos resulted in 273 civilians and 84 policemen killed in the period of August 2000 to May 2001.[163]
Internationally, Nigeria is infamous for a form of bank fraud dubbed 419, a type of advance fee fraud (named after Section 419 of the Nigerian Penal Code) along with the "Nigerian scam", a form of confidence trick practiced by individuals and criminal syndicates.[164] These scams involve a complicit Nigerian bank (the laws being set up loosely to allow it) and a scammer who claims to have money he needs to obtain from that bank. The victim is talked into exchanging bank account information on the premise that the money will be transferred to him, and then he'll get to keep a cut. In reality, money is taken out instead, and/or large fees (which seem small in comparison with the imaginary wealth he awaits) are deducted. In 2003, the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (or EFCC) was created, ostensibly to combat this and other forms of organised financial crime.[165]
There is also some major piracy in Nigeria, with attacks directed at all types of vessels. Consistent with the rise of Nigeria as an increasingly dangerous hot spot, 28 of the 30 seafarers kidnapped as of January–June 2013 were in Nigeria. Additionally, the single death to date in 2013 occurred in Nigeria.[166]
Nigeria has also been pervaded by political corruption. It was ranked 143 out of 182 countries in Transparency International's 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index; however, it improved to 136th position in 2014.[167] More than $400 billion were stolen from the treasury by Nigeria's leaders between 1960 and 1999.[168] In late 2013, Nigeria's then central bank governor Lamido Sanusi informed President Goodluck Jonathan that the state oil company, NNPC had failed to remit US$20 billion of oil revenues, which it owed the state. Jonathan however dismissed the claim and replaced Sanusi for his mismanagement of the central bank's budget. A Senate committee also found Sanusi’s account to be lacking substance.[169] After the conclusion of the NNPC's account Audit, it was announced in January 2015 that NNPC's non-remitted revenue is actually US$1.48billion, which it needs to refund back to the Government.[170]
Culture[]
Literature[]
Nigerian citizens have authored many influential works of post-colonial literature in the English language. Nigeria's best-known writers are Wole Soyinka, the first African Nobel Laureate in Literature, and Chinua Achebe, best known for the novel, Things Fall Apart and his controversial critique of Joseph Conrad.
Other Nigerian writers and poets who are well known internationally include John Pepper Clark, Ben Okri, Cyprian Ekwensi, Buchi Emecheta, Helon Habila, T. M. Aluko, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Daniel O. Fagunwa, Femi Osofisan and Ken Saro Wiwa, who was executed in 1995 by the military regime. Nigeria has the second largest newspaper market in Africa (after Egypt) with an estimated circulation of several million copies daily in 2003.
Critically acclaimed writers of a younger generation include Chris Abani, Sefi Atta, Helon Habila, Helen Oyeyemi, Nnedi Okorafor, Kachi A. Ozumba, Sarah Ladipo Manyika, and Chika Unigwe.
Music and film[]
Nigeria has had a huge role in the development of various genres of African music, including West African Highlife, Afrobeat, and Palm Wine music, which fuses native rhythms with techniques that have been linked to the Congo, Brazil, Cuba, Jamaica and worldwide.
Many late 20th century musicians such as Fela Kuti have famously fused cultural elements of various indigenous music with American Jazz and Soul to form Afrobeat which has in turn influenced Hip hop music.[172] JuJu music which is percussion music fused with traditional music from the Yoruba nation and made famous by King Sunny Adé, is also from Nigeria. There is also fuji music, a Yoruba percussion style, created and popularised by Mr. Fuji, Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister.
The is also the Afan Music invented and popularised by the Ewuborn poet and musician Umuobuarie Igberaese. There is a budding hip hop movement in Nigeria. Kennis Music, the self-proclaimed number-one record label in Africa, and one of Nigeria's biggest record labels, has a roster almost entirely dominated by hip hop artists.
Notable musicians from Nigeria include: Sade Adu, King Sunny Adé, Onyeka Onwenu, Dele Sosimi, Adewale Ayuba, Ezebuiro Obinna, Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister, Bennie King, Ebenezer Obey, Umobuarie Igberaese, Femi Kuti, Lagbaja, Dr. Alban, Wasiu Alabi, Bola Abimbola, Zaki Adze, Tuface Idibia, Aṣa, Nneka, Wale, P Square and D'Banj.
In November 2008, Nigeria's music scene (and that of Africa) received international attention when MTV hosted the continent's first African music awards show in Abuja.[173]
The Nigerian film industry is known as Nollywood (a portmanteau of Nigeria and Hollywood[174]) and is now the 2nd-largest producer of movies in the world. Nigerian film studios are based in Lagos and Enugu, forming a major portion of the local economy of these cities. Nigerian cinema is Africa's largest movie industry in terms of both value and the number of movies produced per year. Although Nigerian films have been produced since the 1960s, the country's film industry has been aided by the rise of affordable digital filming and editing technologies.
T.B. Joshua's Emmanuel TV, originating from Nigeria, is one of the most viewed television stations across Africa.[175]
Cuisine[]
Nigerian cuisine, like West African cuisine in general, is known for its richness and variety. Many different spices, herbs and flavourings are used in conjunction with palm oil or groundnut oil to create deeply flavoured sauces and soups often made very hot with chili peppers. Nigerian feasts are colourful and lavish, while aromatic market and roadside snacks cooked on barbecues or fried in oil are plentiful and varied.[176]
Sport[]
Football is largely considered the Nigeria's national sport and the country has its own Premier League of football. Nigeria's national football team, known as the "Super Eagles", has made the World Cup on five occasions 1994, 1998, 2002, 2010, and most recently in 2014. In April 1994, the Super Eagles ranked 5th in the FIFA World Rankings, the highest ranking achieved by an African football team. They won the African Cup of Nations in 1980, 1994, and 2013, and have also hosted the U-17 & U-20 World Cup. They won the gold medal for football in the 1996 Summer Olympics (in which they beat Argentina) becoming the first African football team to win gold in Olympic Football.
