NIGERIA

Federal Republic of Nigeria

CAPITAL: Abuja

FLAG: The national flag consists of three vertical stripes. The green outer stripes represent Nigerian agriculture. The white center stripe represents unity and peace.

ANTHEM: Arise, All Compatriots.

MONETARY UNIT: On 1 January 1973, the Nigerian pound (n£) was replaced by the naira (n) of 100 kobo at a rate of n2 = n£1. There are coins of ½, 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 kobo and 1 naira, and notes of 5, 10, 20, and 50 naira. n1 = $0.00754 (or $1 = n132.59) as of 2005.

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES: As of May 1975, the metric system is the official standard, replacing the imperial measures.

HOLIDAYS: New Year's Day, 1 January; National Day, 1 October; Christmas, 25 December; Boxing Day, 26 December. Movable Christian religious holidays include Good Friday and Easter Monday; movable Muslim religious holidays include 'Id al-Fitr, 'Id al-'Adha', and Milad an-Nabi.

TIME: 1 pm = noon GMT.

LOCATION, SIZE, AND EXTENT

Located at the extreme inner corner of the Gulf of Guinea on the west coast of Africa, Nigeria occupies an area of 923,768 sq. km (356,669 sq mi), extending 1,127 km (700 mi) e–w and 1,046 km (650 mi) n–s. Comparatively, the area occupied by Nigeria is slightly more than twice the size of the state of California. It is bordered by Chad on the NE, by Cameroon on the e, by the Atlantic Ocean (Gulf of Guinea) on the s, by Benin (formerly Dahomey) on the w, and by Niger on the nw and n, with a total boundary length of 4,900 km (3,045 mi), of which 853 km (530 mi) is coastline. The borders between Nigeria and Chad and Nigeria and Cameroon are disputed, and there have been occasional border clashes.

Nigeria's capital city, Abuja, is located in the center of the country.

TOPOGRAPHY

Along the entire coastline of Nigeria lies a belt of mangrove swamp forest from 16 to 96 km (10–60 mi) in width, which is intersected by branches of the Niger and innumerable other smaller rivers and creeks. Beyond the swamp forest is a zone, from 80 to 160 km (50–100 mi) wide, of undulating tropical rain forest. The country then rises to a plateau at a general elevation of about 600 m (2,000 ft) but reaches a maximum of 2,042 m (6,700 ft) on the eastern border in the Shebshi Mountains, and the vegetation changes from woodland to savanna, with thick forest in the mountains. In the extreme north, the country approaches the southern part of the Sahara.

The Niger, the third-largest river of Africa, enters Nigeria from the northwest and runs in a southeasterly direction, meeting its principal tributary, the Benue, at Lokoja, about 550 km (340 mi) from the sea. It then flows south to the delta, through which it empties into the Gulf of Guinea via numerous channels. Other main tributaries of the Niger are the Sokoto and Kaduna rivers. The second great drainage system of Nigeria flows north and east from the central plateau and empties into Lake Chad. Kainji Lake, in the northwest, was created by construction of a dam on the Niger above Jebba.

CLIMATE

Although Nigeria lies wholly within the tropical zone, there are wide climatic variations in different regions of the country. Near the coast, the seasons are not sharply defined. Temperatures rarely exceed 32°c (90°f), but humidity is very high and nights are hot. Inland, there are two distinct seasons: a wet season from April to October, with generally lower temperatures, and a dry season from November to March, with midday temperatures that surpass 38°c (100°f) but relatively cool nights, dropping as low as 12°c (54°f). On the Jos Plateau, temperatures are more moderate.

Average rainfall along the coast varies from about 180 cm (70 in) in the west to about 430 cm (170 in) in certain parts of the east. Inland, it decreases to around 130 cm (50 in) over most of central Nigeria and only 50 cm (20 in) in the extreme north.

Two principal wind currents affect Nigeria. The harmattan, from the northeast, is hot and dry and carries a reddish dust from the desert; it causes high temperatures during the day and cool nights. The southwest wind brings cloudy and rainy weather.

FLORA AND FAUNA

The natural vegetation is divisible into two main sections directly related to the chief climatic regions of the country: (1) high forest, including both swamp and rain forests, and (2) savanna. Along the coastal area, the mangrove tree predominates, while immediately inland is freshwater swamp forest, which is somewhat more diversified and includes varieties of palms, the abura, and mahogany. North of the swamp forest lies near the rain forest, which forms a belt with an average width of some 130 km (80 mi). Here, trees reach as much as 60 m (200 ft) in height. Principal trees include the African mahogany, iroko, African walnut, and the most popular export wood, the obeche. Farther inland, the rain forest becomes displaced by tall grass and deciduous trees of small stature, characteristic of the savanna.

Few large animals are found in the rain forest; gorillas and chimpanzees in decreasing numbers are present, as well as baboons and monkeys. Reptiles abound, including crocodiles, lizards, and snakes of many species. Although many kinds of mammals can be found inland from the rain forest, these are not nearly so plentiful as in East or South Africa. Nigeria possesses two dozen species of antelope, but large concentrations of animals, even the common antelope, are rarely observed. The hippopotamus, elephant, giraffe, leopard, and lion now remain only in scattered localities and in diminishing number. Wildcats, however, are more common and widely distributed. Wildlife in the savanna includes antelope, lions, leopards, gazelles, and desert hyenas. Nigeria also abounds in bird life with a great number of species being represented.

As of 2002, there were at least 274 species of mammals, 286 species of birds, and over 4,700 species of plants throughout the country.

ENVIRONMENT

Many of Nigeria's environmental problems are those typical of developing states. Excessive cultivation has resulted in loss of soil fertility. Increased cutting of timber has made inroads into forest resources, exceeding replantings. Between 1983 and 1993 alone, Nigeria lost 20% of its forest and woodland areas. In 2000, about 14.8% of the total land area was forested.

Oil spills, the burning of toxic wastes, and urban air pollution are problems in more developed areas. In the early 1990s, Nigeria was among the 50 nations with the world's highest levels of carbon dioxide emissions, which totaled 96.5 million metric tons, a per capita level of 0.84 metric tons. However, emissions levels have since dropped significantly.

Water pollution is also a problem due to improper handling of sewage. Nigeria has 221 cu km of renewable water resources. Fifty-four percent of the annual withdrawal is used for farming activity and 15% for industrial purposes.

The principal environmental agencies are the Environmental Planning and Protection Division of the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing, and the analogous division within the federal Ministry of Industry.

