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Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mau ...
. It is situated between the Sahel
The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid c ...
to the north and the Gulf of Guinea
The Gulf of Guinea is the northeasternmost part of the tropical Atlantic Ocean from Cape Lopez in Gabon, north and west to Cape Palmas in Liberia. The intersection of the Equator and Prime Meridian (zero degrees latitude and longitude) is in the ...
to the south in the Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...
. It covers an area of , and with a population
Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, region, country, continent, or the world. Governments typically quantify the size of the resident population within their jurisdiction using ...
of over 225 million, it is the most populous country in Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, and the world's sixth-most populous country. Nigeria borders Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languagesthe north,
Kainji Dam excavations showed ironworking by the 2nd century BC. The transition from
In the 16th century, 
In the north, the incessant fighting amongst the Hausa city-states and the decline of the
Nigeria is divided into two main catchment areas - that of Lake Chad and that of the Niger. The Niger catchment area covers about 63% of the country. The main tributary of the Niger is the Benue, whose tributaries extend beyond Cameroon into Cameroon into Chad and the Sharie catchment area.
The Chad Basin is fed from the north-eastern quarter of Nigeria. The Bauchi Plateau forms the watershed between the Niger/Benue and Komadugu Yobe river systems. The flat plains of north-eastern Nigeria are geographically part of the Chad Basin, where the course of the El Beid River forms the border with Cameroon, from the Mandara Mountains to Lake Chad. The Komadugu Yobe river system gives rise to the internationally important Hadejia-Nguru wetlands and Ox-bow lakes around Lake Nguru in the rainy season. Other rivers of the northeast include the Ngadda and the Yedseram, both of which flow through the Sambisa swamps, thus forming a river system. The river system of the northeast is also a major river system.
In addition, Nigeria has numerous coastal rivers.
Nigeria is covered by three types of vegetation: forests (where there is significant tree cover),
Nigeria is a
Nigeria is divided into thirty-six states and one
Upon gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria made African unity the centrepiece of its foreign policy. One exception to the African focus was Nigeria's close relationship developed with Israel throughout the 1960s. Israel sponsored and oversaw the construction of Nigeria's parliament buildings.
Nigeria's foreign policy was put to the test in the 1970s after the country emerged united from its civil war. It supported movements against white minority governments in the Southern Africa sub-region. Nigeria backed the
The Nigerian Armed Forces are the Military, combined military forces of Nigeria. It consists of three uniformed service branches: the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, and Nigerian Air Force. The President of Nigeria functions as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, exercising his Constitution of Nigeria, constitutional authority through the Ministry of Defence, which is responsible for the management of the military and its personnel. The operational head of the AFN is the Chief of the Defence Staff (Nigeria), Chief of the Defence Staff, who is subordinate to the Defence Minister of Nigeria, Nigerian Defence Minister. With a force of more than 223,000 active personnel, the Nigerian military is one of the largest uniformed combat services in Africa.
Nigeria has 143,000 troops in the armed forces (army 100,000, navy 25,000, air force 18,000) and another 80,000 personnel for "gendarmerie & paramilitary" in 2020, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies. By comparison, Poland has 114,500 troops in armed forces and "paramilitary" and Germany 183,500, according to the same source.
Nigeria spent just under 0.4 per cent of its economic output, or US$1.6 billion, on its armed forces in 2017. For 2022, US$2.26 billion has been budgeted for the Nigerian armed forces, which is just over a third of Belgium, Belgium's Military budget, defence budget (US$5.99 billion).
The Chief of Defence Staff since January 2021 is General Lucky Irabor, an expert in counter-terrorism. The Defence Staff also includes the Chiefs of Army Staff Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, Air Staff Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao and Naval Staff Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo.
Boko Haram has been responsible for numerous serious attacks with thousands of casualties since mid-2010. Since then, according to the Council on Foreign Relations' Nigeria Security Tracker, over 41,600 lives have been lost to this conflict (as of October 2022). The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR counts about 1.8 million internally displaced persons and about 200,000 Nigerian refugees in neighbouring countries who have fled the fighting in north-eastern Nigeria.
The Boko Haram-affected states agreed in February 2015 to establish an 8,700-strong Multinational Joint Task Force to jointly fight Boko Haram. By October 2015, Boko Haram had been driven out of all the cities it controlled and almost all the counties in north-eastern Nigeria. In 2016, Boko Haram split and in 2022, 40,000 fighters surrendered. The splinter group Islamic State – West Africa Province, ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa) remains active.
Nigeria's economy is the largest in Africa, the 31st-largest in the world by nominal GDP, and List of countries by GDP (PPP), 30th-largest by purchasing power parity, PPP. List of countries by GDP (PPP), GDP (PPP) per capita is US$9,148 (as of 2022), which is less than South Africa, Egypt or Morocco, but a little more than Ghana or Ivory Coast.
Before 1999, economic development has been hindered by years of Military dictatorship, 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. After 2015, the Nigerian economy was able to diversify somewhat. Apart from oil and gas, Nigeria exports Fertilizer, fertilisers and cement/cement board, moulded polypropylene (plastic) products, Personal care, personal care products, paint, Malt drink, malt beverages and armoured vehicles. Nigeria is a leader in Africa as a financial market, in Medication, pharmaceuticals and in the Entertainment, entertainment industry. Its well-developed Highway, highway system and growing Rail transport, rail network also make it a Logistics, logistical hub in the region. Nigeria's Steelmaking, steel production is one sixth of the UK's steel production. Next to petroleum, the second-largest source of foreign exchange earnings for Nigeria are remittances sent home by Nigerians living abroad.
Nigeria has a lower-middle-income economy, with an abundant supply of natural resources. Its wide array of underexploited mineral resources include coal, bauxite, tantalite, gold, tin, iron ore, limestone, niobium, lead and zinc. Despite huge deposits of these natural resources, the mining industry in Nigeria is still in its infancy.
In 2021, about 23.4% of Nigeria's GDP is contributed by agriculture, forestery and fishing combined. As far as Cassava production in Nigeria, cassava is concerned, Nigeria is the world's largest producer. Further major crops include beans, sesame, cashew nuts, cocoa beans, Bambara groundnut, groundnuts, gum arabic, kolanut, maize (corn), melon, millet, palm kernels, palm oil, Plantain (cooking), plantains, rice, rubber, sorghum, soybeans and Yam (vegetable), yams. Cocoa bean, Cocoa is the leading non-oil foreign exchange earner. Rubber is the second-largest non-oil foreign exchange earner.
Before the Nigerian Civil War, Nigerian civil war, Nigeria was self-sufficient in food. Agriculture used to be the principal foreign exchange earner of Nigeria. Agriculture has failed to keep pace with Nigeria's rapid population growth, and Nigeria now relies upon food imports to sustain itself. It spends US$6.7 billion yearly for food imports, four times more than revenues from food export. The Nigerian government promoted the use of inorganic fertilizers in the 1970s.
Nigeria's rice production increased by 10% from 2017/18 to 2021/22 to 5 million tonnes a year, but could hardly keep up with the increased demand. Rice imports therefore remained constant at 2 million tonnes per year. In August 2019, Nigeria closed its border with Benin and other neighbouring countries to stop rice smuggling into the country as part of efforts to boost local production.
Until now, Nigeria exported unhusked rice but had to import husked rice, the country's staple food. - The Imota rice mill, rice mill in Imota, near Lagos, is intended to handle the corresponding processing at home, improve the balance of trade and the labour market, and save unnecessary costs for transport and middlemen. When fully operational at the end of 2022, the plant, the largest south of the Sahara, is expected to employ 250,000 people and produce 2.5 million 50-kg bags of rice annually.
Nigeria is the 12th largest producer of petroleum in the world, the 8th largest exporter, and has the 10th largest proven reserves. 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
Nigeria has a manufacturing industry that includes leather and textiles (centred in Kano, Abeokuta, Onitsha, and Lagos), plastics and processed food. Ogun State, Ogun is considered to be Nigeria's current industrial hub, as most factories are located in Ogun and more companies are moving there, followed by Lagos. The city of Aba, Abia, Aba in the south-eastern part of the country is well known for handicrafts and shoes, known as "Aba made". Nigeria has a market of 720,000 cars per year, but less than 20% of these are produced domestically.
In 2016 (the last year from which data is available), Nigeria was the Cement production by country, leading cement producer south of the Sahara, ahead of South Africa. Aliko Dangote, Nigeria's richest inhabitant, based his wealth on cement production. According to its own information, the Ajaokuta Steel Mill, Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited produces 1.3 million tonnes of steel per year. This would be equivalent to one-sixth of the United Kingdom, UK's steel production in 2021. However, steel plants in
Nigeria has a Banking in Nigeria, 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.
Due to Nigeria's location in the centre of Africa, Transport in Nigeria, transport plays a major role in the national service sector. The government under Buhari initiated improvements to the infrastructure after 2015. Extensive road repairs and new construction have been carried out gradually as states in particular spend their share of increased government allocations. Representative of these improvements is the Second Niger bridge, Second Niger Bridge near Onitsha, which was largely completed in 2022.
Telecommunications in Nigeria, Nigerian telecommunications market is one of the fastest-growing in the world, with major emerging market operators (like MTN Group, MTN, 9mobile, Airtel and Globacom) basing their largest and most profitable centres in the country. Nigeria's ICT sector has experienced a lot of growth, representing 10% of the nation's GDP in 2018 as compared to just 1% in 2001. Lagos is regarded as one of the largest technology hubs in Africa with its thriving tech ecosystem. According to a survey by the GSM Association, 92% of adult Nigerian men and 88% of women owned a mobile phone. Using various measures including but not limited to Illegal arrest, taking down of websites, passport seizures, and restricted access to bank accounts, the Telecommunications in Nigeria#Internet censorship and surveillance, Nigerian government is punishing citizens for expressing themselves on the internet and working to stifle internet freedom.
Tourism in Nigeria centres largely on events, because of the country's ample amount of ethnic groups, but also includes rain forests, savannah, waterfalls, and other natural attractions.
Abuja is home to several parks and green areas. The largest, Millennium Park (Abuja), Millennium Park, was designed by architect Manfredi Nicoletti and officially opened in December 2003. After the re-modernization project achieved by the administration of Governor Raji Babatunde Fashola, Lagos is gradually becoming a major tourist destination. Lagos is currently taking steps to become a global city. The 2009 Eyo carnival (a yearly festival originating from Iperu, Ogun, Iperu Remo, Ogun State) was a step toward world city status. Currently, Lagos is primarily known as a business-oriented and fast-paced community. Lagos has become an important location for African and black cultural identity.
Lagos has sandy beaches by the Atlantic Ocean, including Elegushi Beach and Alpha Beach. Lagos also has many private beach resorts including Inagbe Grand Beach Resort and several others in the outskirts. Lagos has a variety of hotels ranging from three-star to five-star hotels, with a mixture of local hotels such as Eko Hotels and Suites, Federal Palace Hotel and franchises of multinational chains such as InterContinental, Intercontinental Hotel, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Sheraton, and Four Points by Sheraton. Other places of interest include the Tafawa Balewa Square, Festac town, The Nike Art Gallery, Freedom Park (Lagos), Freedom Park, and the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos, Cathedral Church of Christ.
Nigeria's primary energy consumption was about 108 Tonne of oil equivalent, Mtoe in 2011. Most of the energy comes from traditional biomass and waste, which account for 83% of total primary production. The rest is from fossil fuels (16%) and hydropower (1%). Since independence, Nigeria has tried to develop a domestic nuclear industry for energy. Since 2004, Nigeria has had a Chinese-origin research reactor at Ahmadu Bello University and has sought the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency to develop plans for up to 4,000 MWe of nuclear capacity by 2027 according to the National Program for the Deployment of Nuclear Power for Generation of Electricity. In 2007, President
Nigeria has the largest road network in
The
Population 1971–2008 IE
pdf
pp. 83–85 Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and accounts for about 17% of the continent's total population as of 2017; however, exactly how populous is a subject of speculation. Millions of Nigerians have emigrated during 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. Nigeria's largest city is
525 languages have been spoken in Nigeria; eight of them 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 which 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 and English.