The nation's cadet team from Japan '93 produced some international players notably Nwankwo Kanu, a two-time African Footballer of the year who won the European Champions League with Ajax Amsterdam and later played with Inter Milan, Arsenal, West Bromwich Albion and Portsmouth. Other players that graduated from the junior teams are Nduka Ugbade, Jonathan Akpoborie, Victor Ikpeba, Celestine Babayaro, Wilson Oruma and Taye Taiwo. Some other famous Nigerian footballers include John Obi Mikel, Obafemi Martins, Vincent Enyeama, Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Rashidi Yekini, Peter Odemwingie and Jay-Jay Okocha.
According to the official May 2010 FIFA World Rankings, Nigeria was the second top-ranked football nation in Africa and the 21st highest in the world. Nigeria is also involved in other sports such as basketball, cricket and track and field.[177] Boxing is also an important sport in Nigeria; Dick Tiger and Samuel Peter are both former World Champions.
Nigeria's national basketball team made the headlines internationally when it qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics as it beat heavily favoured world elite teams such as Greece and Lithuania.[178] Nigeria has been home to numerous internationally recognised basketball players in the world's top leagues in America, Europe and Asia. These players include NBA Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon or Solomon Alabi, Yinka Dare, Obinna Ekezie, Festus Ezeli and Olumide Oyedeji.
Societal issues[]
Despite its vast government revenue from the mining of petroleum, Nigeria is faced by a number of societal issues, owing primarily to a history of inefficiency in its governance.
Human rights[]
Nigeria's human rights record remains poor and government officials at all levels continue to commit serious abuses.[179]
According to the US Department of State,[179] the most significant human rights problems are: extrajudicial killings and use of excessive force by security forces; impunity for abuses by security forces; arbitrary arrests; prolonged pretrial detention; judicial corruption and executive influence on the judiciary; rape, torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of prisoners, detainees and suspects; harsh and life‑threatening prison and detention center conditions; human trafficking for the purpose of prostitution and forced labour; societal violence and vigilante killings; child labour, child abuse and child sexual exploitation; female genital mutilation (FGM); domestic violence; discrimination based on sex, ethnicity, region and religion; restrictions on freedom of assembly, movement, press, speech and religion; infringement of privacy rights; and the abridgement of the right of citizens to change the government.
Child marriage remains common in Nigeria.[180] There are an estimated 700,000 slaves in Nigeria.[181]
Under the Shari'a penal code that applies to Muslims in twelve northern states, offences such as alcohol consumption, homosexuality, infidelity and theft carry harsh sentences, including amputation, lashing, stoning and long prison terms.[182]
Under a law signed early 2014,[183] same-sex couples who marry face up to 14 years each in prison. Witnesses or anyone who helps gay couples marry will be sentenced to 10 years behind bars. The bill also punishes the "public show of same-sex amorous relationships directly or indirectly" with ten years in prison. Another portion of the bill mandates 10 years in prison for those found guilty of organising, operating or supporting gay clubs, organisations and meetings.
Strife and sectarian violence[]
Because of its multitude of diverse, sometimes competing ethno-linguistic groups, Nigeria prior to independence has been faced with sectarian tensions and violence. This is particularly a major issue in the oil-producing Niger Delta region, where both state and civilian forces employ varying methods of coercion in attempts gain control over regional petroleum resources. Some of the ethnic groups like the Ogoni, have experienced severe environmental degradation due to petroleum extraction.
Since the end of the civil war in 1970, some ethnic violence has persisted. There has subsequently been a period of relative harmony since the Federal Government introduced tough new measures against religious violence in all affected parts of the country.
The 2002 Miss World pageant was moved from Abuja to London in the wake of violent protests in the Northern part of the country that left more than 100 people dead and over 500 injured.[186] The rioting erupted after Muslims in the country reacted in anger to comments made by a newspaper reporter. Rioters in Kaduna killed an estimated 105 men, women, and children with a further 521 injured taken to hospital.
Since 2002, the country has seen sectarian violence by Boko Haram, an Islamist movement that seeks to abolish the secular system of government and establish Sharia law in the country.[21][22]
In 2010, more than 500 people were killed by religious violence in Jos.[187]
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan in May 2014 claimed that Boko Haram attacks have left at least 12,000 people dead and 8,000 people crippled.[23] In May 2014 Benin, Chad, Cameroon and Niger joined Nigeria in a united effort to combat Boko Haram in the aftermath of the 2014 Chibok kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls.[24]
Media representation[]
- Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, an audio documentary produced by Amy Goodman first aired in 1998 on Democracy Now!.
- Sweet Crude, a documentary film produced and directed by Sandy Cioffi about Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta.
- Poison Fire, a documentary exposing oil and gas abuses in Nigeria, featuring Friends of the Earth Nigeria volunteers, which premiered at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam.[188]
- Nollywood Babylon, a 2008 documentary by Montrealers Ben Addelman and Samir Mallal about the Nigerian film industry, Nollywood. It premiered at the Festival de nouveau cinéma de Montréal 2008.
See also[]
- Index of Nigeria-related articles
- Outline of Nigeria
References[]
- ^ "Languages of Nigeria". Ethnologue. http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=ng. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
- ^ a b "Publications | CMS". Cms.int. http://www.cms.int/publications/TechSeries/turtles_06/page_217-223_nigeria.pdf. Retrieved 2014-07-16.