In 2003, about 3.3% of the total land area was protected. According to a 2006 report issued by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the number of threatened species included 25 types of mammals, 9 species of birds, 2 types of reptiles, 13 species of amphibians, 12 species of fish, 1 species of other invertebrate, and 170 species of plants. Threatened species include the drill, Presuu's red colobus, and the Ibadan malimbe. The Sahara oryx has become extinct in the wild.

POPULATION

The population of Nigeria in 2005 was estimated by the United Nations (UN) at 131,530,000, which placed it at number 9 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In 2005, approximately 3% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 43% of the population under 15 years of age. There were 102 males for every 100 females in the country. According to the UN, the annual population rate of change for 2005–2010 was expected to be 2.4%, a rate the government viewed as too high. The projected population for the year 2025 was 190,287,000. The overall population density was 142 per sq km (369 per sq mi), but regional differences are significant; population is densest in the south and sparsest in the north.

The UN estimated that 44% of the population lived in urban areas in 2005, and that urban areas were growing at an annual rate of 3.72%. The capital city, Abuja, had a population of 452,000 in that year. The principal cities include Lagos, the former capital and still the largest city, with an estimated metropolitan population of 14,037,000 and the highest population density of any major African urban conglomeration. Kano had a metropolitan population of 2,884,000, and Ibadan had 2,649,000.

The prevalence of HIV/AIDS has had a significant impact on the population of Nigeria. The UN estimated that 5.8% of adults between the ages of 15–49 were living with HIV/AIDS in 2001. The AIDS epidemic causes higher death and infant mortality rates, and lowers life expectancy.

MIGRATION

Immigrants are drawn from neighboring nations by economic opportunity. On 17 January 1983, Nigeria, suffering from an economic crisis brought about by decreased earnings from oil, ordered all resident aliens to leave the country. Some 700,000 Ghanaians departed during the following weeks, as did smaller numbers from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Niger, Togo, and Burkina Faso. In 1985, about 200,000 to 250,000 aliens were expelled, including about 100,000 from Ghana and 50,000 from Niger.

As of 2004, there were 8,395 refugees in Nigeria. Of these, some 5,341 were settled in a camp at Oru. The remainder were in Lagos or at various locations in north Nigeria. In that same year there were 1,086 asylum seekers and 364 returned refugees. In 2004, some 16,686 Nigerians were refugees in Cameroon. In that same year 17,000 Nigerians applied for asylum in 19 countries, mainly Austria, France, and Ireland, followed by other Western countries and South Africa.

The net migration rate in 2005 was an estimated 0.27 migrants per 1,000 population. Worker remittances in 2003 amounted to an estimated $1.3 billion. The government views the migration levels as satisfactory.

ETHNIC GROUPS

There are more than 250 different ethnic groups within the country, none of which holds a majority. The four largest ethnic groups are the Hausa and Fulani, which together account for about 28% of the population; the Yoruba, accounting for 21% of the population; and the Ibos with 18% of the population. The Ijaw of the South Delta make up 10% of the people, followed by Kanuri (4%), the Ibibio (3.5%), and the Tiv (2.5%).

Yoruba predominate in Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, and Osun states. The Ibo (Igbo) predominate in Anambra, Imo, Abia, and Enugu states. The Hausa and Fulani constitute the largest single groups in Sokoto, Kaduna, Jigawa, Katsina, and Kano states. Other important groups include the Kanuri in Borno and Yobe states; the Edo (Bini) in Edo State; the Ibibio in Akwa Ibam State; the Ijaw (Ijo) in Rivers State; the Tiv in Benue and Plateau states; and the Nupe in Niger State.

LANGUAGES

The official language is English, although there are over 300 distinct indigenous tongues. Hausa is the mother tongue of more than 40% of the inhabitants of the northern states. Yoruba is commonly used in southwestern urban centers, including Lagos. Ibo and Fulani are also widely spoken. Ethnic divisions roughly reflect the distribution of other vernaculars.

RELIGIONS

Religious affiliation in Nigeria is strongly related to ethnicity, with rather distinct regional divisions between ethnic groups. The northern states, dominated by the Hausa and Fulani groups, are predominantly Muslim while the southern ethnic groups have a large number of Christians. In the southwest, there is no predominant religion. The Yoruba tribe, which is the majority ethnic group in the southwest, practice Christianity, Muslim, and/or the traditional Yoruba religion, which centers on the belief in one supreme god and several lesser deities. The Ibo of the east are primarily Catholic or Methodist, with some traditional practices included.

Overall statistics indicate that about 50% of the population are Muslim, with a majority practicing the Sunni branch of the faith. About 40% are Christian and about 10% practice traditional African religions or no religion at all. Many people include elements of traditional beliefs in their own practice of Christianity or Islam. The Christian community is composed of Roman Catholics (the largest denomination), Methodists, Anglicans, Baptists, Presbyterians, and members of Evangelical and Pentecostal groups.

Though the constitution prohibits state and local governments from declaring an official religion, a number of states have recently adopted various forms of the Islamic criminal and civil law known as Shariah, a move which many Christians believe to be an adoption of Islam as the de facto religion. The constitution also provides for freedom of religion, however, some states have restricted religious demonstrations, processions, or gatherings as a matter of public security. Business owners and public officials have been known to discriminate against individuals of a faith different than their own in matters of providing services and hiring practices. The same type of discrimination exists between members of different ethnic groups. Certain Christian and Muslim holidays are officially observed.

There is a high degree of tension between Christians and Muslims with a record of violence against both groups. However, conflicts may stem primarily from ethnic and regional differences, since there are a number of reports of violence between different ethnic groups of the same religion.

TRANSPORTATION

The main waterways are the Niger and Benue rivers and a system of navigable creeks and lagoons in the southern part of the country. The Niger is navigable to Onitsha by large riverboat and to Lokoja by barge throughout the year. Ports farther upstream on the Niger and Benue can be reached in the high-water season. Inland waterways total about 8,575 km (5,328 mi). Lagos remains Nigeria's principal port, handling more than 75% of the country's general cargo. Other ports are Port Harcourt, Calabar, and the delta port complex of Warri, Sapele, Koko, Burutu, Bonny, and Alesa Eleme. The Merchant Marine operated a fleet of 46 ships of 1,000 GRT or more, totaling 327,808 GRT in 2005. A 1987 decree requires 40% of total cargo generated by trade with Nigeria to be carried on Nigerian shipping.