The major languages spoken in Nigeria represent three major families of languages of Africa: the majority are Niger–Congo languages, Niger-Congo languages, such as Igbo language, Igbo, Yoruba language, Yoruba, Ibibio language, Ibibio, Ijaw languages, Ijaw, Fula language, Fulfulde, Ogoni languages, Ogoni, and Edo language, Edo. Kanuri language, Kanuri, spoken in the northeast, primarily in Borno State, Borno and Yobe State, is part of the Nilo-Saharan languages, Nilo-Saharan family, and Hausa language, Hausa is an Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language. Even though most ethnic groups prefer to communicate in their languages, English as the official language is widely used for education, business transactions and official purposes. English as a first language is used by only 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 three main languages spoken in Nigeria.
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 several different dialects and are widely spoken by those ethnic groups. Nigerian Pidgin, 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 Region.
Nigeria is a religiously diverse society, with Islam and Christianity being the most widely professed religions. Nigerians are nearly equally divided into Muslims and
(Retrieved 9 May 2020) The Christian share of Nigeria's population is on the decline because of the lower Total fertility rate, fertility rate compared to Muslims in the country. As in other parts of Africa where Islam and Christianity are dominant, religious syncretism with the traditional African religions is common. A 2012 report on religion and public life by the Pew Research Center stated that in 2010, 49.3 per cent of Nigeria's population was Christian, 48.8 per cent was Muslim, and 1.9 per cent were followers of indigenous and other religions or unaffiliated. However, in a report released by Pew Research Center in 2015, the Muslim population was estimated to be 50%, and by 2060, according to the report, Muslims will account for about 60% of the country. The 2010 census of Association of Religion Data Archives has also reported that 48.8% of the total population was Christian, slightly larger than the Muslim population of 43.4%, while 7.5% were members of other religions. 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. Islam dominates North-Western Nigeria (Hausa, Fulani and others), with 99% Muslim, and Northern Eastern Nigeria (Kanuri, Fulani and other groups). In the west, the Yoruba tribe is predominantly of mixed Muslim and Christian backgrounds, with a few adherents of traditional religions. Protestantism, Protestant and locally cultivated Christianity are widely practised in Western areas, while Catholic Church, Roman Catholicism is a more prominent Christian feature of South Eastern Nigeria. Both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism are observed in the Ibibio, Efik people, Efik, Ijaw people, Ijo and Ogoni lands of the south. The Igbos (predominant in the east) and the Ibibio people, Ibibio (south) are 98% Christian, with 2% practising traditional religions. The Middle Belt, 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.
Health care delivery in Nigeria is a concurrent responsibility of the three tiers of government in the country, and the private sector. Nigeria has been reorganising its health system since the Bamako Initiative of 1987, which formally promoted community-based methods of increasing accessibility of drugs and health care services to the population, in part by implementing user fees. The new strategy dramatically increased accessibility through community-based health care 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.
HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, HIV/AIDS rate in Nigeria is much lower compared to the other African nations such as Botswana or South Africa whose prevalence (percentage) rates are in the double digits. , the HIV prevalence rate among adults ages 15–49 was 1.5 per cent. The life expectancy in Nigeria is 54.7 years on average, and 71% and 39% of the population have access to improved water sources and improved sanitation, respectively. , the infant mortality is 74.2 deaths per 1,000 live birth (human), live births.
In 2012, a new bone marrow donor program was launched by the University of Nigeria to help people with leukaemia, lymphoma, or sickle cell disease to find a compatible donor for a life-saving Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, bone marrow transplant, which cures them of their conditions. Nigeria became the second African country to have successfully carried out this surgery. In the Western African Ebola virus epidemic, 2014 Ebola outbreak, Nigeria was the first country to effectively contain and eliminate the Ebola threat that was ravaging three other countries in the West African region; the unique method of contact tracing employed by Nigeria became an effective method later used by countries such as the United States when Ebola threats were discovered.
The Nigerian health care system is continuously faced with a shortage of doctors known as "Human capital flight, brain drain", because of emigration by skilled Nigerian doctors to North America and Europe. In 1995, an estimated 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.
Nigeria is home to a Organized crime in Nigeria, substantial network of organised crime, active especially in Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking, shipping heroin from Asian countries to Europe and America; and cocaine from South America to Europe and South Africa.
Various Confraternities in Nigeria, Nigerian confraternities or student "campus cults" are active in both organised crime and 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. In lower levels of society, there are the "area boys", organised gangs mostly active in Lagos who specialise in a mugging and small-scale drug dealing. Gang violence in Lagos resulted in 273 civilians and 84 policemen being killed from August 2000 to May 2001.
There is some piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, 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 globally between January and June 2013 were in Nigeria.
Internationally, Nigeria is infamous for a form of bank fraud dubbed ''419'', a type of advance-fee scam (named after Section 419 of the Nigerian Penal Code) along with the "Nigerian scam", a form of confidence trick practised by individuals and criminal syndicates. 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 them and they will get to keep a cut. In reality, money is taken out instead, or large fees (which seem small in comparison with the imaginary wealth to be gained) are deducted. In 2003, the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was created to combat this and other forms of organised financial crime, and in some cases, it has succeeded in bringing the crime bosses to justice and even managing to return the stolen money to victims.
Nigeria's human rights record remains poor. According to the U.S. Department of State, the most significant human rights problems are the 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 centre conditions; human trafficking for prostitution and forced labour, societal violence and vigilante killings, Child labour in Nigeria, child labour, child abuse and Child sexual abuse in Nigeria, child sexual exploitation, Domestic violence in Nigeria, domestic violence, discrimination based on ethnicity, region and religion.
Nigeria is a state party of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women It also has signed the Maputo Protocol, an international treaty on women's rights, and the African Union Women's Rights Framework. Discrimination based on sex is a significant human rights issue. Forced marriages are common. Child marriage in Nigeria, Child marriage remains common in Northern Nigeria; 39% of girls are married before age 15, although the Marriage Rights Act banning marriage of girls below 18 years old was introduced on a federal level in 2008. There is rampant Polygamy in Nigeria, polygamy in Northern Nigeria. Submission of the wife to her husband and Domestic violence in Nigeria, domestic violence are common. Women have fewer land rights. Maternal death, Maternal mortality was at 814 per 100,000 live births in 2015. Female genital mutilation in Nigeria, Female genital mutilation is common, although a ban was implemented in 2015. In Nigeria, at least half a million suffer from Urogenital fistula, vaginal fistula, largely as a result of lack of medical care. Early marriages can result in the fistula.
Gender inequality in Nigeria, Women face a large amount of inequality politically in Nigeria, being subjugated to a bias that is Sexism, sexist and reinforced by socio-cultural, economic and oppressive ways. Women throughout the country were only politically Emancipation, emancipated in 1979. Yet husbands continue to dictate the votes for many women in Nigeria, which upholds the patriarchal system. Most workers in the Informal economy, informal sector are women. Women's representation in government since independence from Britain is very poor. Women have been reduced to sideline roles in appointive posts throughout all levels of government and still make up a tiny minority of elected officials. But nowadays with more education available to the public, Nigerian women are taking steps to have more active roles in the public, and with the help of different initiatives, more businesses are being started by women.
Under the Sharia in Nigeria, Shari'a penal code that applies to Muslims in twelve northern states, offences such as alcohol consumption, LGBT rights in Nigeria, homosexuality, infidelity and theft carry harsh sentences, including amputation, lashing, stoning and long prison terms. According to a 2013 survey by the Pew Research Center, 98% of Nigerians believe homosexuality should not be accepted by society. In the last 23 years (as of September 2022), university workers in Nigeria have gone on strike 17 times, or for 57 months. As a result, the 2022 summer semester was cancelled nationwide.
Most Nigerian literature is written in English language, English, partly because this language is understood by most Nigerians. Literature in the Yoruba language, Yoruba, Hausa language, Hausa and Igbo language, Igbo languages (the three most populous peoples in Nigeria) does exist, however, and in the case of the Hausa, for example, can look back on a centuries-old tradition. With Wole Soyinka, Nigeria can present a Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize winner for literature. Chinua Achebe won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2007 and Ben Okri in 1991. Chinua Achebe, Achebe also won the Friedenspreis des Deutschen Buchhandels, Peace Award of the German Book Trade in 2002.
There are many festivals in Nigeria, some of which date to the period before the arrival of the major religions in this ethnically and culturally diverse society. The main Muslim and Christian festivals are often celebrated in ways that are unique to Nigeria or unique to the people of a locality. The Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation has been working with the states to upgrade the traditional festivals, which may become important sources of tourism revenue.
Football is largely considered Nigeria's national sport, and the country has its own Nigeria Professional Football League, Premier League of football. Nigeria national football team, Nigeria's national football team, known as the "Super Eagles", has made the FIFA World Cup, World Cup on six occasions 1994 FIFA World Cup, 1994, 1998 FIFA World Cup, 1998, 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2002, 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2010, 2014 FIFA World Cup, 2014, and 2018 FIFA World Cup, 2018. 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 Africa Cup of Nations, African Cup of Nations in 1980 African Cup of Nations, 1980, 1994 African Cup of Nations, 1994, and 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, 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.
Nigeria is also involved in other sports such as basketball, cricket and track and field. Boxing is also an important sport in Nigeria;. Nigeria men's national basketball team, Nigeria's national basketball team made the headlines internationally when it became the first African team to beat the United States men's national basketball team, United States men's national team. In earlier years, Nigeria qualified for the Basketball at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2012 Summer Olympics as it beat heavily favoured world elite teams such as Greece men's national basketball team, Greece and Lithuania men's national basketball team, Lithuania. Nigeria has been home to numerous internationally recognised basketball players in the world's top leagues in America, Europe and Asia. These players include Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Basketball Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon, and later players in the National Basketball Association, NBA. The Nigerian Premier League (basketball), Nigerian Premier League has become one of the biggest and most-watched basketball competitions in Africa. The games have aired on ''Kwese TV'' and have averaged a viewership of over a million people.
Nigeria made history by qualifying the first Bobsleigh, bobsled team for the Winter Olympic Games, Winter Olympics from Africa when their women's two-person team qualified for Bobsleigh at the 2018 Winter Olympics, the bobsled competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics, XXIII Olympic Winter Games. In the early 1990s, Scrabble was made an official sport in Nigeria. By the end of 2017, there were around 4,000 players in more than 100 clubs in the country. In 2018, the Nigerian Curling Federation was established to introduce a new sport to the country with the hope of getting the game to be a part of the curriculum at the elementary, high school, and university levels respectively. At the 2019 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in Norway, Nigeria won their first international match beating France 8–5.
Nigeria featured women's and men's national teams in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018–2020 CAVB Beach Volleyball Continental Cup. The country's U21 national teams qualified for the 2019 FIVB Beach Volleyball U21 World Championships.
online free
comprehensive historical and current coverage; not copyright. *Jones, Cunliffe-Peter. ''My Nigeria Five Decades of Independence. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010).'' *Achebe, Chinua. ''The trouble with Nigeria. (Fourth Dimension, 1983)''
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Nigeria
''The World Factbook''. Central Intelligence Agency. {{Authority control Nigeria, Republics in the Commonwealth of Nations Developing 8 Countries member states Economic Community of West African States English-speaking countries and territories Federal republics G15 nations Member states of OPEC Member states of the African Union Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations Member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member states of the United Nations States and territories established in 1960 West African countries 1960 establishments in Nigeria Countries in Africa 1960 establishments in Africa Former British colonies and protectorates in Africa
Chad
Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Repub ...
in the northeast, Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west- central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; th ...
in the east, and Benin
Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...
in the west
West is a cardinal direction or compass point.
West or The West may also refer to:
Geography and locations
Global context
* The Western world
* Western culture and Western civilization in general
* The Western Bloc, countries allied with NATO ...
. Nigeria is a federal republic comprising of 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory
A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal.
In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...
, where the capital, Abuja, is located. The largest city in Nigeria is Lagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
, one of the largest metropolitan areas
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
in the world and the second-largest in Africa.