- ^ "Ethnic groups – Nigeria – area". Nationsencyclopedia.com. http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Nigeria-ETHNIC-GROUPS.html. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ A Glance at Africa – Njoki N. Wane – Google Books. Books.google.ca. http://books.google.ca/books?id=BSyMf6m6E9wC&pg=PA66&dq=Yoruba++21%25;+Ibo+18%25;+Fulani+12%25;+Ijaw+10%25;&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9EfBUuDyCuSqyAHo84HoCw&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Yoruba%20%2021%25%3B%20Ibo%2018%25%3B%20Fulani%2012%25%3B%20Ijaw%2010%25%3B&f=false. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "|Nigeria|History|Country|Government|Politics|Map of Nigeria|Travel|". Myafricalinks.com. http://www.myafricalinks.com/Nigeria.Html. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ a b c d e "Nigeria". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency (United States). https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ni.html.
- ^ a b c d "Nigeria". World Economic Outlook Database, October 2014. International Monetary Fund. 2 November 2014. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2014/02/weodata/index.aspx.
- ^ "Gini Index". World Bank. http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SI.POV.GINI/. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
- ^ "2014 Human Development Report Summary". United Nations Development Programme. 2014. pp. 21–25. http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/hdr14-summary-en.pdf. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
- ^ a b Nossiter, Adam (16 April 2011). "Nigerians Vote in Presidential Election". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/world/africa/17nigeria.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&hp. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
- ^ Nigeria: Giant of Africa, by Peter Holmes 1987
- ^ The CIAWorld Fact Book 2014. Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. 2013. ISBN 9781626360730.
- ^ Library of Congress – Federal Research Division (July 2008). "Country profile: Nigeria". Retrieved on 28 December 2011.
- ^ "Nigeria becomes Africa's largest economy". http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2014/04/nigeria-becomes-africa-largest-economy-20144618190520102.html. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- ^ "Nigerian Economy Overtakes South Africa's on Rebased GDP". http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-06/nigerian-economy-overtakes-south-africa-s-on-rebased-gdp.html. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ "UPDATE 2-Nigeria surpasses South Africa as continent's biggest economy". http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/06/nigeria-gdp-idUSL6N0MY0LT20140406. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
- ^ a b "Nigeria is poised to become Africa's most powerful nation". http://www.trademarksa.org/news/nigeria-poised-become-africa-s-most-powerful-nation. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
- ^ "Nigeria". World Bank. http://data.worldbank.org/country/nigeria. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
- ^ "Nigeria". West Africa Gateway. http://www.westafricagateway.org/west-africa/country-profiles/nigeria. Retrieved 25 August 2013.
- ^ "Nigeria". http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/nigeria/09372.pdf. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
- ^ a b "Dozens killed in Nigeria clashes". Al Jazeera. 24 December 2011. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2011/12/20111224124241652788.html. Retrieved 24 December 2011.
- ^ a b Olugbode, Michael (2 February 2011). "Nigeria: We Are Responsible for Borno Killings, Says Boko Haram". allAfrica.com. http://allafrica.com/stories/201102030036.html. Retrieved 31 January 2012. "The sect in posters written in Hausa and pasted across the length and breadth of Maiduguri Wednesday morning signed by the Warriors of Jamaatu Ahlis Sunna Liddaawati Wal Jihad led by Imam Abu Muhammed Abubakar Bi Muhammed a .k .a Shehu claimed they embarked on the killings in Borno "in an effort to establish Sharia system of government in the country"."
- ^ a b May 17, 2014 (2014-05-17). "Boko Haram has killed over 12,000 Nigerians, plans to take over country, Jonathan says – Premium Times Nigeria". Premiumtimesng.com. http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/160942-boko-haram-killed-12000-nigerians-plans-take-country-jonathan-says.html. Retrieved 2014-06-04.
- ^ a b "Boko Haram to be fought on all sides". Nigerian News.Net. http://www.nigeriannews.net/index.php/sid/222083321/scat/8db1f72cde37faf3/ht/Boko-Haram-to-be-fought-on-all-sides. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
- ^ The Arabic name nahr al-anhur is a direct translation of the Tuareg.
- ^ "''Online Etymological Dictionary''". Etymonline.com. http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Niger. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ Kleiner, Fred S.; Christin J. Mamiya (2009). Gardner's Art Through the Ages: Non-Western Perspectives (13, revised ed.). Cengage Learning. p. 194. ISBN 0-495-57367-1. http://books.google.com/?id=TlVeuxIgjwQC&dq=Nok+terracotta+earliest.
- ^ "Nok Terracottas (500 B.C.–200 A.D.) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art". Metmuseum.org. 2014-06-02. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nok/hd_nok.htm. Retrieved 2014-07-16.
- ^ a b Falola, Toyin; Heaton, Matthew M. (2008). A history of Nigeria. Cambridge University Press. p. 23. ISBN 0-521-68157-X. http://books.google.com/books?id=XygZjbNRap0C&pg=PA23.
- ^ Laitin, David D. (1986). Hegemony and culture: politics and religious change among the Yoruba. University of Chicago Press. p. 111. ISBN 0-226-46790-2. http://books.google.com/books?id=dHbrDvGQEbUC&pg=PA111.
- ^ MacDonald, Fiona; Paren, Elizabeth; Shillington, Kevin; Stacey, Gillian; Steele, Philip (2000). Peoples of Africa, Volume 1. Marshall Cavendish. p. 385. ISBN 0-7614-7158-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=joh5yHfcF-8C&pg=PA385.