As of 2004, the Nigerian railway system, the fifth-largest in Africa, was operated by the statutory Nigerian Railway Corp., which consisted of 3,557 km (2,210 mi) of narrow and standard gauge railways. Of that total, narrow gauge lines accounted for 3,505 km (2,180 mi). The greater part of the system is single tracked and consisted of two generally north-south lines, originating in Lagos and Port Harcourt. The westerly situated route ran northeast from Lagos through Ibadan, Ilorin, and Kaduna to Kano. An easterly situated line ran from Port Harcourt through Enugu and Makurdi, and joined the western line at Kaduna. Extensions carry the former north to Nguru and the latter north to Kaura-Namoda. Three branch lines connect other industrial and commercial centers to the main system. A 645-km (400-mi) extension of the Port Harcourt line from Kafanchan to Maiduguri, linking the main system with the northeastern corner of the country, was completed in 1964. However, years of neglect have seriously reduced the capacity and utility of the railway system.

Nigeria in 2002 had an estimated 193,200 km (120,054 mi) of roads, of which 59,892 km (37,216 mi) were paved, including 1,194 km (742 mi) of expressways. In 2003, some 1,108,200 vehicles were registered, including 681,200 passenger cars and 427,000 commercial vehicles.

Air traffic has been growing steadily. In 2004 there were an estimated 70 airports. As of 2005, a total of 36 had paved runways, and there was a single heliport. International service is provided from Lagos (Murtala Muhammed), Port Harcourt, and Kano airports by more than two dozen international airlines; a cargooriented international airport in Abuja was operational in 1987. Nigeria Airways, which operates internal Nigerian services and participates in international services, became a wholly Nigerianowned company in 1961. Its regularly scheduled flights link Lagos and 15 of the 19 state capitals. Nigeria Airways also flies to many West African destinations, to Nairobi, Kenya, and Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, and to New York, London, Amsterdam, and Rome. In 2003, about 520,000 domestic and international passengers were carried on scheduled flights.

HISTORY

The history of Nigeria prior to the beginnings of British administration is not well documented. There is archaeological evidence, however, that an Iron Age culture had been present sometime between 500 bc and ad 200, and agriculture and livestock raising long before then. About the 11th century ad, Yoruba city-states developed in western Nigeria, and some, such as Benin, became powerful kingdoms in later centuries. During medieval times, northern Nigeria had contact with the large kingdoms of the western Sudan (Ghana, Mali, and Songhai) and with countries of the Mediterranean across the Sahara. Islamic influence was firmly established by the end of the 15th century, and Kano was famous not only as a center of Islamic studies but also as a great commercial entrepôt of the western Sudan. Until the arrival of the British, northern Nigeria was economically oriented toward the north and east, and woven cloth and leatherwork were exported as far as the North African ports of the Mediterranean. At the beginning of the 19th century, a jihad, or holy war, led by a Fulani sheikh, Uthman dan Fodio, established Fulani rule over the surviving Hausa kingdoms, until the British conquest at the end of the century.

In the south, the Portuguese were the first Europeans to establish close relations with the coastal people. In the late 15th century, they established a depot to handle trade goods and slaves from Benin. The Portuguese monopoly was broken after a century, and other European nations participated in the burgeoning slave trade. The British abolished slave trading in 1807, and thereafter-British policy was directed at enforcing that ban on other nations. Interest in legitimate commerce developed slowly, but the discovery of the mouth of the Niger in 1830 provided an important impetus. The extension of British influence over Nigeria was gradual and, initially at least, unplanned. In 1861, the British annexed the island of Lagos, an important center of palm oil trade; thereafter, they gradually extended their influence over the adjacent mainland of Yorubaland.

In 1887, British influence over the eastern coast, which had been promoted since 1849 by consular agents, was regularized by the establishment of the Oil Rivers Protectorate. This too was gradually extended inland and became the Niger Coast Protectorate in 1894. The acquisition of the interior of Nigeria, however, was accomplished largely by Sir George Goldie, founder of the Royal Niger Company, who by 1885 had eliminated commercial competition on the Niger and, by claiming treaties with responsible African authorities, had secured recognition of British influence over the Niger Basin by the European powers at the Berlin Conference. This influence was far more fancied than real; but it provided the basis for British rule over northern Nigeria, which was consolidated by a series of punitive expeditions culminating in the establishment of the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria in 1900.

The three separate administrative units were finally amalgamated in 1914 into the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria, with Sir Frederick Lugard as governor-general. Despite the ostensible unification, the administrative individuality of the three separate regions—North, East, and West—was maintained. The chief characteristic of British rule in Nigeria was its system of local administration, known as indirect rule. In real terms though, indirect rule depended on a system of centralized political units with local (or native) chiefs at the lowest rungs of the hierarchy. It functioned well in the North, with variable success in the West, and poorly in the East.

After World War II, increasing pressures for self-government resulted in a succession of short-lived constitutions. The constitution of 1954 established a federal form of government, greatly extending the functions of the regional governments. A constitutional conference of May and June 1957 decided upon immediate self-government for the Eastern and Western regions, the Northern to follow in 1959. The step from self-government to independence was quickly taken. On 1 October 1960, Nigeria became a fully independent member of the British Commonwealth, and on 1 October 1963 it became a republic. Nnamdi Azikiwe was elected the first president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Internal unrest began almost as soon as Nigeria raised its own flag; but its roots lay in the complex ethnic composition of the regions. It boiled over to resentment over the domination of the federal government by Northern elements, and culminated in a military coup on 15 January 1966. Organized by a group of Eastern junior army officers, the coup led to the deaths of the federal prime minister, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa; the premier of the Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello; and the premier of the Western Region, Chief S. L. Akintola. By 17 January, Maj. Gen. Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi, commander-in-chief of the army, had suppressed the revolt and assumed supreme power. He suspended the constitution and dissolved the legislature, established a military government, and appointed military governors to replace the popularly elected civilian governors in the regions. On 29 July 1966, mutinous elements in the army, largely Northern army officers, staged a countercoup, killed Gen. Ironsi, and replaced him with Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon as head of the military government. The July coup led to the massacre of thousands of Easterners residing in the Northern Region and to the exodus of more than one million persons (mostly Ibos) to the Eastern Region.

On 28 May 1967, Col. Gowon assumed emergency powers as head of the Federal Military Government and announced the division of the country into 12 states. The Northern Region was split into 6 states; the Mid-West, Western, and Lagos areas each became separate states; and 3 states were formed from the Eastern Region. Rejecting the realignment, Eastern Region leaders announced on 30 May the independent Republic of Biafra, with Lt. Col. Odumegwu Ojukwu as head of state. On 6 July, the federal government declared war on the fledgling republic. By the time the war ended on 12 January 1970, Biafra had been reduced to about one-tenth of its original 78,000-sq-km (30,000-sq-mi) area; a million or more persons had perished, many from disease and starvation; many more had become refugees at home or abroad. Following the surrender, many Ibos returned to their former positions in Lagos, and Gen. Gowon's military regime sought to rehabilitate the three Eastern states as quickly as possible.