Nigeria has been home to several indigenous pre-colonial states and kingdoms
Kingdom commonly refers to:
* A monarchy ruled by a king or queen
* Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy
Kingdom may also refer to:
Arts and media Television
* ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...
since the second millennium BC, with the Nok civilization in the 15th century BC, marking the first internal unification in the country. The modern state originated with British colonialization in the 19th century
A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c.
A centennial ...
, taking its present territorial shape with the merging of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate
Southern Nigeria was a British protectorate in the coastal areas of modern-day Nigeria formed in 1900 from the union of the Niger Coast Protectorate with territories chartered by the Royal Niger Company below Lokoja on the Niger River.
The Lago ...
and Northern Nigeria Protectorate
Northern Nigeria ( Hausa: ''Arewacin Najeriya'') was a British protectorate which lasted from 1900 until 1914 and covered the northern part of what is now Nigeria.
The protectorate spanned and included the emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate ...
in 1914 by Lord Lugard
Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, 1st Baron Lugard (22 January 1858 – 11 April 1945), known as Sir Frederick Lugard between 1901 and 1928, was a British soldier, mercenary, explorer of Africa and colonial administrator. He was Governor of Hong ...
. The British set up administrative and legal structures while practising indirect rule
Indirect rule was a system of governance used by the British and others to control parts of their colonial empires, particularly in Africa and Asia, which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by vario ...
through traditional chiefdoms in the Nigeria region. Nigeria became a formally independent federation on 1 October 1960. It experienced a civil war from 1967 to 1970, followed by a succession of military dictatorships
A military dictatorship is a dictatorship in which the military exerts complete or substantial control over political authority, and the dictator is often a high-ranked military officer.
The reverse situation is to have civilian control of th ...
and democratically elected civilian governments until achieving a stable democracy in the 1999 presidential election. The 2015 general election was the first time an incumbent president would lose re-election.
Nigeria is a multinational state
A multinational state or a multinational union is a sovereign entity that comprises two or more nations or states. This contrasts with a nation state, where a single nation accounts for the bulk of the population. Depending on the definition of ...
inhabited by more than 250 ethnic groups speaking 500 distinct languages, all identifying with a wide variety of cultures. The three largest ethnic groups are the Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also ...
in the north, Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
in the west
West is a cardinal direction or compass point.
West or The West may also refer to:
Geography and locations
Global context
* The Western world
* Western culture and Western civilization in general
* The Western Bloc, countries allied with NATO ...
, and Igbo in the east, together comprising over 60% of the total population. The official language
An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...
is English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national id ...
, chosen to facilitate linguistic unity at the national level. Nigeria's constitution ensures freedom of religion
Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedo ...
and it is home to some of the world's largest Muslim and Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...
populations, simultaneously. Nigeria is divided roughly in half between Muslims, who live mostly in the north
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''no ...
, and Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, who live mostly in the south; indigenous religions
Indigenous religions is a category used in the study of religion to demarcate the religious belief systems of communities described as being " indigenous". This category is often juxtaposed against others such as the " world religions" and "new ...
, such as those native to the Igbo and Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
ethnicities, are in the minority.
Nigeria is a regional power
In international relations, since the late 20thcentury, the term "regional power" has been used for a sovereign state that exercises significant power within a given geographical region.Joachim Betz, Ian Taylor"The Rise of (New) Regional Pow ...
in Africa and a middle
Middle or The Middle may refer to:
* Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits.
Places
* Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man
* Middle Bay (disambiguation)
* Middle Brook (disambiguation)
* Middle Creek (d ...
and emerging power
An emerging power or rising power is a state or union of states with significant rising influence in global affairs. Such a power aspires to have a more powerful position or role in international relations, either regionally or globally, and ...
in international affairs. Nigeria's economy
An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with t ...
is the largest in Africa, the 31st-largest in the world by nominal GDP
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is of ...
, and 26th-largest by PPP. Nigeria is often referred to as the Giant of Africa owing to its large population and economy and is considered to be an emerging market
An emerging market (or an emerging country or an emerging economy) is a market that has some characteristics of a developed market, but does not fully meet its standards. This includes markets that may become developed markets in the future or were ...
by the World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
. However, the country ranks very low in the Human Development Index
The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the Educational system, education system), ...
and remains one of the most corrupt nations in the world. Nigeria is a founding member of the African Union
The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of member states of the African Union, 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling fo ...
and a member of many international organizations, including the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
, the Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...
, NAM, the Economic Community of West African States
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an area of , and in ...
, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.
The word is derived fr ...
and OPEC
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, ) is a cartel of countries. Founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela), it has, since 1965, been headquart ...
. It is also a member of the informal MINT group of countries and is one of the Next Eleven
Terence James O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley (born 17 March 1957) is a British economist best known for coining BRICs, the acronym that stands for Brazil, Russia, India, and China—the four once rapidly developing countries that were though ...
economies.
Etymology
The name ''Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of G ...
'' was taken from the Niger River
The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Mali ...
running through the country. This name was coined on 8 January 1897, by the British journalist Flora Shaw
Dame Flora Louise Shaw, Lady Lugard (born 19 December 1852 – 25 January 1929), was a British journalist and writer. She is credited with having coined the name ''Nigeria''.
Early life
She was born at 2 Dundas Terrace, Woolwich, South Lond ...
, who later married Frederick Lugard
Frederick John Dealtry Lugard, 1st Baron Lugard (22 January 1858 – 11 April 1945), known as Sir Frederick Lugard between 1901 and 1928, was a British soldier, mercenary, explorer of Africa and colonial administrator. He was Governor of Hong ...
, a British colonial
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts est ...
administrator. The neighbouring Republic of Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languagesTuareg
The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Alg ...
name ''egerew n-igerewen'' used by inhabitants along the middle reaches of the river around Timbuktu
Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou;
Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label= Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrat ...
before 19th-century European colonialism.
History
Prehistory and ancient history (before 1500)
Kainji Dam excavations showed ironworking by the 2nd century BC. The transition from Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several part ...
times to the Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
was accomplished without intermediate bronze production. Others believe or suggest the technology moved west from the Nile Valley
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest ri ...
, although the Iron Age in the Niger River
The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Mali ...
valley and the forest region appears to predate the introduction of metallurgy in the upper savanna by more than 800 years.
The Nok civilization of Nigeria thrived between 1,500 BC and AD 200. It produced life-sized terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta i ...
figures that are some of the earliest known sculptures in Sub-Saharan AfricaBreunig, Peter. 2014. Nok: African Sculpture in Archaeological Context: p. 21. and smelted iron by about 550 BC and possibly a few centuries earlier. Evidence of iron smelting has also been excavated at sites in the Nsukka
Nsukka is a town and a Local Government Area in Enugu State, Nigeria. Nsukka shares a common border as a town with Edem, Opi (archaeological site), Ede-Oballa, and Obimo.
The postal code of the area is 410001 and 410002 respectively re ...
region of southeast Nigeria: dating to 2000 BC at the site of Lejja
Lejja is a community comprising 33 villages in Enugu State of South-Eastern Nigeria. It is populated by the Igbo people and located about 14 Kilometers from Nsukka
Nsukka is a town and a Local Government Area in Enugu State, Nigeria. Nsukka ...
and to 750 BC and at the site of Opi.
The ''Kano Chronicle
The ''Kano Chronicle'' (''Tarikh arbab hadha al-balad al-musamma Kano'' in Arabic) is an Arabic-language manuscript that lists the rulers of Kano.
Summary
The ''Kano Chronicle'' is a list of rulers of Kano stretching back to the 10th century ...
'' highlights an ancient history dating to around 999 AD of the Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also ...
Sahelian city-state of Kano, with other major Hausa cities (or Hausa Bakwai
The Hausa Kingdoms, also known as Hausa Kingdom or Hausaland, was a collection of states started by the Hausa people, situated between the Niger River and Lake Chad (modern day northern Nigeria). Hausaland lay between the Western Sudanic kingdoms ...
) of Daura
Daura is a town and Local Government Area in Katsina State, northern Nigeria. It is the spiritual home of the Hausa people.
The emirate is referred to as one of the "seven true Hausa states" ( Hausa Bakwai)
because it was, (along with Biram, ...
, Hadeija, Kano, Katsina
Katsina, likely from "Tamashek" eaning son or bloodor mazza enwith "inna" otheris a Local Government Area and the capital city of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria.
, Zazzau
The Zazzau, also known as the Zaria Emirate, is a traditional state with headquarters in the city of Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. The current emir of Zazzau is Alhaji Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli who succeeded the former emir, late Alhaji Shehu Idris.
Ea ...
, Rano
Rano is a Local Government Area and headquarters of Rano Emirate council in Kano State, Nigeria. Rano is a local government area in Kano State with administrative headquarters in the town of Rano. Rano local government area is a Hausa-Fulani com ...
, and Gobir
Gobir (Demonym: ''Gobirawa'') was a city-state in what is now Nigeria. Founded by the Hausa in the 11th century, Gobir was one of the seven original kingdoms of Hausaland, and continued under Hausa rule for nearly 700 years. Its capital was the c ...
all having recorded histories dating back to the 10th century. With the spread of Islam from the 7th century AD, the area became known as '' Sudan'' or as ''Bilad Al Sudan'' (English: Land of the Blacks; Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...
: بلاد السودان). Since the populations were partially affiliated with the Arab Muslim culture of North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...
, they began Trans-Saharan trade
Trans-Saharan trade requires travel across the Sahara between sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa. While existing from prehistoric times, the peak of trade extended from the 8th century until the early 17th century.
The Sahara once had a very ...
and were referred to by the Arabic speakers as ''Al-Sudan'' (meaning "The Blacks") as they were considered an extended part of the Muslim world
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In ...
. There are early historical references by medieval Arab and Muslim historians and geographers which refer to the Kanem-Bornu Empire as the region's major centre for Islamic civilization.
The Kingdom of Nri
The Kingdom of Nri () was a medieval polity located in what is now Nigeria. The kingdom existed as a sphere of religious and political influence over a third of Igboland, and was administered by a priest-king called an ''Eze Nri''. The ''Eze Nri' ...
of the Igbo people consolidated in the 10th century and continued until it lost its sovereignty to the British in 1911. Nri was ruled by the Eze Nri
The following is a list of rulers of Nri. The title of the ruler of Nri is ''Eze Nri''. He held religious and political authority over the Kingdom of Nri.
The Nri culture is believed to stretch back to at least the 13th century, with a tradition ...
, 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. In West Africa, the oldest bronzes made using the lost wax process
Lost-wax casting (also called " investment casting", "precision casting", or ''cire perdue'' which has been adopted into English from the French, ) is the process by which a duplicate metal sculpture (often silver, gold, brass, or bronz ...
were from Igbo-Ukwu
Igbo-Ukwu ( English: ''Great Igbo'') is a town in the Nigerian state of Anambra in the south-central part of the country. The town comprises three quarters namely Obiuno, Ngo, and Ihite (an agglomeration of 4 quarters) with several villages with ...
, a city under Nri influence.
The Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
kingdoms of Ife and Oyo Oyo can refer to:
Places Nigeria
* Oyo Empire, a former Yoruba state that covered parts of Nigeria and Benin, or the capital city
* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire
* Oyo, Oyo State, a city founded in the 18 ...
in southwestern Nigeria became prominent in the 12th and 14th centuries, respectively. The oldest signs of human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...
settlement at Ife's current site date back to the 9th century, and its material culture includes terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta i ...
and bronze figures.Pre-colonial era (1500–1850)
In the 16th century, Portuguese explorers
Portuguese maritime exploration resulted in the numerous territories and maritime routes recorded by the Portuguese as a result of their intensive maritime journeys during the 15th and 16th centuries. Portuguese sailors were at the vanguard of Eu ...
were the first Europeans to begin important, direct trade with peoples of southern Nigeria, at the port they named Lagos (formerly Eko) and in Calabar
Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language. The city is adjacent to the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers and ...
along the region Slave Coast. Europeans traded goods with peoples at the coast; coastal trade with Europeans also marked the beginnings of the Atlantic slave trade
The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and ...
. The port of Calabar on the historical Bight of Biafra
The Bight of Biafra (known as the Bight of Bonny in Nigeria) is a bight off the West African coast, in the easternmost part of the Gulf of Guinea.