- ^ Metz, Helen Chapin (1991). "Nigeria: A Country Study – The Slave Trade". Library of Congress Country Studies. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/7.htm. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ a b Juang, Richard M. (2008). Africa and the Americas: culture, politics, and history : a multidisciplinary encyclopedia, Volume 2. ABC-CLIO. p. 597. ISBN 1-85109-441-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=wFrAOqfhuGYC&pg=PA597.
- ^ Hrbek, Ivan (1992). Africa from the seventh to the eleventh Century. James Currey Publishers. p. 254. ISBN 0-85255-093-6. http://books.google.com/books?id=qDFcD0BuekQC&pg=PA254.
- ^ Uzukwu, E. Elochukwu (1997). Worship as Body Language. Liturgical Press. p. 93. ISBN 0-8146-6151-3. http://books.google.com/?id=9hhmzVrYPHAC&printsec=frontcover.
- ^ "Slavery – Historical survey – Slave societies". Encyclopædia Britannica's Guide to Black History. Encyclopædia Britannica. 2011. http://www.britannica.com/blackhistory/article-24157. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ Kevin Shillington (2005). Encyclopedia of African History. Michigan University Press. p. 1401. ISBN 1-57958-455-1
- ^ "10 things about British slavery". BBC News. 3 August 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4742049.stm. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ Description de l'Afrique ... Traduite du Flamand (Amsterdam, 1686; 1st ed., 1668), between pp. 320 and 321. (Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, LC-USZ62-30841).
- ^ Garba, Safiya J., "The Impact of Colonialism on Nigerian Education and the Need for E-Learning Technique for Sustainable Development", Journal of Education and Social Research, MCSER-Mediterranean Center of Social and Educational Research (Rome; Vol. 2 (7) October 2012); p. 56 (ISSN 2239-978X)
- ^ "The end of slavery". The Story of Africa. BBC News. http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/specials/1624_story_of_africa/page56.shtml. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ Udofia, O. E. (1981). "Nigerian Political Parties: Their Role in Modernizing the Political System, 1920–1966". Journal of Black Studies 11 (4): 435–447. DOI:10.1177/002193478101100404.
- ^ Murray, Senan (30 May 2007). "Reopening Nigeria's civil war wounds". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/6657259.stm. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ "Background Paper on Nigeria and Biafra, Declassified Documents reference System.
- ^ Metz, Helen Chapin (1991). "Nigeria: A Country Study – Civil War". Library of Congress Country Studies. http://countrystudies.us/nigeria/23.htm. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ "''The Biafra War and the Age of Pestilence''". Litencyc.com. http://www.litencyc.com/theliterarymagazine/biafra.php. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ Shadows : Airlift and Airwar in Biafra and Nigeria 1967–1970, by Michael I. Draper
- ^ Watts, Michael (1987) State, Oil and Agriculture in Nigeria, Institute of International Studies, University of California, ISBN 0877251665.
- ^ "Nigeria, Military Faces Daunting Challenges", AP Press International, 3 March 1984. Retrieved 22 February 2007.
- ^ "Nigeria stays calms as leader toppled in bloodless coup", The Globe and Mail, 28 August 1985. Retrieved 22 February 2007
- ^ Holman, Michael (24 February 1986) "Nigeria, Politics; Religious Differences Intensify", Financial Times
- ^ Bilski, Andrew, "Broken Promises", Maclean, 6 September 1993
- ^ Diamond, Larry; Kirk-Greene, Anthony; Oyeleye Oyediran (1997) Transition without End: Nigerian Politics and Civil Society Under Babangida, Vantage Publishers, ISBN 9782458546
- ^ "Nigerian Lawyer: Abacha accounts apparently in Switzerland, Luxembourg, France, and Germany", AP press, 10 January 2000.
- ^ "Abdusalam Abubakar", Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Web. 26 October 2012.
- ^ "Final Report" (PDF). EU Election Observation Mission Nigeria 2007. http://www.eueom-ng.org/Files/final_report.pdf. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
- ^ "Nigeria's Goodluck Jonathan sworn in as president". BBC News. 6 May 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8664150.stm. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ "NASS confirms Sambo as vice president". The Punch. 18 May 2010. http://www.punchontheweb.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201005185541038. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ Akinlade, Muruf (18 May 2010). "National Assembly confirms Sambo as Vice President". MyOndoState.Com. http://www.myondostate.com/myondostate/newssend.php?id=203. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ Purefoy, Christian. "Goodluck Jonathan retains Nigerian presidency". CNN. http://articles.cnn.com/2011-04-18/world/nigeria.elections_1_illegal-voting-muhammadu-buhari-kaduna?_s=PM:WORLD. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
- ^ Charles Mwalimu. The Nigerian Legal System: Public Law. Peter Lang. 2005. Page 6.
- ^ Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, who served briefly as Nigeria's second president, devoted his government to combating this phenomenon with Decree 33, which banned 81 political parties and 26 tribal and cultural organizations in the name of national unity. See Osaghae, The Crippled Giant: Nigeria Since Independence, Indiana University Press, 1998, p. 57. ISBN 0-253-21197-2.
- ^ a b Rashid, Khadijat K. (September 2003) "Ethnicity and Sub-Nationalism in Nigeria: Movement for a Mid-West State/Ethnic Politics in Kenya and Nigeria/Federalism and Ethnic Conflict in Nigeria", African Studies Review, 46(2).
- ^ Lancia, Nicole. "Ethnic Politics in Nigeria: The Realities of Regionalism". Georgetown University. Archived from the original on 2012-02-08. http://web.archive.org/web/20120208073259/http://www12.georgetown.edu/students/organizations/nscs/capitalscholar/lancia2.html. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ McGreal, Chris (24 April 2007). "Ruling party named winner in disputed Nigerian election". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2064068,00.html. Retrieved 21 November 2008.