In October 1970, with the civil war behind him, Gen. Gowon set 1976 as the target date for Nigeria's return to civilian rule. Political change came slowly, however, and in October 1974, Gowon announced an indefinite postponement of plans for the transfer of power. The regime's recalcitrance in this and other areas, including its failure to check the power of the state governors and to reduce the general level of corruption, led to Gowon's overthrow on 29 July 1975. His successor, Brig. Murtala Ramat Muhammad, moved quickly in dismissing large numbers of officials, many of them corrupt and inefficient; and in establishing an ombudsman commission. One of his plans was to establish a new capital territory in the center of the country, at Abuja. On 13 February 1976, Muhammad was assassinated in the course of an abortive coup. He was replaced as head of the government by the former chief of staff of the armed forces, Lt. Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo, who pledged to carry on his predecessor's program. In March 1976, a decree established a 19-state federation. Political party activity was again permitted in late 1978, and a new constitution took effect on 1 October 1979, the day Alhaji Shehu Shagari took office as president. Leader of the conservative National Party of Nigeria, he also had the support of the Nigerian People's Party (NPP), led by former president Azikiwe. The NPP withdrew its support in 1981, leaving Shagari at the head of a minority government. In August 1983, Shagari won reelection to a second term as president; in late December, however, he was ousted in a military coup.

The new military regime, led by Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, provoked growing public dissatisfaction because of its increasingly authoritarian character, and a military coup on 27 August 1985 brought Maj.-Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to power. Assuming the title of president, Babangida promised greater respect for human and civil liberties; yet he banned Second Republic (1979–83) officials from participation in politics for 10 years. A return to full civilian rule was pledged by 1992, with local elections on a nonparty basis, the creation of a constituent assembly, the establishment of no more than two political parties, state elections, a national census, and finally presidential elections. The first step in the process—local elections on 12 December 1987—were marred by irregularities. To deal with Nigeria's economic troubles, stemming from the fall of world oil prices in the 1980s, Babangida inaugurated a "homegrown" Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) prompted by the IMF but not directed by them. It involved cuts in public spending, decreased state control over the economy, stimulation of exports, devaluation of the currency, and rescheduling of debt.

A mostly elected Constituent Assembly met in 1988 and approved modifications in the 1979 constitution. The process of party formation proved awkward in a society as heterogeneous as Nigeria's. None of the 13 potential parties gained Babangida's approval. Instead, he decided to create two new parties, one "a little to the right" of center, another "a little to the left." Neither challenged government effectively.

Babangida's guided program of transition from military rule to a democratic civilian Third Republic was due for completion in 1992. But it was marked by crisis after crisis. Clashes between Muslims and Christians in 1991 and 1992 spread through northern cities. Hundreds were killed in the rioting itself and then by the army seeking to contain the riots. Pro-democracy groups also emerged across society, in part from frustration with the excesses of military rule; and because of suspicion that the military might renege on plans to turn over power to elected civilians.

In elections for state governors and assemblies, the National Republican Convention (NRC) won 13 of 30 assemblies and 16 governorships. The Social Democratic Party (SDP) carried 17 and 14, respectively. But voter indifference and fear of intimidation was high. When state governments took office, intraparty wrangling and political violence marred their performance.

Nonetheless, by January 1992, Nigerians geared up for the national presidential and legislative elections scheduled for later in the year. Nigeria's first successful census since independence (results announced in March 1992) indicated a population of 88.5 million, some 20 million fewer than estimated. The election register had to be revised downward, from 70 million to 39 million voters. On 20 May 1992, the government banned all political, religious, and ethnic organizations other than the two approved political parties.

In legislative elections held on 4 July, the left-of-center SDP won 47 of the 91 Senate seats and 310 of the 593 seats in the House of Representatives. The right-of-center NRC won 37 and 267 seats, respectively. The ruling military council pushed back the transition date until January 1993; it also postponed the inauguration of the National Assembly to coincide with the formal take-off of the Third Republic.

In August and September, the country began the process of narrowing the field of presidential candidates from 20 to 2 in preparation for the December elections. But on 17 November 1992, Babangida announced a third delay in the transfer of power from 2 January until 27 August 1993. Political violence and charges of electoral fraud disrupted the first round of presidential primaries. The second round in September was flawed, too. Faced with a virtual breakdown of the electoral machinery, the military council suspended the primary results in October. All 23 of the presidential aspirants were banned from future political competition. These disruptions were compounded by high levels of student and labor unrest, detentions of dissidents, and ethnic and religious violence. Nonetheless, the military council promised to give way to an elected civilian administration in 1993.

A new round of presidential nominations took place in March 1993. Chief M.K.O. Abiola (SDP) and Alhaji Bashir Tofa (NRC), both Muslim businessmen with ties to Babangida, won nomination. The presidential election of 12 June took place amid a flurry of legal efforts to halt it and great voter confusion. Abiola apparently defeated Tofa handily, 58.4% to 41.6% according to unofficial results.

But the National Electoral Commission set aside the results on 16 June. A week later, Babangida annulled the election citing irregularities, poor turnout, and legal complications. Abiola, backed largely by the Yoruba people, demanded to be certified as president-elect. Civil unrest followed, especially in Lagos.

After weeks of uncertainty and tension, Babangida resigned the presidency and his military commission on 26 August 1993. He handpicked a transitional council headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan. By mid-November, Gen. Sani Abacha forced Shonekan to resign and he installed himself as head of state. On 18 November 1993, he abolished all state and local governments and the national legislature. He replaced many civilian officials with military commanders. He banned political parties and all political activity and ordered strikers to return to work. The following week, he named an 11-member Provisional Ruling Council composed mainly of generals and police officials. He also created a 32-member Federal Executive Council to head government ministries. It included prominent civilians and some prodemocracy and human rights activists.

On 11 June 1994, Abiola proclaimed himself president and then went into hiding. He was arrested later that month, an action that portended much that was to come for Nigeria. Massive protests followed Abiola's arrest, but Abacha's military repressed the demonstrators violently. On 6 July Abiola pleaded not guilty to three counts of treason; the following day laborers went on strike to protest the Abacha regime. In the following months millions of Nigerian workers walked out in support of Abiola and refused to attend scheduled government talks. Abiola remained in prison through June 1996, when his outspoken wife Kudirat Abiola was assassinated. Strikes and protests continued in support of the sanctity of the vote, and of Abiola's mandate.