Geography
The Bight of Biafra, or Mafra (named after the town Mafra in southern Portugal), betwe ...
(now commonly referred to as the Bight of Bonny) became one of the largest slave-trading posts in West Africa in the era of the transatlantic slave trade. Other major slaving ports in Nigeria were located in Badagry
Badagry (traditionally Gbagli) also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that con ...
, Lagos on the Bight of Benin
The Bight of Benin or Bay of Benin is a bight in the Gulf of Guinea area on the western African coast that derives its name from the historical Kingdom of Benin.
Geography
It extends eastward for about from Cape St. Paul to the Nun outlet of ...
and Bonny Island
Bonny Island is situated at the southern edge of Rivers State in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. It is near Port Harcourt. Ferries are the main form of transport to and from the island. The local language spoken on Bonny Island is Ibani, ...
on the Bight of Biafra. The majority of those enslaved and taken to these ports were captured in raids and wars. Usually, the captives were taken back to the conquerors' territory as forced labour; after time, they were sometimes acculturated and absorbed into the conquerors' society. Slave routes were established throughout Nigeria linking the hinterland areas with the major coastal ports. Some of the more prolific slave-trading kingdoms who participated in the transatlantic slave trade were linked with the Edo's Benin Empire in the south, Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a powerful Yoruba people, Yoruba empire of West Africa made up of parts of present-day eastern Benin and western Nigeria (including Southwest zone and the western half of Northcentral zone). It grew to become the largest Yo ...
in the southwest, and the Aro Confederacy
The Aro Confederacy (1690–1902) was a political union orchestrated by the Aro people, Igbo subgroup, centered in Arochukwu in present-day southeastern Nigeria. Their influence and presence was all over Eastern Nigeria, lower Middle Belt, ...
in the southeast. Benin's power lasted between the 15th and 19th centuries. Oyo, at its territorial zenith in the late 17th to early 18th centuries, extended its influence from western Nigeria to modern-day Togo
Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its ...
.In the north, the incessant fighting amongst the Hausa city-states and the decline of the Bornu Empire Bornu may refer to:
* Bornu Empire, a historical state of West Africa
* Borno State, Nigeria
{{disambig
Obudu Plateau is a plateau found on the Oshie Ridge of the Sankwala Mountain range, in Cross River State, in the southeast of Nigeria. The plateau is found in Obanliku local government area of the Cross River State. The plateau extends towa ...
. Coastal plain
A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Co ...
s are found in both the southwest and the southeast. Mangrove swamps are found along the coast.
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 ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas o ...
, an important centre for biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity' ...
. It is a habitat for the drill primate, which is found in the wild only in this area and across the border in Cameroon. The areas surrounding Calabar
Calabar (also referred to as Callabar, Calabari, Calbari and Kalabar) is the capital city of Cross River State, Nigeria. It was originally named Akwa Akpa, in the Efik language. The city is adjacent to the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers and ...
, 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
A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a s ...
has lost most of its forest because of development and harvesting by increased population, and has been replaced by grassland.
Everything in between the far south and the far north is savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
h (insignificant tree cover, with grasses and flowers located between trees). Rainfall is more limited to between per year. The savannah zone's three categories are Guinean forest-savanna mosaic
Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
, 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. In the Sahel region, rain is less than per year, and the Sahara Desert
, photo = Sahara real color.jpg
, photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972
, map =
, map_image =
, location =
, country =
, country1 =
, ...
is encroaching. In the dry northeast corner of the country lies Lake Chad
Lake Chad (french: Lac Tchad) is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Central Africa, which has varied in size over the centuries. According to the ''Global Resource Information Database'' of the United Nations Environment Programme ...
, which Nigeria shares with Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
Hydrology
Nigeria is divided into two main catchment areas - that of Lake Chad and that of the Niger. The Niger catchment area covers about 63% of the country. The main tributary of the Niger is the Benue, whose tributaries extend beyond Cameroon into Cameroon into Chad and the Sharie catchment area.
The Chad Basin is fed from the north-eastern quarter of Nigeria. The Bauchi Plateau forms the watershed between the Niger/Benue and Komadugu Yobe river systems. The flat plains of north-eastern Nigeria are geographically part of the Chad Basin, where the course of the El Beid River forms the border with Cameroon, from the Mandara Mountains to Lake Chad. The Komadugu Yobe river system gives rise to the internationally important Hadejia-Nguru wetlands and Ox-bow lakes around Lake Nguru in the rainy season. Other rivers of the northeast include the Ngadda and the Yedseram, both of which flow through the Sambisa swamps, thus forming a river system. The river system of the northeast is also a major river system.
In addition, Nigeria has numerous coastal rivers.
Lake Chad
Lake Chad (french: Lac Tchad) is a historically large, shallow, endorheic lake in Central Africa, which has varied in size over the centuries. According to the ''Global Resource Information Database'' of the United Nations Environment Programme ...
in the far north-east of Nigeria has had a chequered history over the last million years, drying up several times for a few thousand years and just as often growing to many times its current size. In recent decades, its surface area has been reduced considerably, which may also be due to humans taking water from the inlets to irrigate agricultural land.
Vegetation
Nigeria is covered by three types of vegetation: forests (where there is significant tree cover), savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
s (insignificant tree cover, with grasses and flowers located between trees), and montane
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...
land (least common and mainly found in the mountains near the Cameroon border. Both the forest zone and the savannah zone are divided into three parts.
Some of the forest zone's most southerly portion, especially around the Niger River and Cross River deltas, is mangrove swamp. North of this is fresh water swamp, containing different vegetation from the salt water mangrove swamps, and north of that is rain forest.
The savannah zone's three categories are divided into Guinean forest-savanna mosaic
Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
, made up of plains of tall grass which are interrupted by trees, the most common across the country; Sudan savannah, with short grasses and short trees; and Sahel
The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid c ...
savannah patches of grass and sand, found in the northeast.
Environmental issues
Waste management
Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal.
This includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitori ...
including sewage treatment
Sewage treatment (or domestic wastewater treatment, municipal wastewater treatment) is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable for discharge to the surrounding e ...
, the linked processes of deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then land conversion, converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban area, urban ...
and soil degradation
Soil retrogression and degradation are two regressive evolution processes associated with the loss of equilibrium of a stable soil. Retrogression is primarily due to soil erosion and corresponds to a phenomenon where succession reverts the land t ...
, and climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
or global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in a broader sense also includes ...
are the major environmental problems in Nigeria. Waste management presents problems in a megacity
A megacity is a very large city, typically with a population of more than 10 million people. Precise definitions vary: the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs in its 2018 "World Urbanization Prospects" report counted urb ...
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 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, and the like. 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 cities of the country. 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
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidat ...
.
In 2005, Nigeria had the highest rate of deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then land conversion, converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban area, urban ...
in the world, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
of the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
. That year, 12.2%, the equivalent of 11,089,000 hectares had been forested in the country. Between 1990 and 2000, Nigeria lost an average of 409,700 hectares of forest every year equal to an average annual deforestation rate of 2.4%. Between 1990 and 2005, in total Nigeria lost 35.7% of its forest cover
Forest cover is the amount of forest that covers a particular area of land. It may be measured as relative (in percent) or absolute (in square kilometres/ square miles). Around a third of the world's surface is covered with forest, with closed-cano ...
or around 6,145,000 hectares. Nigeria had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index
The Forest Landscape Integrity Index (FLII) is an annual global index of forest condition measured by degree of anthropogenic modification. Created by a team of 48 scientists, the FLII, in its measurement of 300m pixels of forest across the globe ...
mean score of 6.2/10, ranking it 82nd globally out of 172 countries.
In the year 2010, thousands of people were inadvertently exposed to lead-containing soil from informal gold mining
Gold mining is the extraction of gold resources by mining. Historically, mining gold from alluvial deposits used manual separation processes, such as gold panning. However, with the expansion of gold mining to ores that are not on the surfac ...
within the northern state of Zamfara. While estimates vary, it is thought that upwards of 400 children died of acute lead poisoning
Lead poisoning, also known as plumbism and saturnism, is a type of metal poisoning caused by lead in the body. The brain is the most sensitive. Symptoms may include abdominal pain, constipation, headaches, irritability, memory problems, inferti ...
, making this perhaps the largest lead poisoning fatality outbreak ever encountered.
Nigeria's Delta region, home of the large oil industry, experiences serious oil spill
An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into ...
s and other environmental problems, which has caused conflict in the Delta region.
Illegal oil refineries, in which local operators convert stolen crude oil into petrol and diesel, are considered particularly "dirty, dangerous and lucrative". Safety and environmental aspects are usually ignored (e.g. no sulphur
Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formula ...
is removed from the fuels produced). Refining petroleum also inevitably produces heavy oil, which is "cracked" into lighter fuel components in regular plants at great technical expense. Illegal refineries do not have these technical possibilities and "dispose" of the heavy oil where it accumulates. The lighter components of crude oil (methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Ear ...
to butane
Butane () or ''n''-butane is an alkane with the formula C4H10. Butane is a gas at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. Butane is a highly flammable, colorless, easily liquefied gas that quickly vaporizes at room temperature. The name bu ...
, isobutane), on the other hand, always mean a certain risk of explosion, which often leads to disasters at illegal plants. In 2022, Nigeria suffered 125 deaths from explosions at local, illegal refineries.
Politics
Government
Nigeria is a federal republic
A federal republic is a federation of Federated state, states with a republican form of government. At its core, the literal meaning of the word republic when used to reference a form of government means: "a country that is governed by elected r ...
modelled after the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
, with 36 states and capitol Abuja as an independent unit. The executive power is exercised by the President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...
. The president is both head of state
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state (polity), state#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international p ...
and head of the federal government; the president is elected by popular vote to a maximum of two four-year terms. The president's power is checked by a Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...
and a House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
, which are combined in a bicameral body called the National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...
. 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 determined by population.
The Nigerian president is elected in a modified two-round system. To be elected in the first round, a candidate must receive a relative majority of the votes and more than 25% of the votes in at least 24 of the 36 states. If no candidate reaches this hurdle, a second round of voting takes place between the leading candidate and the next candidate who received the majority of votes in the highest number of states. Presidential candidates take a "running mate" (candidate for the vice-presidency) who is both ethnically and religiously the opposite of themselves: a Christian candidate from the South will choose a Muslim running mate from the North - and vice versa. There is no law prescribing this, yet all presidential candidates since the existence of the Fourth Republic have adhered to this rule. The current presidential candidate Tinubu, a Muslim from the South, is said to have had great difficulty finding a Christian running mate from the Muslim North.
State governors, like the president, are elected for four years and may serve a maximum of two terms.
Administrative divisions
Nigeria is divided into thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory
A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal.
In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...
, which are further sub-divided into 774 local government areas
A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a state, province, division, or territory.
The phrase i ...
. In some contexts, the states are aggregated into six geopolitical zones: North West
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
, North East, North Central, South West
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
, South East, and South South
The South South (often hyphenated to the South-South) is the one of the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria representing both a geographic and political region of the country's eastern coast. It comprises six states – Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cros ...
.
Nigeria has five cities with a population of over a million (from largest to smallest): Lagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
, Kano, Ibadan
Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its ...
, Benin City
Benin City is the capital and largest city of Edo State, Nigeria. It is the fourth-largest city in Nigeria according to the 2006 census, after Lagos, Kano, and Ibadan, with a population estimate of about 3,500,000 as of 2022. It is situated ...
and Port Harcourt. Lagos is the largest city in Africa, with a population of over 12 million in its urban area
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...
.
The south of the country in particular is characterised by very strong urbanisation and a relatively large number of cities. According to an estimate from 2015, there are 20 cities in Nigeria with more than 500,000 inhabitants, including ten cities with a population of one million.
Political parties
In 2022, theSenate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...
and House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
in Nigeria are dominated by three parties:
* The People's Democratic Party was the ruling party for the first 16 years of the Fourth Republic. It is striving to rehabilitate its negative image from the Jonathan era before the 2015 anti-corruption election. The leading candidate, Abubakar, seems to have to contend with maverick state governors of his own party (especially Governor Wike) rather than his political opponents in this regard.