- ^ Ibrahim, Jibrin (2006) "Legislation and the Electoral Process: The Third Term Agenda and the Future of Nigerian Democracy". Paper for Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) Nigeria Roundtable.
- ^ Nmehielle, Vincent Obisienunwo Orlu (August 2004). "Sharia Law in the Northern States of Nigeria: To Implement or Not to Implement, the Constitutionality is the Question". Human Rights Quarterly 26 (3): pp. 730–759. DOI:10.1353/hrq.2004.0039.
- ^ Young, Andrew (20 July 2006) "Collins Edomaruse, how Obasanjo cut UK, US to size", This Day (Nigeria).
- ^ Burkett, Elinor (2009) Golda, HarperCollins, ISBN 0061873950, p. 202.
- ^ "ASAS – Africa-South America Summit". African Union. 30 November 2006. http://www.africa-union.org/root/au/Conferences/Past/2006/November/SummitASA/summit.htm. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ Timothy, Shaw (1984). "The State of Nigeria: Oil Prices Power Bases and Foreign Policy". Canadian Journal of African Studies 18 (2): 393–405. DOI:10.2307/484337.
- ^ "Egbe Omo Yoruba, National Association of Yoruba descendants in North America". yorubanation.org. 19 May 2007. http://www.yorubanation.org. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ O'Loughlin, Ed (11 March 1998) "Nigerians outshine the British brass", The Independent (London)
- ^ "Rank Order – Area". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2147rank.html. Retrieved 29 May 2011.
- ^ "Africa :: Nigeria". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. 17 May 2011. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ni.html. Retrieved 29 May 2011. *Note that coastlines, and borders based on rivers or natural features, are fractals, the length of which is imprecise and depends on the measurement convention adopted.
- ^ a b c "Regions Used to Interpret the Complexity of Nigeria". Geographical Alliance of Iowa. University of Northern Iowa. Archived from the original on 2009-04-14. http://web.archive.org/web/20090414075757/http://www.uni.edu/gai/Nigeria/Background/Standard5.html. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
- ^ a b "Nigeria". Encarta. Microsoft. http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761557915/Nigeria.html. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
- ^ a b c "The Human and Physical Characteristics of Nigeria". Geographical Alliance of Iowa. University of Northern Iowa. Archived from the original on 2010-03-28. http://web.archive.org/web/20100328172528/http://www.uni.edu/gai/Nigeria/Background/Standard4.html. Retrieved 13 August 2007.
- ^ Ogbonna, D. N. (2002). "Waste Management: A Tool for Environmental Protection in Nigeria". A Journal of the Human Environment 31 (1): 55–57.
- ^ "News.mongabay.com". News.mongabay.com. http://news.mongabay.com/2005/1117-forests.html. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "Rainforest analysis at Mongabay.com". Rainforests.mongabay.com. 2010-01-01. http://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/2000/Nigeria.htm. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "Constitution amendment: What the people want". 4 November 2012. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/11/constitution-amendment-what-the-people-want/. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
- ^ "Constitutional review: Nigeria needs broader representation". 6 December 2012. http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=106778:constitutional-review-nigeria-needs-broader-representation-&catid=203:youth-speak&Itemid=730. Retrieved 14 December 2012.
- ^ a b Onuah, Felix (29 December 2006). "Nigeria gives census result, avoids risky details". Reuters. http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L29819278.htm. Retrieved 23 November 2008.
- ^ "World Bank list of economies". http: www.worldbank.org. January 2011. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DATASTATISTICS/Resources/CLASS.XLS. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
- ^ "Nigeria (07/08)". State.gov. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2836.htm. Retrieved 21 November 2008.
- ^ "IMF Survey: Nigeria Needs Sustained Reforms to Build on Success". Imf.org. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2008/CAR021508A.htm. Retrieved 21 November 2008.
- ^ Aminu, Ayodele (13 April 2008). "allAfrica.com: Africa: IMF Forecasts 9 Percent Growth for Nigeria (Page 1 of 1)". Allafrica.com. http://allafrica.com/stories/200804140655.html.
- ^ Godwin, Atser (29 February 2008). "The Punch: IMF predicts 9% GDP growth rate for Nigeria". Punchng.com. Archived from the original on 2011-05-11. http://web.archive.org/web/20110511114933/http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20080229153046.
- ^ Odueme, Stella (9 May 2011). "RenCap projects 8% growth for Nigeria in 2011". Independentngonline.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. http://web.archive.org/web/20110722181942/http://independentngonline.com/DailyIndependent/Article.aspx?id=33492. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ "FORGET THE BRICs: Citi's Willem Buiter Presents The 11 "3G" Countries That Will Win The Future". businessinsider.com. 22 February 2011. http://www.businessinsider.com/willem-buiter-3g-countries-2011-2?slop=1. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
- ^ Olomola Ade S. (2007) “Strategies for Managing the Opportunities and Challenges of the Current Agricultural Commodity Booms in SSA” in Seminar Papers on Managing Commodity Booms in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Publication of the AERC Senior Policy Seminar IX. African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), Nairobi, Kenya
- ^ Ake, Claude (1996). Democracy and Development in Africa. Brookings Institution Press. p. 48. ISBN 0-8157-0220-5. http://books.google.com/?id=bs5rTH7GClgC&pg=PA48. Retrieved 26 December 2008.
- ^ a b c d e Nigeria agriculture
- ^ Williams, Lizzie (2008). Nigeria: The Bradt Travel Guide. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 26. ISBN 1-84162-239-7. http://books.google.com/?id=fwuQ71ZbaOcC&pg=PA26. Retrieved 26 December 2008.