In August, General Abacha fired his army and navy commanders. Two weeks later he banned several newspapers, declaring that his government had absolute power and would not give in to prodemocracy demonstrators. Late in September, claiming that it was part of his plan to "rejuvenate the machinery of government," Abacha removed all civilians from his ruling council. Three months later he suspended habeas corpus and continued to round up and jail opponents. At the same time he rejected a court order demanding the release of Abiola from prison for medical treatment. In March 1995 Abacha ordered the arrest of former Nigerian leader Olusegun Obasanjo on suspicion of treason. Later in the month he dissolved labor unions and jailed their leaders. On 25 April Abacha canceled a 1 January 1996 deadline for the return of civilian rule and refused to discuss the matter. Though he lifted a ban on political parties in June 1995, Abacha placed tight restrictions on their operations. The July convictions in secret trials of 40 suspected traitors brought international condemnation and demands of leniency from critics of the Nigerian government. Ultimately Abacha relented on 1 October, commuting the death sentences of his convicted opponents and declaring that he would relinquish power to an elected government in 1998.

Despite these promises, many outside observers remained skeptical, largely due to fallout from the case of Ken Saro-Wiwa, leader of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People. Sentenced to death in October 1995 for a quadruple murder, many believed that Saro-Wiwa had been convicted on trumped-up charges stemming from his opposition to a proposed drilling agreement in Nigeria's main oil-producing region. The executions in early November of Saro-Wiwa and eight others brought a torrent of criticism from the international community and resulted in Nigeria's suspension from the British Commonwealth and an embargo from the European Union on arms and aid to Nigeria. Bowing to this pressure, the Abacha government amended in May 1996 the law under which Saro-Wiwa and the others had been convicted and offered to hold talks on the matter with the United Kingdom.

Abacha announced efforts in November 1996 to spur economic change and raise living standards in the country, a pronouncement met with skepticism by an increasingly angry opposition. By December, opponents of the government detonated two bombs aimed at Col. Mohammed Marwa, head of the Nigerian military. Col. Marwa escaped both attacks.

In April 1998, four of Nigeria's five major political parties nominated Abacha as their presidential candidate. Amid opposition accusations that the transition plan was designed to prolong Abacha's rule, legislative elections held on 25 April were heavily boycotted. Nigeria's political fortunes changed suddenly on 8 June when Abacha died of an apparent heart attack. General Abdoulsalami Abubakar took charge and promised to continue Abacha's transition. On 7 July, Abiola died of a suspected heart failure while still in custody.

On 20 July General Abubakar announced a new plan for return to civilian rule culminating in a transfer of power in May 1999. On 5 December local council elections took place with three parties qualifying to move on to state and national elections by winning at least 5% of the vote in 24 of 36 states. On 11 January 1999 elections for state governorships and legislatures were held.

Elections for president and the national legislature were held on 27 February 1999. Obasanjo (PDP) won the presidential elections with 62% of the vote, while Olu Falae, the candidate for the Alliance for Democracy (AD) and the All Peoples Party (APP), received 38%. Despite Falae's charges of election rigging, international observers from the Carter Center and the National Democratic Institute reported that available evidence of electoral abuse and other irregularities were unlikely to have affected the overall results. In April Olu Falae closed his case against Obasanjo after a federal appeals court in Abuja rejected two pleas. Power was handed over officially to the new government in May. Twenty heads of state attended Obasanjo's inauguration on 4 June, some two decades after he left office as a military ruler.

Obasanjo promised to restore law and order, fight corruption, and unify Nigeria's ethnically and religiously diverse peoples. The federal government increased the oil-producing states' share of revenue from 3% to 13%. However, these states were demanding a 50% share, so the increase did not resolve disputes over local ownership, control of resources, and embezzlement. In 1999, Nigeria was second on Transparency International's list of most corrupt countries (Cameroon was first).

In 1999, fighting in the Delta region killed several hundred people while outbreaks of fighting between Yorubas and Hausa in the area of Lagos resulted in hundreds more deaths. The Igbo demanded reparations of $87 billion for the 1967–70 civil war. In February 2000, days of violent clashes between Muslims and Christians killed as many as 750 persons (mostly Igbo Christians, other southeasterners, and some Yorubas) in Kaduna, and destroyed several churches and mosques following announcements that a fuller application of Islamic law, Shariah, would be introduced in Zamfara and at least five other northern states. The code includes punishments such as flogging and amputation, and in principle only affects Muslims, but has caused great consternation among non-Muslims.

In June and July 2001, between 100 and 200 people were killed in Nasarawa state in fighting between the Tiv and other ethnic groups. In October, more than 200 villagers were killed by the army in the east-central state of Benue in retaliation for the murder of 19 soldiers amid fighting between the Tiv and Junkun. From 7–13 September 2001 in the central city of Jos, about 915 lives were lost in inter-communal violence between Muslims and Christians, although the nongovernmental organization Human Rights Watch described the conflict as more political and economic than religious.

On 27 January 2002, more than 1,000 people died as a result of a series of explosions at an army munitions dump in Lagos. Many of the victims had fallen into a canal and drowned as they tried to leave the northern neighborhood of Ikeja. In February, some 100 people were killed in Lagos in ethnic clashes between Yorubas and Hausa. Thousands fled their homes. In November, more than 200 people were killed in riots between Muslims and Christians in Kaduna, following the publication of a newspaper article suggesting that the prophet Muhammad would have wished to marry one of the Miss World contestants competing in that beauty pageant to be held in Abuja on 7 December. The pageant was subsequently moved to London. Also in November, the Nigerian government stated that it would intervene to save the life of Amina Lawal, a 30-year old woman sentenced to death by stoning after she was found guilty in a Shariah court of having had extra-marital sex. Her case provoked large-scale protests from the international community.

In October 2002, the International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Cameroon in its territorial dispute with Nigeria over the oil-rich Bakassi peninsula. Fighting between the two countries over the region broke out in 1994, at which point Cameroon requested a world court ruling on the border dispute. The decision is not subject to appeal.