* The All Progressives Congress
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, t ...
is a coalition of smaller, neoliberal parties formed to oppose President Jonathan, who is seen as corrupt. The progressives brought Muhammadu Buhari to the presidency in 2015 and have been the ruling party ever since. With the generally respected ministers Fashola (Public Works) and Amaechi (Transport), the progressives can distinguish themselves as competent.
* The Labour Party has so far been an outsider in the Fourth Republic. This could change with the 2023 presidential election, as Labour frontrunner and businessman Peter Obi (in October 2022) leads significantly in the opinion polls. On National Day, 1 October 2022, the Labour election rally in Lagos reports 4 million participants. "Million marches" also took place in a dozen other cities such as Aba, Kaduna and Asaba.
Law
TheConstitution of Nigeria
The Constitution of Nigeria is the written supreme law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Nigeria has had many constitutions. Its current form was enacted on 29 May 1999 and inaugurated the Fourth Nigerian Republic.
History
Nigeria's st ...
is the supreme law of the country. There are four distinct legal systems in Nigeria, which include English law, common law
In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omniprese ...
, customary law
A legal custom is the established pattern of behavior that can be objectively verified within a particular social setting. A claim can be carried out in defense of "what has always been done and accepted by law".
Customary law (also, consuetudina ...
, and Sharia law:
* English law in Nigeria consists of the collection of British laws from colonial times.
* Common law is the collection of authoritative judicial decisions in the field of civil law (so-called precedents) that have been handed down in the country concerned - in this case Nigeria. (This system is mainly found in Anglo-Saxon countries; in continental Europe, on the other hand, codified and, as far as possible, abstracted civil law predominates, as in the Code Napoléon in France).
* Customary law is derived from indigenous traditional norms and practices, including the dispute resolution meetings of pre-colonial Yoruba land secret societies and the Èkpè and Okónkò of Igboland
Igboland ( Standard ), also known as Southeastern Nigeria (but extends into South-Southern Nigeria), is the indigenous homeland of the Igbo people.
It is a cultural and common linguistic region in southern Nigeria. Geographically, it is divided ...
and Ibibioland.
* Sharia law ''(also known as Islamic Law)'' used to be used only in Northern Nigeria
Northern Nigeria was an autonomous division within Nigeria, distinctly different from the southern part of the country, with independent customs, foreign relations and security structures. In 1962 it acquired the territory of the British No ...
, where Islam is the predominant religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural ...
. It is also being used in Lagos State
Lagos State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Èkó) is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Of the 36 states, it is both the most populous and smallest in area. Bounded to the south by the Bight of Benin and to the west by the international border with Benin ...
, Oyo State, Kwara State, Ogun State, and Osun State by Muslims. Muslim penal codes are not the same in every state and they differentiate in punishment and offences according to religious affiliation (for example, alcohol consumption and distribution).
The country has a judicial branch
The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...
, the highest court of which is the Supreme Court of Nigeria
The Supreme Court of Nigeria (SCN) is the highest court in Nigeria, and is located in the Central District, Abuja, in what is known as the Three Arms Zone, so called due to the proximity of the offices of the Presidential Complex, the National As ...
.
Foreign relations
Upon gaining independence in 1960, Nigeria made African unity the centrepiece of its foreign policy. One exception to the African focus was Nigeria's close relationship developed with Israel throughout the 1960s. Israel sponsored and oversaw the construction of Nigeria's parliament buildings.
Nigeria's foreign policy was put to the test in the 1970s after the country emerged united from its civil war. It supported movements against white minority governments in the Southern Africa sub-region. Nigeria backed the African National Congress
The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...
by taking a committed tough line about the South African government. Nigeria was a founding member of the Organisation for African Unity (now the African Union
The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of member states of the African Union, 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. The AU was announced in the Sirte Declaration in Sirte, Libya, on 9 September 1999, calling fo ...
) and has tremendous influence in West Africa and Africa on the whole. Nigeria founded regional cooperative efforts in West Africa, functioning as the standard-bearer for the Economic Community of West African States
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an area of , and in ...
(ECOWAS) and ECOMOG
The Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) was a West African multilateral armed force established by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). ECOMOG was a formal arrangement for separate armies to work ...
(especially during the Liberia and Sierra Leone civil wars) - which are economic and military organizations, respectively.
With this Africa-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
, national_anthem = "Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
's Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, MPLA, SWAPO in Namibia, and aiding opposition to the minority governments of Mozambican War of Independence, Portuguese Mozambique, and Rhodesian Bush War, Rhodesia. Nigeria retains membership in the Non-Aligned Movement. In late November 2006, it organized an Africa-South America Summit in Abuja to promote what some attendees termed "South-South" linkages on a variety of fronts. Nigeria is also a member of the International Criminal Court and the Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...
. It was temporarily expelled from the latter in 1995 when ruled by the Sani Abacha, Abacha regime.
Nigeria has remained a key player in the Petroleum industry, international oil industry since the 1970s and maintains membership in OPEC
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, ) is a cartel of countries. Founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela), it has, since 1965, been headquart ...
, which it joined in July 1971. Its Petroleum industry in Nigeria, status as a major petroleum producer figures prominently in its sometimes volatile international relations with Developed country, developed countries, notably the United States, and with developing countries.
Since 2000, China–Nigeria relations, Chinese–Nigerian trade relations have risen exponentially. There has been an increase in total trade of over 10,384 million dollars between the two nations from 2000 to 2016. However, the structure of the Chinese–Nigerian trade relationship has become a major political issue for the Nigerian state. This is illustrated by the fact that Chinese exports account for around 80 per cent of total bilateral trade volumes. This has resulted in a serious Balance of trade, trade imbalance, with Nigeria importing ten times more than it exports to China. Subsequently, Nigeria's economy is becoming over-reliant on cheap imports to sustain itself, resulting in a clear decline in Nigerian industry under such arrangements.
Continuing its Africa-centred foreign policy, Nigeria introduced the idea of a Currency union, single currency for West Africa known as the Eco (currency), Eco under the presumption that it would be led by the Nigerian naira, naira. But on 21 December 2019, List of heads of state of Ivory Coast, Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, Emmanuel Macron, and multiple other Economic Community of West African States, UEMOA states announced that they would merely rename the CFA franc instead of replacing the currency as originally intended. As of 2020, the Eco currency has been delayed to 2025.
Military
The Nigerian Armed Forces are the Military, combined military forces of Nigeria. It consists of three uniformed service branches: the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, and Nigerian Air Force. The President of Nigeria functions as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, exercising his Constitution of Nigeria, constitutional authority through the Ministry of Defence, which is responsible for the management of the military and its personnel. The operational head of the AFN is the Chief of the Defence Staff (Nigeria), Chief of the Defence Staff, who is subordinate to the Defence Minister of Nigeria, Nigerian Defence Minister. With a force of more than 223,000 active personnel, the Nigerian military is one of the largest uniformed combat services in Africa.
Nigeria has 143,000 troops in the armed forces (army 100,000, navy 25,000, air force 18,000) and another 80,000 personnel for "gendarmerie & paramilitary" in 2020, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies. By comparison, Poland has 114,500 troops in armed forces and "paramilitary" and Germany 183,500, according to the same source.
Nigeria spent just under 0.4 per cent of its economic output, or US$1.6 billion, on its armed forces in 2017. For 2022, US$2.26 billion has been budgeted for the Nigerian armed forces, which is just over a third of Belgium, Belgium's Military budget, defence budget (US$5.99 billion).
The Chief of Defence Staff since January 2021 is General Lucky Irabor, an expert in counter-terrorism. The Defence Staff also includes the Chiefs of Army Staff Lieutenant General Faruk Yahaya, Air Staff Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao and Naval Staff Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo.
Stability issues
Police and millitant violence
The fight against Boko Haram, other sectarians and criminals has been accompanied by increasing police attacks. The Council on Foreign Relations' Nigeria Security Tracker counted 1,086 deaths from Boko Haram attacks and 290 deaths from police violence in the first 12 months of its establishment in May 2011. In the 12 months after October 2021, 2,193 people died from police violence and 498 from Boko Haram and ISWAP, according to the NST. The Nigerian police are notorious for Vigilantism, vigilante justice. The Niger Delta saw intense 2016 Niger Delta conflict, attacks on oil infrastructure in 2016 by militant groups such as the ''Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta'' (MEND), the ''Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force'' (NDPVF), the ''Ijaw National Congress'' (INC) and the ''Pan Niger Delta Forum'' (PANDEF). In response, the new Buhari government pursued a dual strategy of repression and negotiation. In late 2016, the Nigerian federal government resorted to the gambit of offering the militant groups a 4.5 billion naira (US$144 million) contract to ''guard'' oil infrastructure. Most accepted. The contract was Tompolo#Arrest warrant, renewed in August 2022, but led to fierce disputes among the above-mentioned groups over the distribution of the funds. Representatives speak of "war" - against each other. The high propensity for violence and the pettiness of the leaders, as well as the complete absence of social and environmental arguments in this dispute give rise to fears that the militant groups, despite their lofty names, have discarded responsibility for their region and ethnic groups and have moved into the realm of protection rackets and self-enrichment. In any case, the pipelines in the Niger Delta are not very effectively "guarded" - the pollution of the Niger Delta with stolen crude oil and #Oil spills, illegally produced heavy fuel oil continued unhindered after 2016.Boko Haram terrorism
Boko Haram has been responsible for numerous serious attacks with thousands of casualties since mid-2010. Since then, according to the Council on Foreign Relations' Nigeria Security Tracker, over 41,600 lives have been lost to this conflict (as of October 2022). The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR counts about 1.8 million internally displaced persons and about 200,000 Nigerian refugees in neighbouring countries who have fled the fighting in north-eastern Nigeria.
The Boko Haram-affected states agreed in February 2015 to establish an 8,700-strong Multinational Joint Task Force to jointly fight Boko Haram. By October 2015, Boko Haram had been driven out of all the cities it controlled and almost all the counties in north-eastern Nigeria. In 2016, Boko Haram split and in 2022, 40,000 fighters surrendered. The splinter group Islamic State – West Africa Province, ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa) remains active.
Herder–farmer conflict
In central Nigeria, Herder–farmer conflicts in Nigeria, conflicts between Muslim Hausa-Fulani herders and indigenous Christian farmers flared up again, especially in Kaduna, Plateau, Taraba and Benue states. In individual cases, these clashes have claimed several hundred lives. Conflict over land and resources is increasing due to the ongoing desertification in northern Nigeria, population growth and the generally tense economic situation.Economy
Nigeria's economy is the largest in Africa, the 31st-largest in the world by nominal GDP, and List of countries by GDP (PPP), 30th-largest by purchasing power parity, PPP. List of countries by GDP (PPP), GDP (PPP) per capita is US$9,148 (as of 2022), which is less than South Africa, Egypt or Morocco, but a little more than Ghana or Ivory Coast.
Before 1999, economic development has been hindered by years of Military dictatorship, 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. After 2015, the Nigerian economy was able to diversify somewhat. Apart from oil and gas, Nigeria exports Fertilizer, fertilisers and cement/cement board, moulded polypropylene (plastic) products, Personal care, personal care products, paint, Malt drink, malt beverages and armoured vehicles. Nigeria is a leader in Africa as a financial market, in Medication, pharmaceuticals and in the Entertainment, entertainment industry. Its well-developed Highway, highway system and growing Rail transport, rail network also make it a Logistics, logistical hub in the region. Nigeria's Steelmaking, steel production is one sixth of the UK's steel production. Next to petroleum, the second-largest source of foreign exchange earnings for Nigeria are remittances sent home by Nigerians living abroad.
Nigeria has a lower-middle-income economy, with an abundant supply of natural resources. Its wide array of underexploited mineral resources include coal, bauxite, tantalite, gold, tin, iron ore, limestone, niobium, lead and zinc. Despite huge deposits of these natural resources, the mining industry in Nigeria is still in its infancy.