- ^ Nelson, P.H.H., Role of Reflection Seismic in Development of Nembe Creek Field, Nigeria, 1980, in Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade: 1968–1978, AAPG Memoir 30, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, ISBN0891813063, pp. 565–576
- ^ "Stakes in four Nigerian oil fields being sold by Shell". Nigeria Sun. 27 August 2014. http://www.nigeriasun.com/index.php/sid/225153307. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
- ^ a b "Remittances from diaspora Nigerians as lubricant for the economy", Nigerian Tribune, 8 September 2014.
- ^ DeRouen, Karl R. and Bellamy, Paul (2008). International Security and the United States: An Encyclopedia. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 546. ISBN 0-275-99253-5. http://books.google.com/?id=tSLeN4U_C6kC&pg=PA546. Retrieved 26 December 2008.
- ^ Lewis, Peter (2007). Growing Apart: Oil, Politics, and Economic Change in Indonesia and Nigeria. University of Michigan Press. p. 168. ISBN 0-472-06980-2. http://books.google.com/?id=T4-rlVeb1n0C&pg=PA168. Retrieved 26 December 2008.
- ^ Safire, William, The New York Times (2007). The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge: A Desk Reference for the Curious Mind. Macmillan. p. 1093. ISBN 0-312-37659-6. http://books.google.com/?id=-BIGv9vIoqcC&pg=PA1093.
- ^ "Innoson cars will sell for N1 million in 2014 – Chukwuma". The Abuja Inquirer. http://theabujainquirer.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130:innoson-cars-will-sell-for-n1-million-in-2014-chukwuma&catid=88&Itemid=702. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ Okonji, Emma (24 October 2013). "Zinox Introduces Tablet Range of Computers, Plans Commercial Launch". This Day. This Day Live. http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/zinox-introduces-tablet-range-of-computers-plans-commercial-launch/162517/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ Onuba, Ifeanyi (4 October 2014). "FG raises tariff on imported cars". Punch Newspaper. Punch NG. http://www.punchng.com/business/business-economy/fg-raises-tariff-on-imported-cars/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ Clement, Udeme (19 January 2014). "Will the new automotive policy give us affordable made-in-Nigeria car?". Vanguard. Vanguard Nigeria. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/01/will-new-automotive-policy-give-us-affordable-made-nigeria-car/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ Agande, Ben (24 January 2014). "Nissan to role out 1st made in Nigeria cars in April". Vanguard, Nigeria. Vanguard. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/01/nissan-role-1st-made-nigeria-cars-april/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ "Industrial hub: Why more companies are moving to Ogun". Vanguard Nigeria. 19 June 2013. http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/06/why-more-companies-are-moving-to-ogun/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ "Ogun State’s rising investment profile". Daily NewsWatch. 5 May 2013. http://www.mydailynewswatchng.com/2013/05/05/ogun-states-rising-investment-profile/. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ "Ogun State: Nigeria's new Industrial hub". Online Nigeria News. 27 November 2012. http://news2.onlinenigeria.com/news/top-stories/219914-ogun-state-nigeria%E2%80%99s-new-industrial-hub.html. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
- ^ a b "Nigeria has a Satellite in Orbit! (NigeriaSat-1)". Nairaland. 9 May 2005. Archived from the original on 2011-07-26. http://web.archive.org/web/20110726152137/http://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-192.0.html.
- ^ "'Technical problems' shut down Nigerian satellite". AFP. 12 November 2008. http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5g4S4e2LVeoER0jCP79S0gw3tjp7A.
- ^ http://www.cgwic.com/In-OrbitDelivery/CommunicationsSatellite/Program/NigComSat-1.html
- ^ "Nigcomsat-1 Program – In-Orbit Delivery Program – Communications Satellite". CGWIC. http://www.cgwic.com/In-OrbitDelivery/CommunicationsSatellite/Program/NigComSat-1.html. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
- ^ "Nigeria Launches Satellite in China". African Spotlight. http://africanspotlight.com/2011/12/nigeria-launches-satellite-in-china/. Retrieved 10 March 2012.
- ^ a b CO2 Emissions from Fuel Combustion Population 1971–2008 IEA pdf pp. 83–85
- ^ "Young vs. Old". Rferl.org. http://www.rferl.org/contentinfographics/wolrd-bank-global-population-map/25451252.html. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "50 Things You Didn't Know About Africa". World Bank. http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/polsc325-4.1-50-Things-you-didnt-know-about-Africa.pdf. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
- ^ Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan urges birth control retrieved 2 July 2012
- ^ "World Population TO INCREASE BY 2.6 BILLION OVER NEXT 45 YEARS, WITH ALL GROWTH OCCURRING IN LESS DEVELOPED REGIONS". UN. http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2005/pop918.doc.htm. Retrieved 21 November 2008.
- ^ "Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat". UN. 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. http://web.archive.org/web/20110611141930/http://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/unpp/Panel_profiles.htm. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
- ^ Kent, Mary Mederios; Carl Haub (December 2005). "The Demographic Divide: What It Is and Why It Matters". Population Reference Bureau. http://www.prb.org/Articles/2005/TheDemographicDivideWhatItIsandWhyItMatters.aspx. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ "What do you think of Nigeria?". BBC News. 16 June 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5072244.stm. Retrieved 5 August 2008.
- ^ a b c "Country Profile – Nigeria". United States Library of Congress – Federal Research Division. July 2008. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Nigeria.pdf. Retrieved 28 May 2011.
- ^ McDonald, John F.; Daniel P. McMillen (2010). Urban Economics and Real Estate: Theory and Policy. Wiley Desktop Editions (2 ed.). John Wiley & Sons. p. 9. ISBN 978-0-470-59148-2.