Nigerians, once dominated by the military, have become disappointed in the civilian rule initiated in 1999. But Nigerians have had to contend with increasing poverty, ethnic strife, religious intolerance, declining standards in health and education, and a stagnant economy. In 2000, an estimated 60% of the population lived below the poverty line. From 1999 until the end of 2002, approximately 10,000 people had been killed in political and sectarian fighting. In December 2001, Chief Ajibola Ige, the sitting attorney general and minister of justice of the federal government, was murdered in the bedroom of his home at Ibadan. Chief Ige's murder has remained unsolved, as have those of several other high-ranking politicians from the ruling PDP. These murders, a rising wave of crime in the country, as well as the militarization of the Niger Delta, cast doubts on the efficacy of the security agencies. It also served as a spur to calls for a decentralized police force, or one structured by region and/or state.

For many, the general elections of 2003 were critical to finding solutions to these and other questions, and could move the country forward. In 2002, 24 new political parties had joined the fray after the Supreme Court declared as invalid some of the conditions that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had imposed on associations seeking a license to operate as political parties. The presidential race attracted more candidates, but public debates on issues were no clearer or deeper. The larger political parties did not face much challenge either.

The 2003 elections left the PDP in greater control of government. In the presidential poll, Obasanjo won 61.9% of the votes; former military head of state and candidate of the All Nigeria People's Party (ANPP), Muhammadu Buhari, took 31.2%. The AD, with a large Yoruba following, did not field a candidate in apparent support of Obasanjo's candidacy. The PDP also won 73 seats in the Senate and 213 in the House of Representatives; ANPP won 28 and 95 seats, while the AD took 6 and 31 seats respectively. The PDP won control of government in 28 states, ANPP got 7, and ADP won only in Lagos State. The results were contested at all levels. Buhari filed a suit against Obasanjo's victory that went all the way to the Supreme Court; it also drew a dissenting opinion in favor of the appellant.

In July 2003, an attempt was made with support from a detachment of the police to forcibly remove from power Chris Ngige, governor of Anambra State in the east. Subsequent efforts involved the burning down of major government symbols and the withdrawal of security details from Ngige. A senior police officer, a judge, and several minor actors in the saga were dismissed. In early 2004, Obasanjo declared a state of emergency in central Plateau State, also controlled by the PDP. This followed allegations of corruption against the governor, Joshua Dariye, who countered that he had donated some of the missing money to the PDP. In September 2005, yet another PDP governor, this time of oil-rich Bayelsa State, was arrested in London on suspicion of money-laundering. He returned to Nigeria but was removed from office and prosecuted for various economic offences. At the federal level, Obasanjo had been locked in battle with several segments of the PDP. He also openly accused his deputy, Vice President Atiku Abubakar of disloyalty after an apparent disagreement over succession in 2007.

Obasanjo's economic policy was controversial. Incessant increases in the price of petroleum products put his administration at disagreement with organized labor, and civil society. The PDP enacted a law that made it more difficult to form and sustain a single labor federation in Nigeria. Obasanjo received a debt-forgiveness deal with Nigeria's creditors and consistently averred a commitment to antipoverty programs. Not many jobs were being created and federal government units were downsized. In 2006 Obasanjo served notice that thousands of jobs were to be erased in the public sector. The next elections were scheduled for 2007.

GOVERNMENT

The 1979 constitution, promulgated by the outgoing military government, established a federal system resembling that of the United States, with a directly elected president and vice president (whose names appear on the same ballot) and separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches.

The military government that took command after the December 1983 coup suspended the 1979 constitution. The president held executive and legislative authority, in consultation with the 28-member Armed Forces Ruling Council, and appointed the cabinet.

After the Abacha seizure of power on 17 November 1993, the 1979 constitution remained suspended. A military-dominated Provisional Ruling Council (PRC) ruled by decree. A 32-member Federal Executive Council managed government departments, and the PRC dissolved the elected national and state legislatures and the local councils, replacing elected civilian governors with military administrators. The PRC also announced that it would hold a constitutional conference to plan for the future and to establish a timetable for a return to democracy. On 21 November 1993, Abacha signed a decree restoring the 1979 constitution (Second Republic). Nonetheless, legal experts disagreed which documents should form the basis for Nigerian government and law.

The new constitution, which became law in May 1999, restored constitutional rule under the Fourth Republic. Nigeria became a federal republic comprising 36 states and a Federal Capital Territory at Abuja. The national legislature is bicameral with 109 Senate seats and 360 House seats. Members of both houses are elected by universal suffrage (age 18) to a four-year term. The president is elected to no more than two four-year terms. The president chairs a Federal Executive Council, which he appoints. Legislative and presidential elections were held in April 2003. The results gave Obasanjo and many governors their second and final term under the 1999 Constitution.

POLITICAL PARTIES

Ethnic, religious, and regional differences have hindered the formation of a truly national Nigerian political party in Nigeria. Before 1966, the major parties were the Northern People's Congress (NPC), overwhelmingly dominant in the Northern Region and possessing a plurality in the federal House of Representatives; the National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC), dominant in the Eastern Region and junior partner in coalition with the NPC in the federal House of Representatives; and the Action Group, majority party in the Western Region and the leading opposition group in the federal legislature. Policies and platforms of the major parties were similar, generally supporting welfare and development programs. Following the 1959 elections, the NCNC joined in a coalition with the NPC in the federal government.

The first national elections in independent Nigeria, held on 30 December 1964, were contested by two political alliances: the Nigerian National Alliance (NNA), led by Sir Ahmadu Bello, premier of the Northern Region, and the United Progressive Grand Alliance (UPGA), led by Michael Okpara, premier of the Eastern Region. The NNA comprised the NPC, the Western-based Nigerian National Democratic Party, and opposition parties representing ethnic minorities in the Eastern and Mid-Western regions. The UPGA included the NCNC, the Action Group, the Northern Elements Progressive Union (the main opposition party in the Northern Region), and the United Middle Belt Congress (a non-Muslim party strongly opposed to the NPC). Northerners feared Ibo domination of the federal government and sought support from the Yoruba, while the UPGA accused the Muslim Northerners of anti-Southern, antidemocratic, and anti-Christian attitudes. The election results, announced on 6 January 1965, gave a large majority to the NNA (198 of 267 constituencies). Before the balloting began, the UPGA charged that unconstitutional practices were taking place and announced that it would boycott the elections, in which only 4 million of the 15 million eligible voters actually cast ballots. On 4 January 1965, President Azikiwe called on Prime Minister Balewa to form a new government. In the supplementary elections held on 18 March 1965, the UPGA won all 51 seats in the Eastern Region and 3 seats in Lagos. This was followed by announcement of an enlarged and reorganized cabinet on 31 March. Ten months later the Balewa government was overthrown, the military assumed power, and on 24 May 1966 all political parties were banned.