Agriculture
In 2021, about 23.4% of Nigeria's GDP is contributed by agriculture, forestery and fishing combined. As far as Cassava production in Nigeria, cassava is concerned, Nigeria is the world's largest producer. Further major crops include beans, sesame, cashew nuts, cocoa beans, Bambara groundnut, groundnuts, gum arabic, kolanut, maize (corn), melon, millet, palm kernels, palm oil, Plantain (cooking), plantains, rice, rubber, sorghum, soybeans and Yam (vegetable), yams. Cocoa bean, Cocoa is the leading non-oil foreign exchange earner. Rubber is the second-largest non-oil foreign exchange earner.
Before the Nigerian Civil War, Nigerian civil war, Nigeria was self-sufficient in food. Agriculture used to be the principal foreign exchange earner of Nigeria. Agriculture has failed to keep pace with Nigeria's rapid population growth, and Nigeria now relies upon food imports to sustain itself. It spends US$6.7 billion yearly for food imports, four times more than revenues from food export. The Nigerian government promoted the use of inorganic fertilizers in the 1970s.
Nigeria's rice production increased by 10% from 2017/18 to 2021/22 to 5 million tonnes a year, but could hardly keep up with the increased demand. Rice imports therefore remained constant at 2 million tonnes per year. In August 2019, Nigeria closed its border with Benin and other neighbouring countries to stop rice smuggling into the country as part of efforts to boost local production.
Until now, Nigeria exported unhusked rice but had to import husked rice, the country's staple food. - The Imota rice mill, rice mill in Imota, near Lagos, is intended to handle the corresponding processing at home, improve the balance of trade and the labour market, and save unnecessary costs for transport and middlemen. When fully operational at the end of 2022, the plant, the largest south of the Sahara, is expected to employ 250,000 people and produce 2.5 million 50-kg bags of rice annually.
Fossil fuels
Nigeria is the 12th largest producer of petroleum in the world, the 8th largest exporter, and has the 10th largest proven reserves. 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
The Niger Delta is the delta of the Niger River sitting directly on the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic Ocean in Nigeria. It is located within nine coastal southern Nigerian states, which include: all six states from the South South geopoliti ...
, its main oil-producing region, has led to disruptions in oil production and prevents the country from exporting at 100% capacity.
The Niger Delta Nembe Creek oil field was discovered in 1973 and produces from middle Miocene River delta, deltaic sandstone-shale in an anticline Petroleum trap, structural trap at a depth of . In June 2013, Shell 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 said it was finalising its interests in four Nigerian oil fields.
Nigeria has a total of 159 Petroleum reservoir, oil fields and 1,481 Oil well, wells in operation according to the Department of Petroleum Resources.''Environmental Resources Managers Ltd, Niger Delta Environmental Survey Final Report Phase I; Volume I: Environmental and Socio-Economic Characteristics (Lagos: Niger Delta Environmental Survey, September 1997)'' The most productive region of the nation is the coastal Niger Delta Basin (geology), Niger Delta Basin in the Niger Delta or "south-south" region which encompasses 78 of the 159 oil fields. Most of Nigeria's oil fields are small and scattered, and as of 1990, these small fields accounted for 62.1% of all Nigerian production. This contrasts with the sixteen largest fields which produced 37.9% of Nigeria's petroleum at that time.''Nigeria: The Political Economy of Oil'' (Khan, Ahmad) Petrol was Nigeria's main import commodity until 2021, accounting for 24% of import volume.
The supply of natural gas to Europe, threatened by the Ukraine war, is pushing projects to transport Nigerian natural gas via pipelines to Morocco or Algeria. As of May 2022, however, there are no results on this yet.
Manufacturing and technology
Nigeria has a manufacturing industry that includes leather and textiles (centred in Kano, Abeokuta, Onitsha, and Lagos), plastics and processed food. Ogun State, Ogun is considered to be Nigeria's current industrial hub, as most factories are located in Ogun and more companies are moving there, followed by Lagos. The city of Aba, Abia, Aba in the south-eastern part of the country is well known for handicrafts and shoes, known as "Aba made". Nigeria has a market of 720,000 cars per year, but less than 20% of these are produced domestically.
In 2016 (the last year from which data is available), Nigeria was the Cement production by country, leading cement producer south of the Sahara, ahead of South Africa. Aliko Dangote, Nigeria's richest inhabitant, based his wealth on cement production. According to its own information, the Ajaokuta Steel Mill, Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited produces 1.3 million tonnes of steel per year. This would be equivalent to one-sixth of the United Kingdom, UK's steel production in 2021. However, steel plants in Katsina
Katsina, likely from "Tamashek" eaning son or bloodor mazza enwith "inna" otheris a Local Government Area and the capital city of Katsina State, in northern Nigeria.
, Jos and Osogbo no longer appear to be active.
In June 2019, Nigeria EduSat-1 was deployed from the International Space Station. It is the first satellite that was built in Nigeria, which followed Nigerian weather and communications satellites, many other Nigerian satellites that was built by other countries. In 2021, Nigeria hosts about 60 percent of the pharmaceutical production capacity in Africa, the larger pharmaceutical companies are located in Lagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
. The pharmaceutical producer with the most employees in Nigeria is Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Nigeria has a few electronic manufacturers like Zinox, the first branded Nigerian computer, and manufacturers of electronic gadgets such as tablet PCs. As of January 2022, Nigeria is the host 5 out of the 7 Unicorn (company), unicorn companies in Africa.
Services
Nigeria has a Banking in Nigeria, 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.
Due to Nigeria's location in the centre of Africa, Transport in Nigeria, transport plays a major role in the national service sector. The government under Buhari initiated improvements to the infrastructure after 2015. Extensive road repairs and new construction have been carried out gradually as states in particular spend their share of increased government allocations. Representative of these improvements is the Second Niger bridge, Second Niger Bridge near Onitsha, which was largely completed in 2022.
Telecommunications in Nigeria, Nigerian telecommunications market is one of the fastest-growing in the world, with major emerging market operators (like MTN Group, MTN, 9mobile, Airtel and Globacom) basing their largest and most profitable centres in the country. Nigeria's ICT sector has experienced a lot of growth, representing 10% of the nation's GDP in 2018 as compared to just 1% in 2001. Lagos is regarded as one of the largest technology hubs in Africa with its thriving tech ecosystem. According to a survey by the GSM Association, 92% of adult Nigerian men and 88% of women owned a mobile phone. Using various measures including but not limited to Illegal arrest, taking down of websites, passport seizures, and restricted access to bank accounts, the Telecommunications in Nigeria#Internet censorship and surveillance, Nigerian government is punishing citizens for expressing themselves on the internet and working to stifle internet freedom.
Tourism
Tourism in Nigeria centres largely on events, because of the country's ample amount of ethnic groups, but also includes rain forests, savannah, waterfalls, and other natural attractions.
Abuja is home to several parks and green areas. The largest, Millennium Park (Abuja), Millennium Park, was designed by architect Manfredi Nicoletti and officially opened in December 2003. After the re-modernization project achieved by the administration of Governor Raji Babatunde Fashola, Lagos is gradually becoming a major tourist destination. Lagos is currently taking steps to become a global city. The 2009 Eyo carnival (a yearly festival originating from Iperu, Ogun, Iperu Remo, Ogun State) was a step toward world city status. Currently, Lagos is primarily known as a business-oriented and fast-paced community. Lagos has become an important location for African and black cultural identity.
Lagos has sandy beaches by the Atlantic Ocean, including Elegushi Beach and Alpha Beach. Lagos also has many private beach resorts including Inagbe Grand Beach Resort and several others in the outskirts. Lagos has a variety of hotels ranging from three-star to five-star hotels, with a mixture of local hotels such as Eko Hotels and Suites, Federal Palace Hotel and franchises of multinational chains such as InterContinental, Intercontinental Hotel, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Sheraton, and Four Points by Sheraton. Other places of interest include the Tafawa Balewa Square, Festac town, The Nike Art Gallery, Freedom Park (Lagos), Freedom Park, and the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos, Cathedral Church of Christ.
Energy
Nigeria's primary energy consumption was about 108 Tonne of oil equivalent, Mtoe in 2011. Most of the energy comes from traditional biomass and waste, which account for 83% of total primary production. The rest is from fossil fuels (16%) and hydropower (1%). Since independence, Nigeria has tried to develop a domestic nuclear industry for energy. Since 2004, Nigeria has had a Chinese-origin research reactor at Ahmadu Bello University and has sought the support of the International Atomic Energy Agency to develop plans for up to 4,000 MWe of nuclear capacity by 2027 according to the National Program for the Deployment of Nuclear Power for Generation of Electricity. In 2007, President Umaru Yar'Adua
Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who, was the President of Nigeria from 2007 to 2010. He was declared the winner of the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 May 2 ...
urged the country to embrace nuclear power to meet its growing energy needs. In 2017, Nigeria signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
In April 2015, Nigeria began talks with Russia's state-owned Rosatom to collaborate on the design, construction and operation of four nuclear power plants by 2035, the first of which will be in operation by 2025. In June 2015, Nigeria selected two sites for the planned construction of the nuclear plants. Neither the Nigerian government nor Rosatom would disclose the specific locations of the sites, but it is believed that the nuclear plants will be sited in Akwa Ibom State and Kogi State. The sites are planned to house two plants each. In 2017 agreements were signed for the construction of the Itu nuclear power plant.
Infrastructure
Roads
Nigeria has the largest road network in West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Mau ...
. It covers about 200,000 km, of which 60,000 km are asphalted. Nigeria's roads and highways handle 90% of all passenger and freight traffic. It contributes N2.4trn ($6.4bn) to GDP in 2020.
35,000 km of the road network fall under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Under the second Muhammadu Buhari, Buhari administration, the budget for maintenance and paving of these 35,000 km was almost doubled in regular increments from 295 billion naira ($819 million) in 2018 to 563 billion naira ($1.3 billion) in 2022. Responsible for this budget (as of September 2022) is Minister Fashola, one of Nigeria's most respected politicians. Under him, the motorway links of important economic centres such as Lagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
-Ibadan
Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its ...
, Lagos-Badagry
Badagry (traditionally Gbagli) also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that con ...
and Enugu-Onitsha have been renovated.
The rest of the road network is a state matter and therefore in very different shape, depending on which state you are in. Surprisingly, economically strong states such as Lagos, Anambra State, Anambra and Rivers State, Rivers receive particularly poor evaluations. Most roads were built in the 1980s and early 1990s. Poor maintenance and inferior materials have worsened the condition of the roads. Travelling is very difficult. Especially during the rainy season, the use of secondary roads is sometimes almost impossible due to potholes. Road bandits often take advantage of this situation for their criminal purposes.
Railways
The railways have undergone a massive revamping with projects such as the Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway, Lagos-Kano Standard Gauge Railway being completed connecting northern cities of Kano, Kaduna, Abuja, Ibadan and Lagos.Air traffic
The state-owned airline Nigeria Airways was over-indebted in 2003 and was bought by the British Virgin Group; since 28 June 2005 it has flown under the name Virgin Nigeria Airways. At the end of 2008, the Virgin Group announced its withdrawal from the airline, so that since September 2009 the airline has been operating as Nigerian Eagle Airlines. The largest airline in Nigeria is now Arik Air, founded in 2004. It has a fleet of over 20 aircraft and serves national and international destinations. The Nigerian aviation industry generated 198.62 billion naira (€400 million) in 2019, representing a contribution of 0.14 per cent to GDP. It was the fastest growing sector of the Nigerian economy in 2019. Passenger traffic increased from 9,358,166 in 2020 to 15,886,955 in 2021, a significant increase of over 69 per cent. Aircraft movements increased by more than 46 per cent from 2020 to 2021. Total freight volumes were 191 tonnes in 2020 but increased to 391 tonnes in 2021. In December 2021, the Anambra International Cargo Airport started its operation. In April 2022, the second terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport has been inaugurated. It will increase the capacity of the airport to 14 million passengers per year. There are 54 airports in Nigeria; the principal airports are * Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, * Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, * Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano, * Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu and * Port Harcourt International Airport in Port Harcourt.Population
The United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
estimates that the population of Nigeria in was at , distributed as 51.7% rural and 48.3% urban, and with a population density of 167.5 people per square kilometre. Around 42.5% of the population were 14 years or younger, 19.6% were aged 15–24, 30.7% were aged 25–54, 4.0% were aged 55–64, and 3.1% were aged 65 years or older. The median age in 2017 was 18.4 years. Nigeria is the List of countries and dependencies by population#Sovereign states and dependencies by population, world's sixth-most populous country. The birth rate is 35.2-births/1,000 population and the death rate is 9.6 deaths/1,000 population as of 2017, while the total fertility rate is 5.07 children born/woman. Nigeria's population increased by 57 million from 1990 to 2008, a 60% growth rate in less than two decades.CO2 Emissions from Fuel CombustionPopulation 1971–2008 IE
pp. 83–85 Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and accounts for about 17% of the continent's total population as of 2017; however, exactly how populous is a subject of speculation. Millions of Nigerians have emigrated during 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. Nigeria's largest city is
Lagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
. Lagos has grown from about 300,000 in 1950 to an estimated 13.4 million in 2017.