- ^ "NIGERIA: Lagos, the mega-city of slums". Integrated Regional Information Networks. 5 September 2006. http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=60811. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ "Nigeria" in Geographica: The complete Atlas of the world, Random House, 2002, ISBN 0375720375
- ^ Lewis, Peter (2007). Growing Apart: Oil, Politics, and Economic Change in Indonesia and Nigeria. University of Michigan Press. p. 132. ISBN 0-472-06980-2. http://books.google.com/?id=T4-rlVeb1n0C&pg=PA132.
- ^ Suberu, Rotimi T. (2001). Federalism and Ethnic Conflict in Nigeria. US Institute of Peace Press. p. 154. ISBN 1-929223-28-5. http://books.google.com/?id=WKeUMmDlPkEC&pg=PA154.
- ^ Politzer, Malia (August 2008). "China and Africa: Stronger Economic Ties Mean More Migration". Migration Information Source. http://www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?id=690. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ Simpson, Sarah (August 2008). "Why white Zimbabwean farmers plan to stay in Nigeria". The Christian Science Monitor. http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/0502/p04s01-woaf.html. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ Toyin Falola; The History of Nigeria, Greenwood Press, 1999. pp. 41,47.
- ^ Abiola Dosumu Elegbede-Fernandez, Lagos A Legacy of Honour. Spectrum Books, 1992. pp. 19,27.
- ^ Adegbija, Efurosibina E. (2003). Multilingualism: A Nigerian Case Study. Last paragraph: Africa World Press. p. 55. ISBN 1-59221-173-9. http://books.google.com/?id=auI_WuBrWncC&pg=PA55. Retrieved 26 December 2008.
- ^ a b "Religion – NigeriaInformation". NigeriaBusinessFile. https://www.nigeriabusinessfile.com/information/people/religion. Retrieved 2014-07-16.
- ^ a b "Table: Christian Population in Numbers by Country | Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project". Features.pewforum.org. 2011-12-19. http://features.pewforum.org/global-christianity/population-number.php. Retrieved 2014-07-16.
- ^ Owobi Angrew, Tiptoeing Through A Constitutional Minefield: The Great Sharia Controversy in Nigeria, Journal of African Law, Vol 48, No 2, 2002.
- ^ "Kano Seeks Supremacy of Sharia Over Constitution". wwrn.org. 17 March 2005. http://wwrn.org/articles/15994/. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ "Diversity in Nigerian Islam". http://www3.qeh.ox.ac.uk/pdf/nrn/nrn-pp01.pdf. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
- ^ "2001 Report on International Religious Freedom – Nigeria". State.gov. http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2001/5687.htm. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "Religions". CIA World Factbook. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html#ni. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
- ^ "Pew Forum on Religion". Features.pewforum.org. 2012-12-18. http://features.pewforum.org/grl/population-percentage.php. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "Religious Adherents, 2010 – Nigeria". World Christian Database. http://www.thearda.com/internationalData/countries/Country_166_2.asp. Retrieved 28 July 2013.
- ^ "Regional Distribution of Christians". Pewforum.org. http://www.pewforum.org/2011/12/19/global-christianity-regions/. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ Distribution of Christians
- ^ "The Future of the Global Muslim Population". Pewforum.org. http://www.pewforum.org/2011/01/27/the-future-of-the-global-muslim-population/. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
- ^ "Nigeria: a secular or multi religious state – 2". http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/columnist/thursday/jide-osuntokun/46858-nigeria-a-secular-or-multi-religious-state-2.html. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
- ^ "The Middle Belt: History and politics". Nasarawastate.org. 2004-11-29. http://www.nasarawastate.org/newsday/news/culture/11129114540.html. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "The Academic Study of Religion in Nigeria". Retrieved on 15 April 2014.
- ^ "Aladura Christianity: A Yoruba Religion". Retrieved on 15 April 2014.
- ^ Ebonugwo, Mike (1 September 2004). "Day Hare Krishna Came to Town". wwrn.org. http://wwrn.org/articles/5544/?&place=nigeria§ion=hari-krishna. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
- ^ "Country Profile – Nigeria". centers for disease control and prevention. 2005. http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/od/gap/countries/docs/04profiles/FY04%20OGAC%20Nigeria.Final.pdf. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
- ^ "Nigerian state thwarts polio push". BBC News. 22 March 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3556777.stm. Retrieved 7 September 2006.
- ^ "User fees for health: a background". Archived from the original on 28 November 2006. http://web.archive.org/web/20061128203803/http://www.eldis.org/healthsystems/userfees/background.htm. Retrieved 28 December 2006.
- ^ "Effect of the Bamako-Initiative drug revolving fund on availability and rational use of essential drugs in primary health care facilities in south-east Nigeria". http://heapol.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/17/4/378. Retrieved 28 December 2006.
- ^ Anekwe, Mike Chinedu (April 2003). "BRAIN DRAIN: THE NIGERIAN EXPERIENCE (1)". Niger Delta Congress. http://www.nigerdeltacongress.com/barticles/brain_drain_the_nigerian_experie.htm. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ CIA world factbook: HIV/AIDS – adult prevalence rate. Cia.gov. Retrieved on 9 April 2012.