When legal political activity resumed in 1978, five parties emerged: the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), representing chiefly the North and an educated, wealthy elite; the Nigerian People's Party (NPP), strong among the Ibos and slightly to the left of the NPN; the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Yoruba-led and welfarist-oriented; the People's Redemption Party, advocating radical social change; and the Great Nigeria People's Party, espousing welfare capitalism. Shagari, the NPN presidential candidate, received the most votes (33.9%) in the 11 August 1979 presidential election, with Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN a close second (29.2%). In National Assembly elections held on 7 and 14 July 1979, the NPN won 36 of the 95 Senate seats and 168 of 440 House of Representatives seats. The UPN was second with 28 and 111, respectively; the NPP third with 16 and 78. Each of the five parties won control of at least two state governments in elections held 21 and 28 July 1979. In the presidential election of August 1983, incumbent President Shagari of the NPN won reelection to a second four-year term, polling 12,047,638 votes (47%). Obafemi Awolowo of the UPN placed second with 7,885,434 votes (31%). That same month, Shagari's NPN posted victories in Senate and House elections. However, there were widespread charges of irregularities in the balloting. All existing political parties were dissolved after the December 1983 coup.

During the 1990s two parties, the right-of-center National Republican Convention (NRC) and a left-of-center Social Democratic Party (SDP) were permitted limited activity during the transition from military rule. The two-chamber National Assembly to which they were elected never was granted genuine power. On 12 June 1993, Nigerians apparently elected Moshood Abiola, a wealthy businessman, president, but General Ibrahim Babangida annulled the vote over alleged corruption. Ernest Shonekan replaced him for the interim, and on 17 November General Sani Abacha took power, suspending all partisan and political activity. The May 1994 legislative elections were widely boycotted by foes of Abacha's military regime. On 1 October 1995, Abacha announced a three-year program for return to civilian rule.

Political parties, suppressed by the military government, were allowed to form in July 1998. Three parties were registered by the Provisional Ruling Council for participation in local, state and national elections: the All People's Party (APP) led by Mahmud Waziri; the People's Democratic Party (PDP) led by Soloman Lar; and the Alliance for Democracy (AD), led by Ayo Adebanjo.

In the February 1999 election Obasanjo (PDP) won 62.8% of the vote; Olu Falae (AD/APP), received 37.2%. In the Senate, the PDP claimed 66 seats, the APP 23, the AD 19, with 1 other seat. In the House of Representatives, the PDP took 215 seats, the APP 70, the AD 66, and others 9. International observers reported some flaws, but generally approved the results.

The three registered parties suffered from leadership squabbles. Two factions claimed leadership of the AD, which is dominant only in the Yoruba southwest. The APP elected a new chairman in December 1999, after its former chairman, Mahmud Waziri, defected to the PDP. In December 2002, 24 new political parties registered for the 2003 elections.

The 2003 elections were held as scheduled. They confirmed the PDP as Nigeria's largest political party. The ANPP was the second-largest party. Muhammadu Buhari, ANPP candidate for president in 2003, and its chair, Don Etiebet, each had their positions challenged. There were 33 registered political parties as of early 2006.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

In March 1976, a reorganization of Nigeria's major administrative divisions was undertaken. The 12 preexisting states were reconstituted into 19 states as follows: Ogun, Ondo, and Oyo states were created out of the former Western State; Imo and Anambra states from East-Central State; Niger and Sokoto states from North-Western State; Benue and Plateau states from Benue-Plateau State; and Bauchi, Borno, and Gongola from North-Eastern State. Seven other states remained basically unchanged except for minor boundary adjustments and some name changes; these are (with original names where applicable, in parentheses) Lagos, Kaduna (North-Central), Kano, Bendel (Mid-West), Cross River (South-Eastern), Rivers, and Kwara. The Federal Capital Territory of Abuja comprises 7,315 sq km (2,824 sq mi) and was carved from the central part of the country between Kaduna, Plateau, and Niger states. By law, a fixed proportion of federally collected revenue is allotted monthly to the states and localities.

Under the military regime established in 1983, all state governors were appointed by the ruling council; in 1987, all but one governor was a military officer. The governor of each state served as chairman of an appointed state executive council. By the end of the Babangida regime in August 1993, there were 30 states (as of 2006, there were 36) governed by elected state legislatures and governors. On 18 November 1993, these governments were abolished and the civilian governors were replaced by military commanders.

The transition to civilian rule announced 20 July 1998 led to local council elections on 5 December 1998. The PDP, APP, and AD qualified to present candidates to state and national elections by winning 5% of the vote in 24 of the 36 states. The state governorships and legislatures were contested on 11 January 1999. As of mid-2002, the PDP controlled 21 of 36 state governments.

After the 2003 election, PDP controlled 28 state governments. Nearly all local government councils in these states, and many in states controlled by other parties were also run by the PDP. However, the commitment of its leadership to a system of autonomous local government was questionable. Many PDP governors (and non-PDP governors) reportedly diverted funds meant for local government; a law, the Monitoring and Allocation and Local Government Act, has made such action illegal. Shortly after May 2003, the federal government postponed local government elections to enable a panel appointed by it to examine the workings of the system. The reasoning for postponement was questionable, as the panel's report was not published.

JUDICIAL SYSTEM

Both the suspended 1979 constitution and the never-implemented 1989 constitutions, as well as the new constitution promulgated on 29 May 1999, provide for an independent judiciary. In practice, the judiciary is subject to executive and legislative branch pressure, influence by political leaders at both the state and federal levels, and suffers from corruption and inefficiency.

Under the 1999 constitution, the regular court system comprises federal and state trial courts, state appeals courts, the Federal Court of Appeal, the Federal Supreme Court, and Shariah (Islamic) and customary (traditional) courts of appeal for each state and for the federal capital territory of Abuja. Courts of the first instance include magistrate or district courts, customary or traditional courts, Shariah courts, and for some specified cases, the state high courts. In principle, customary and Shariah courts have jurisdiction only if both plaintiff and defendant agree, but fear of legal costs, delays, and distance to alternative venues encourage many litigants to choose these courts.

Trials in the regular court system are public and generally respect constitutionally protected individual rights, including a presumption of innocence, the right to be present, to confront witnesses, to present evidence, and to be represented by legal counsel. However, low compensation for judges, understaffing, poor equipment, bribery, special settlements, and a host of developmental factors decrease the reliability and impartiality of the courts.

Under the Abubakar government, military tribunals continued to operate outside the constitutional court system, but they were used less and less frequently as military rule waned; the tribunals officially were disbanded by the implementation of the new constitution and the return to civilian rule. The tribunals had in the past been used to try both military personnel and civilians accused of various crimes, but groups asserted that these tribunals failed to meet internationally accepted standards for fair trial.