Nigeria has more than 250 ethnic groups, with varying languages and customs, creating a country of rich ethnic diversity. The three largest ethnic groups are the Hausa
Hausa may refer to:
* Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa
* Hausa language, spoken in West Africa
* Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states
* Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse
See also ...
, Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
and Igbo, together accounting for more than 60% of the population, while the Edo people, Edo, Ijaw people, Ijaw, Fula people, Fulɓe, Kanuri people, Kanuri, Urhobo people, Urhobo-Isoko, Ibibio people, Ibibio, Ebira people, Ebira, Nupe people, Nupe, Gbagyi people, Gbagyi, Jukun people (West Africa), Jukun, Igala people, Igala, Idoma people, Idoma, Ogoni
The Ogonis are a people in the Rivers South East senatorial district of Rivers State, in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria. They number just over 2 million and live in a homeland which they also refer to as Ogoniland. They share common ...
and Tiv people, Tiv comprise between 35 and 40%; other minorities make up the remaining 5%."Nigeria" in ''Geographica: The complete Atlas of the world'', Random House, 2002, The Middle Belt of Nigeria is known for its diversity of ethnic groups, including the Atyap people, Atyap, Berom people, Berom, Goemai, Igala, Kofyar people, Kofyar, Pyem, and Tiv people, Tiv. There are small minorities of British, American, Non-resident Indian and person of Indian origin, Indian, Chinese people in Nigeria, Chinese (est. 50,000), White Zimbabweans, white Zimbabwean, Japanese, Greek, Syrian and Lebanese immigrants. Immigrants also include those from other West African or East African nations.
Languages
525 languages have been spoken in Nigeria; eight of them 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 which 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 and English.
The major languages spoken in Nigeria represent three major families of languages of Africa: the majority are Niger–Congo languages, Niger-Congo languages, such as Igbo language, Igbo, Yoruba language, Yoruba, Ibibio language, Ibibio, Ijaw languages, Ijaw, Fula language, Fulfulde, Ogoni languages, Ogoni, and Edo language, Edo. Kanuri language, Kanuri, spoken in the northeast, primarily in Borno State, Borno and Yobe State, is part of the Nilo-Saharan languages, Nilo-Saharan family, and Hausa language, Hausa is an Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language. Even though most ethnic groups prefer to communicate in their languages, English as the official language is widely used for education, business transactions and official purposes. English as a first language is used by only 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 three main languages spoken in Nigeria.
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 several different dialects and are widely spoken by those ethnic groups. Nigerian Pidgin, 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 Region.
Religion
Nigeria is a religiously diverse society, with Islam and Christianity being the most widely professed religions. Nigerians are nearly equally divided into Muslims and Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, with a tiny minority of adherents of traditional African religions and other religions.CIA Factbook: Nigeri(Retrieved 9 May 2020) The Christian share of Nigeria's population is on the decline because of the lower Total fertility rate, fertility rate compared to Muslims in the country. As in other parts of Africa where Islam and Christianity are dominant, religious syncretism with the traditional African religions is common. A 2012 report on religion and public life by the Pew Research Center stated that in 2010, 49.3 per cent of Nigeria's population was Christian, 48.8 per cent was Muslim, and 1.9 per cent were followers of indigenous and other religions or unaffiliated. However, in a report released by Pew Research Center in 2015, the Muslim population was estimated to be 50%, and by 2060, according to the report, Muslims will account for about 60% of the country. The 2010 census of Association of Religion Data Archives has also reported that 48.8% of the total population was Christian, slightly larger than the Muslim population of 43.4%, while 7.5% were members of other religions. 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. Islam dominates North-Western Nigeria (Hausa, Fulani and others), with 99% Muslim, and Northern Eastern Nigeria (Kanuri, Fulani and other groups). In the west, the Yoruba tribe is predominantly of mixed Muslim and Christian backgrounds, with a few adherents of traditional religions. Protestantism, Protestant and locally cultivated Christianity are widely practised in Western areas, while Catholic Church, Roman Catholicism is a more prominent Christian feature of South Eastern Nigeria. Both Roman Catholicism and Protestantism are observed in the Ibibio, Efik people, Efik, Ijaw people, Ijo and Ogoni lands of the south. The Igbos (predominant in the east) and the Ibibio people, Ibibio (south) are 98% Christian, with 2% practising traditional religions. The Middle Belt, 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.
Conflicts
Since mid-2010, Boko Haram has terrorised northeastern Nigeria. In the following 12 years, according to the Council on Foreign Relations' "Nigeria Security Tracker", over 41,600 people died because of this group (as of October 2022). Millions of people fled south or to the big cities, such as Maiduguri. Boko Haram also attacked churches. However, the formula "Muslims against Christians" falls short. Despite Boko Haram's murderous hostility towards Christians, most of their victims have always been Muslims, not least because the insurgency is taking place in a predominantly Muslim part of the country, mainly Borno state in the far north-east of Nigeria. The killing of such a large number of Muslims by Boko Haram, based on a broad definition of apostasy, is believed to have been one of the reasons for the group's split in 2016. Nigeria Security Tracker (NST) data shows (as of March 2022) that Boko Haram attacks on churches have decreased over time, while attacks on mosques have increased. The lower number of Christian fatalities at the hands of Boko Haram probably reflects the fact that most of them have fled. Boko Haram has been in decline since at least March 2022. 40,000 of its fighters surrendered in 2022. Since 2021, the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) appears more dominant than Boko Haram. ISWAP is, for example, credited with the church attack in Owo at Pentecost 2022. Besides issues with terrorist groups Boko Haram and ISWAP, Christians also complain of persecution by Fulani herdsmen, who are mostly Muslim, and who have terrorised mostly Christian farmers in the Middle Belt. Christian clergy and faithful have also been targeted in cases of kidnapping by armed gangs seeking ransoms. In a speech in the European Parliament, in October 2022, bishop Wilfred Chikpa Anagbe, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, compared the situation of Christians in his country to "nothing short of a Jihad clothed in many names: terrorism, kidnappings, killer herdsmen, banditry, other militia groups" and called on the international community to abandon what he termed a "conspiracy of silence" on the subject. According to Aid to the Church in Need, 4 Catholic priests were murdered in Nigeria in 2022 alone, and 23 priests and 1 seminarian were kidnapped during the year, or had been kidnapped before but remained in captivity in 2022. The majority of the kidnapped priests were later released, although three were killed and, in November 2022, three were still missing, including Fr John Bako Shekwolo, who was kidnapped in March, 2019. A further 4 nuns were kidnapped in 2022, and released soon after. The priests who were murdered were Fr Vitus Borogo, Fr Joseph Bako, Fr John Mark Cheitnum, and Fr Christopher Odia. The Catholic organisation, which has several projects in Nigeria, deplored the wave of violence, saying: "The increase in kidnappings, murders and general violence against civilians, including members of the Catholic clergy in many parts of Nigeria, is a scourge that is yet to be properly addressed by the local authorities”. During an online conference, in June 2022, bishop Matthew Man-Oso Ndagaoso, from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kaduna, summed up the problems affecting Christians in the country. "For the past 14 years the nation has been grappling withBoko Haram
Boko Haram, officially known as ''Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād'' ( ar, جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit=Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad), is an Islamic terrorist organization ba ...
, mostly in the northeast. While we were grappling with that, we had the issue of banditry in the northwest. And while we were grappling with this, we had the issue of kidnappings for ransom, which is becoming more widespread. And while grappling with this we have the old conflict with the Fulani herdsmen, Fulani herders." Regarding the murders and kidnappings of priests in Nigeria, the same bishop said, in another interview, "everybody is on edge. All of us, the clergy, the laypeople, everybody. People are afraid, and rightly so. People are traumatised, and rightly so. With this situation, nobody is safe anywhere. If you go out of your house, even in the daytime, until you come back, you are not safe”.
The insecurity situation was criticised by the Nigerian Diocesan Catholic Priests Association in a statement released in July. The priests also criticised the Government: "it is really sad that in the course of their normal pastoral activities, priests have become an endangered species. Attempts have been made at various levels to cry to the government, but as already observed by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, ‘it is clear to the nation that [the Government] has failed in [its] primary duty of protecting the lives of the Nigerian citizens’”.
In June 2022 a massacre took place in the St. Francis Xavier Church, in Owo. The Government blamed ISWAP for the murder of over 50 parishioners, but locals suspect Fulani herdsmen involvement.
Health
Health care delivery in Nigeria is a concurrent responsibility of the three tiers of government in the country, and the private sector. Nigeria has been reorganising its health system since the Bamako Initiative of 1987, which formally promoted community-based methods of increasing accessibility of drugs and health care services to the population, in part by implementing user fees. The new strategy dramatically increased accessibility through community-based health care 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.
HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, HIV/AIDS rate in Nigeria is much lower compared to the other African nations such as Botswana or South Africa whose prevalence (percentage) rates are in the double digits. , the HIV prevalence rate among adults ages 15–49 was 1.5 per cent. The life expectancy in Nigeria is 54.7 years on average, and 71% and 39% of the population have access to improved water sources and improved sanitation, respectively. , the infant mortality is 74.2 deaths per 1,000 live birth (human), live births.
In 2012, a new bone marrow donor program was launched by the University of Nigeria to help people with leukaemia, lymphoma, or sickle cell disease to find a compatible donor for a life-saving Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, bone marrow transplant, which cures them of their conditions. Nigeria became the second African country to have successfully carried out this surgery. In the Western African Ebola virus epidemic, 2014 Ebola outbreak, Nigeria was the first country to effectively contain and eliminate the Ebola threat that was ravaging three other countries in the West African region; the unique method of contact tracing employed by Nigeria became an effective method later used by countries such as the United States when Ebola threats were discovered.
The Nigerian health care system is continuously faced with a shortage of doctors known as "Human capital flight, brain drain", because of emigration by skilled Nigerian doctors to North America and Europe. In 1995, an estimated 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.
Education
Education in Nigeria is overseen by the Federal Ministry of Education (Nigeria), Ministry of Education. Local government areas of Nigeria, Local authorities take responsibility for implementing policy for state-controlled public education and state schools at a regional level. The education system is divided into kindergarten, primary education, secondary education and tertiary education. After the 1970s oil boom, tertiary education was improved so it would reach every subregion of Nigeria. 68% of the Nigerian population is literate, and the rate for men (75.7%) is higher than that for women (60.6%). 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, five or six years of university education leading to a bachelor's degree. The government has majority control of university education. Tertiary education in Nigeria consists of universities (public and private), polytechnics, monotechnics, and colleges of education. The country has a total of 138 universities, with 40 federally owned, 39 state-owned, and 59 privately owned. Nigeria was ranked 118th in the Global Innovation Index in 2021, down from 114th in 2019.Crime
Nigeria is home to a Organized crime in Nigeria, substantial network of organised crime, active especially in Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking, shipping heroin from Asian countries to Europe and America; and cocaine from South America to Europe and South Africa.
Various Confraternities in Nigeria, Nigerian confraternities or student "campus cults" are active in both organised crime and 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. In lower levels of society, there are the "area boys", organised gangs mostly active in Lagos who specialise in a mugging and small-scale drug dealing. Gang violence in Lagos resulted in 273 civilians and 84 policemen being killed from August 2000 to May 2001.