- ^ "UNAIDS World AIDS Day Report 2011" (PDF). UNAIDS. http://www.unaids.org/en/media/unaids/contentassets/documents/unaidspublication/2011/JC2216_WorldAIDSday_report_2011_en.pdf. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
- ^ http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/10/why-nigeria-stopped-ebola-but-not-boko-haram/381442/
- ^ a b "Country profile: nigeria". Library of Congress–Federal Research Division. July 2008. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Nigeria.pdf. Retrieved 7 June 2011. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Organized Crime: African Criminal Enterprises". Federal Bureau of Investigation. http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/organizedcrime/african. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ "Cults of violence – How student fraternities turned into powerful and well-armed gangs". The Economist. 31 July 2008. http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11849078. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ Olukoya, Sam (20 February 2003). "Crime war rages in Nigeria". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/1443902.stm. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ Glickman, Harvey (2005). "The Nigerian "419" Advance Fee Scams: Prank or Peril?". Haverford College, Department of Political science. Archived from the original on 15 January 2005. http://web.archive.org/web/20050115001333/http://www.haverford.edu/pols/faculty/glickman/Articles/CJAS_Text_final_1-35.pdf. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
- ^ "Economic and Financial Crimes Commission – EFCC – Home". Efccnigeria.org. http://www.efccnigeria.org. Retrieved 21 December 2010.
- ^ "Maritime Security: Current Threats and Implications". http://www.pacmar.com/story/2013/10/01/features/maritime-security-current-threats-and-implications/184.html.
- ^ Chima, Obinna (4 December 2014). "Nigeria Records Improvement, Ranked 39th on Corruption Index". This Day Live. http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/nigeria-records-improvement-ranked-39th-on-corruption-index/195767/. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ "A Failure of Democracy in Nigeria". Time. 23 April 2007. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1613615,00.html.
- ^ Tim Cocks and Joe Brock (6 February 2015). "Special Report: Anatomy of Nigeria's $20 billion "leak"". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/06/us-nigeria-election-banker-specialreport-idUSKBN0LA0X820150206. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
- ^ "NNPC Audit: No Missing $20 Billion". Nigerian Bulletin. http://www.nigerianbulletin.com/threads/nnpc-audit-no-missing-20-billion-%E2%80%93-bloomberg.107644/. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
- ^ Thompson, Bob (14 March 2008). "An enduring classic". The Standard. http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=16&art_id=63036&sid=18059567&con_type=3&d_str=&fc=10. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ Adams, S. Black President: The Art and Legacy of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti: New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York; This Is Lagos: Yabis Night, Music and Fela: Skoto Gallery, New York [Exhibit]. African Arts v. 37 no. 1 (Spring 2004 Country .
- ^ "AP/CNN: MTV launches first-ever African music award show". CNN. 22 November 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-12-09. http://web.archive.org/web/20081209102925/http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/Music/11/22/MTV.Africa.ap/index.html. Retrieved 26 November 2008.
- ^ "Nollywood: Lights, camera, Africa", The Economist, 18 December 2010, pp. 85–88.
- ^ Manasa, Makweembo (11 February 2010). "TB Joshua – 21st Century Prophet in Our Midst?". Zambian Watchdog. http://www.zambianwatchdog.com/2010/02/11/tb-joshua-21st-century-prophet-in-our-midst/.
- ^ Anthonio, H.O. and Isoun, M. (1982) "Nigerian Cookbook", Macmillan, Lagos, ISBN 0333326989.
- ^ "Nigerian Basketball". Africabasket.com. 2011. http://www.africabasket.com/Nigeria/basketball.asp. Retrieved 7 June 2011.
- ^ OQTM – Nigeria celebrates 'greatest' victory, fiba.com, accessed 16 December 2012.
- ^ a b "2008 Human Rights Report: Nigeria". 2008 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. United States, Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 25 February 2009. http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2008/af/119018.htm. Retrieved 20 March 2009.
- ^ "Nigeria's child brides: 'I thought being in labour would never end'". The Guardian. September 9, 2013. http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2013/sep/02/nigeria-child-brides-religion.
- ^ "30 million trapped in a life of slavery". The Scotsman. October 18, 2013
- ^ "Sub Saharan Africa, Nigeria". Travel advice by country. United Kingdom, Foreign & Commonwealth Office. 20 March 2009. Archived from the original on 2011-05-24. http://web.archive.org/web/20110524133652/http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/sub-saharan-africa/nigeria?ta=lawsCustoms&pg=3. Retrieved 20 March 2009.
- ^ "Nigeria's president signs law imposing up to 14 years' jail for gay relationships'". The Guardian. January 13, 2013. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/13/nigerian-president-signs-anti-gay-law.
- ^ Ries, Brian (6 May 2014). "Bring Back Our Girls: Why the World Is Finally Talking About Nigeria's Kidnapped Students". Mashable. http://mashable.com/2014/05/06/nigeria-girls-bringbackourgirls/. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
- ^ Litoff, Alyssa (6 May 2014). "Home> International 'Bring Back Our Girls' Becomes Rallying Cry for Kidnapped Nigerian Schoolgirls". ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/International/bring-back-girls-rallying-cry-kidnapped-nigerian-schoolgirls/story?id=23611012. Retrieved 7 May 2014.
- ^ "'2002:Riots force Miss World out of Nigeria'". BBC News. 23 November 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/23/newsid_3226000/3226740.stm. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "'Hundreds dead' in Nigeria attack". BBC News. 8 March 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8555018.stm.
- ^ Poison Fire
External links[]
Find more about Nigeria on Wikipedia's sister projects: |
Definitions from Wiktionary | |
Textbooks from Wikibooks | |
Quotations from Wikiquote | |
Source texts from Wikisource | |
Images and media from Commons | |
News stories from Wikinews | |
Learning resources from Wikiversity |
- Official website
- Wikimedia Atlas of Nigeria
- Media related to Banknotes of Nigeria at Wikimedia Commons
- CIA World Factbook entry on Nigeria
Template:Nigeria topics
|
|
|
This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Nigeria. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License. |