There is some piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, 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 globally between January and June 2013 were in Nigeria.
Internationally, Nigeria is infamous for a form of bank fraud dubbed ''419'', a type of advance-fee scam (named after Section 419 of the Nigerian Penal Code) along with the "Nigerian scam", a form of confidence trick practised by individuals and criminal syndicates. 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 them and they will get to keep a cut. In reality, money is taken out instead, or large fees (which seem small in comparison with the imaginary wealth to be gained) are deducted. In 2003, the Nigerian Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was created to combat this and other forms of organised financial crime, and in some cases, it has succeeded in bringing the crime bosses to justice and even managing to return the stolen money to victims.
Poverty
According to the International Monetary Fund, 32% of Nigeria's population lives in extreme poverty (as of 2017), living on less than US$2.15 a day. TheWorld Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
stated in March 2022 that the number of poor Nigerians had increased by 5 million to 95.1 million during the Covid period. Accordingly, 40% of Nigerians live below the poverty line of US$1.90 as handled by the World Bank.
The threshold amounts used internationally by the IMF and the World Bank do not take into account the local purchasing power of a US dollar. The methodology is therefore not without controversy. Despite the undoubted existence of slums in Nigeria, for example, the fact that 92% of men and 88% of women in Nigeria own a mobile phone is difficult to reconcile with the poverty percentages published by the IMF and the World Bank.
Human rights
Nigeria's human rights record remains poor. According to the U.S. Department of State, the most significant human rights problems are the 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 centre conditions; human trafficking for prostitution and forced labour, societal violence and vigilante killings, Child labour in Nigeria, child labour, child abuse and Child sexual abuse in Nigeria, child sexual exploitation, Domestic violence in Nigeria, domestic violence, discrimination based on ethnicity, region and religion.
Nigeria is a state party of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women It also has signed the Maputo Protocol, an international treaty on women's rights, and the African Union Women's Rights Framework. Discrimination based on sex is a significant human rights issue. Forced marriages are common. Child marriage in Nigeria, Child marriage remains common in Northern Nigeria; 39% of girls are married before age 15, although the Marriage Rights Act banning marriage of girls below 18 years old was introduced on a federal level in 2008. There is rampant Polygamy in Nigeria, polygamy in Northern Nigeria. Submission of the wife to her husband and Domestic violence in Nigeria, domestic violence are common. Women have fewer land rights. Maternal death, Maternal mortality was at 814 per 100,000 live births in 2015. Female genital mutilation in Nigeria, Female genital mutilation is common, although a ban was implemented in 2015. In Nigeria, at least half a million suffer from Urogenital fistula, vaginal fistula, largely as a result of lack of medical care. Early marriages can result in the fistula.
Gender inequality in Nigeria, Women face a large amount of inequality politically in Nigeria, being subjugated to a bias that is Sexism, sexist and reinforced by socio-cultural, economic and oppressive ways. Women throughout the country were only politically Emancipation, emancipated in 1979. Yet husbands continue to dictate the votes for many women in Nigeria, which upholds the patriarchal system. Most workers in the Informal economy, informal sector are women. Women's representation in government since independence from Britain is very poor. Women have been reduced to sideline roles in appointive posts throughout all levels of government and still make up a tiny minority of elected officials. But nowadays with more education available to the public, Nigerian women are taking steps to have more active roles in the public, and with the help of different initiatives, more businesses are being started by women.
Under the Sharia in Nigeria, Shari'a penal code that applies to Muslims in twelve northern states, offences such as alcohol consumption, LGBT rights in Nigeria, homosexuality, infidelity and theft carry harsh sentences, including amputation, lashing, stoning and long prison terms. According to a 2013 survey by the Pew Research Center, 98% of Nigerians believe homosexuality should not be accepted by society. In the last 23 years (as of September 2022), university workers in Nigeria have gone on strike 17 times, or for 57 months. As a result, the 2022 summer semester was cancelled nationwide.
Culture
Literature
Most Nigerian literature is written in English language, English, partly because this language is understood by most Nigerians. Literature in the Yoruba language, Yoruba, Hausa language, Hausa and Igbo language, Igbo languages (the three most populous peoples in Nigeria) does exist, however, and in the case of the Hausa, for example, can look back on a centuries-old tradition. With Wole Soyinka, Nigeria can present a Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize winner for literature. Chinua Achebe won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2007 and Ben Okri in 1991. Chinua Achebe, Achebe also won the Friedenspreis des Deutschen Buchhandels, Peace Award of the German Book Trade in 2002.
Music
Many late 20th-century musicians such as Fela Kuti have famously fused cultural elements of various indigenous music with African-American jazz and Soul music, soul to form Afrobeat which has in turn influenced hip hop music. Jùjú music, JuJu music, which is percussion music fused with traditional music from the Yoruba nation and made famous by King Sunny Adé, is from Nigeria. Fuji music, a Yoruba percussion style, was created and popularised by Mr Fuji, Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister. Afan Music was invented and popularised by the Ewu-born poet and musician Umuobuarie Igberaese. Kennis Music originality started the Afrobeats, Afrobeats movement in Nigeria. Kennis Music is widely credited for the evolution of the Nigerian music scene and the rise of many major players. 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. over a decade later and Afro beats has widely taken over with artist like Davido, Wizkid and Burna Boy ranked amongst the biggest in the worldCinema
The Nigerian film industry is known as Nollywood (a Blend word, blend of "Nigeria" and "Hollywood") and is now the second-largest producer of movies in the world, having surpassed Hollywood. Only India's Bollywood is larger. Nigerian film studios are based inLagos
Lagos ( Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 f ...
, Kano, and Enugu, and form a major portion of the local economy of these cities. Cinema of Nigeria, 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 cinema, digital filming and editing technologies.
The 2009 thriller film ''The Figurine'' heightened the media attention towards the New Nigerian Cinema revolution. The film was a critical and commercial success in Nigeria, and it was also screened in international film festivals. The 2010 film ''Ijé'' by Chineze Anyaene, overtook ''The Figurine'' to become the List of highest-grossing films in Nigeria, highest-grossing Nigerian film; a record it held for four years until it was overtaken in 2014 by ''Half of a Yellow Sun (film), Half of a Yellow Sun'' (2013). By 2016, this record was held by ''The Wedding Party (2016 film), The Wedding Party'', a film by Kemi Adetiba.
By the end of 2013, the film industry reportedly hit a record-breaking revenue of ₦1.72 trillion (US$4.1 billion). As of 2014, the industry was worth ₦853.9 billion (US$5.1 billion), making it the third most valuable film industry in the world behind the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
and India. It contributed about 1.4% to Nigeria's economy; this was attributed to the increase in the number of quality films produced and more formal distribution methods.
T.B. Joshua's Emmanuel TV, originating from Nigeria, is one of the most viewed television stations across Africa.
Festival
There are many festivals in Nigeria, some of which date to the period before the arrival of the major religions in this ethnically and culturally diverse society. The main Muslim and Christian festivals are often celebrated in ways that are unique to Nigeria or unique to the people of a locality. The Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation has been working with the states to upgrade the traditional festivals, which may become important sources of tourism revenue.
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 Peanut, groundnut oil to create deeply flavoured sauces and soups often made very hot with chili pepper, chilli peppers. Nigerian feasts are colourful and lavish, while aromatic market and roadside snacks cooked on barbecues or fried in oil are plentiful and varied. Suya is usually sold in urban areas especially during night-time.Fashion
The fashion industry in Nigeria contributes significantly to the country's economics. Casual attire is commonly worn but formal and traditional styles are also worn depending on the occasion. Nigeria is known not only for its fashionable textiles and garments, but also for its fashion designers who have increasingly gained international recognition. Euromonitor International, Euromonitor estimates the Sub-Saharan Africa, Sub-Saharan fashion Market (economics), market to be worth $31 billion, with Nigeria accounting for 15% of these $31 billion. Nigeria is not only known for their many fashion textiles and garment pieces that are secret to their culture. They also outputted many fashion designers who have develop many techniques and business along the way.Sports
Football is largely considered Nigeria's national sport, and the country has its own Nigeria Professional Football League, Premier League of football. Nigeria national football team, Nigeria's national football team, known as the "Super Eagles", has made the FIFA World Cup, World Cup on six occasions 1994 FIFA World Cup, 1994, 1998 FIFA World Cup, 1998, 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2002, 2010 FIFA World Cup, 2010, 2014 FIFA World Cup, 2014, and 2018 FIFA World Cup, 2018. 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 Africa Cup of Nations, African Cup of Nations in 1980 African Cup of Nations, 1980, 1994 African Cup of Nations, 1994, and 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, 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.
Nigeria is also involved in other sports such as basketball, cricket and track and field. Boxing is also an important sport in Nigeria;. Nigeria men's national basketball team, Nigeria's national basketball team made the headlines internationally when it became the first African team to beat the United States men's national basketball team, United States men's national team. In earlier years, Nigeria qualified for the Basketball at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2012 Summer Olympics as it beat heavily favoured world elite teams such as Greece men's national basketball team, Greece and Lithuania men's national basketball team, Lithuania. Nigeria has been home to numerous internationally recognised basketball players in the world's top leagues in America, Europe and Asia. These players include Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Basketball Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon, and later players in the National Basketball Association, NBA. The Nigerian Premier League (basketball), Nigerian Premier League has become one of the biggest and most-watched basketball competitions in Africa. The games have aired on ''Kwese TV'' and have averaged a viewership of over a million people.
Nigeria made history by qualifying the first Bobsleigh, bobsled team for the Winter Olympic Games, Winter Olympics from Africa when their women's two-person team qualified for Bobsleigh at the 2018 Winter Olympics, the bobsled competition at the 2018 Winter Olympics, XXIII Olympic Winter Games. In the early 1990s, Scrabble was made an official sport in Nigeria. By the end of 2017, there were around 4,000 players in more than 100 clubs in the country. In 2018, the Nigerian Curling Federation was established to introduce a new sport to the country with the hope of getting the game to be a part of the curriculum at the elementary, high school, and university levels respectively. At the 2019 World Mixed Doubles Curling Championship in Norway, Nigeria won their first international match beating France 8–5.
Nigeria featured women's and men's national teams in beach volleyball that competed at the 2018–2020 CAVB Beach Volleyball Continental Cup. The country's U21 national teams qualified for the 2019 FIVB Beach Volleyball U21 World Championships.
See also
* Index of Nigeria-related articles * Outline of NigeriaNotes
References
Further reading
* * Dibua, Jeremiah I. ''Modernization and the crisis of development in Africa: the Nigerian experience'' (Routledge, 2017). *Ekundare, Olufemi R. ''An Economic History of Nigeria 1860-1960'' (Methuen & Co Ltd, 1973). * Falola, Toyin; and Adam Paddock. ''Environment and Economics in Nigeria'' (2012). * Falola, Toyin and Ann Genova. ''Historical Dictionary of Nigeria'' (Scarecrow Press, 2009) * Falola, Toyin, and Matthew M. Heaton. ''A History of Nigeria'' (2008) * Shillington, Kevin. ''Encyclopedia of African History''. (U of Michigan Press, 2005) p. 1401. * Metz, Helen Chapin, ed. ''Nigeria: a country study'' (U.S. Library of Congress. Federal Research Division, 1992online free
comprehensive historical and current coverage; not copyright. *Jones, Cunliffe-Peter. ''My Nigeria Five Decades of Independence. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010).'' *Achebe, Chinua. ''The trouble with Nigeria. (Fourth Dimension, 1983)''
External links
* * *Know More about Nigeria
Nigeria
''The World Factbook''. Central Intelligence Agency. {{Authority control Nigeria, Republics in the Commonwealth of Nations Developing 8 Countries member states Economic Community of West African States English-speaking countries and territories Federal republics G15 nations Member states of OPEC Member states of the African Union Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations Member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member states of the United Nations States and territories established in 1960 West African countries 1960 establishments in Nigeria Countries in Africa 1960 establishments in Africa Former British colonies and protectorates in Africa