In October 1999, the governor of Zamfara signed into law two bills passed by the state legislature aimed at instituting Shariah law in the state. As a result, school children were being segregated by sex in Zamfara schools, some public transportation, and some health facilities. There were fears among non-Muslims that despite legal provisions, women and other groups would be subjected to discrimination in Shariah courts. As of early 2003, 11 other northern states had adopted various forms or adaptations of Shariah law, including: Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Jigawa, Yobe, Bauchi, Borno, and Gombe. Some of these states have already issued sentences of public caning for consumption of alcohol, amputations for stealing, and death by stoning for committing adultery. Some sentences have been carried out, but no life has been taken in the pursuit of a decision by a Shariah court. Those found guilty for adultery have had the verdicts reversed on appeal.

The federal government announced in early 2006 that the religious police in Kano State (also called Hisba ) had been assuming police functions with no officiali authorization to do so, thus acting beyond their powers. The same argument was advanced against ethnic militias, such as the Odu'a People's Congress.

The judiciary has faced testing moments since the 2003 polls. Obasanjo himself accused the judiciary of corruption; some legal practitioners also traded accusations against judges in open court. Election petitions at all levels brought with them allegations of bribery and witness tampering. Acting through the National Judicial Council, a body chaired by Nigeria's Chief Justice, the judiciary moved to cleanse its own house. Several judicial officers were dismissed, disciplined in other ways, or exonerated after due hearing. The stated offenses ranged from receiving undue gratification to passing judgments that were patently illegal or procedurally wrong, or that brought the judiciary to ridicule.

ARMED FORCES

Nigeria's armed forces numbered 78,500 active personnel in 2005. The Army had 62,000 personnel armed with 200 main battle tanks, 100 Scorpion light tanks, 342 reconnaissance vehicles, over 397 armored personnel carriers, and more than 813 artillery pieces. The Navy had a total strength of 7,000 personnel, including Coast Guard personnel. Major naval units included one frigate, two corvettes, and eight patrol/coastal vessels. The Air Force had 9,500 personnel. Equipment included 84 combat capable aircraft, including 17 fighters and 36 fighter ground attack aircraft, in addition to 5 attack helicopters, of which 3 were nonoperational.

Paramilitary forces were estimated at 82,000 personnel and included 2,000 port security police, a coast guard, and a security and civil defense corps. Nigeria has observers and peacekeeping forces stationed in Burundi, Côte d'Ivoire, the DROC, Eritrea/Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Western Sahara. In 2005, the defense budget totaled $841 million.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

Nigeria was admitted to the United Nations on 7 October 1960, and since that time has become affiliated with ECA and several nonregional specialized agencies, such as the FAO, ILO, IAEA, the World Bank, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, and the WHO. The nation is also a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the WTO, the ACP Group, the African Development Bank, G-15, G-24, G-77, the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), the Community of Sahel and Saharan States (CENSAD), and the African Union. Nigeria joined OPEC in June 1971. In May 1975, Nigeria became a founding member of ECOWAS. Among other regional organizations of which Nigeria is a member are the Niger Basin Authority and the Lake Chad Basin Commission. The government is participating in efforts to establish a West African Monetary Zone (WAMZ) that would include The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.

Nigeria is a member of the Nonaligned Movement. The government has supported UN missions and operations in Kosovo (est. 1999), Western Sahara (est. 1991), Ethiopia and Eritrea (est. 2000), Liberia (est. 2003), Sierra Leone (est. 1999), Burundi (est. 2004), Côte d'Ivoire (est. 2004), and the DROC (est. 2000).

In environmental cooperation, Nigeria is part of the Basel Convention, the Convention on Biological Diversity, CITES, the London Convention, the Kyoto Protocol, the Montréal Protocol, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and the UN Conventions on the Law of the Sea, Climate Change and Desertification.

ECONOMY

The Nigerian economy, with an enterprising population and a wealth of natural resources, offers tremendous potential for economic growth. However, poor economic policy, political instability, and an overreliance on oil exports has created severe structural problems in the economy. Crude oil accounted for over 95% of exports and over 65% of government revenue in 2004; Nigeria is the world's eighth-largest exporter of oil. However, agriculture remains the basic economic activity for the majority of Nigerians, employing roughly 70% of the labor force and accounting for 36.3% of GDP in 2004. Crop yields have not kept pace with the average population growth of 2.5% (2001–05 average), and Nigeria must import most of its food.

When the oil boom of the 1970s came to an end in the early 1980s, Nigeria's failure to bring domestic and foreign expenditures in line with its lower income led to a rapid buildup of internal and external deficits. Nigeria deferred payments on its large foreign debt, adopted austerity measures, scaled back ambitious development plans, and introduced a foreign exchange auction system that devalued the naira. These policies had a positive effect and from 1986 to 1990 real GDP grew at a 5.4% average annual rate.

However, in 1992 real GDP grew at only 4.1%, while the large government deficits, 10% of GDP in 1992, continued to expand. A crippling blow to the economy came in mid-1994 when oil workers in the southeast, unhappy with the way the central government collected oil revenue without giving any back, went on strike. With daily output down 25% because of the strike, the government's lack of revenue forced it to stop servicing most of its $28 billion external debt. In the meantime the budget deficit reached $1 billion, over 12% of GDP.

In 1996, the World Bank reported that an estimated $2 billion in oil revenues from the early 1990s was diverted in a secret government bank account. There were also reports that significant amounts of oil revenue were being lost due to fraudulent practices at the country's oil terminals. In response, the Nigerian government appointed two inspection firms to oversee the loading of crude oil tankers.

By 2004 external debt stood at $30.55 billion. In 2005, Nigeria carved out a deal to have some 60% of the $31 billion debt the country owed to the Paris Club forgiven; Nigeria pledged to repay about $12 billion. High unemployment and declining productivity hamper growth. As of 2006, the pace of privatizing state-owned enterprises and balancing the budget was slow, but liberalization of the telecommunications sector was underway. The government has also committed itself to privatizing the country's four state-owned oil refineries, and to developing several small, independently owned refineries. The rate of HIV infection is on the rise, especially among children, as is income inequality.

Although national elections were due to be held in April 2007, when President Olusegun Obasanjo would be replaced by a new leader, economic reforms begun under him were projected to continue. Coupled with rising oil prices and production, real GDP growth was forecast to be strong, at 4.8% in 2005 and 4.5% in 2006, although growth was expected to fall back to 3.3% in 2007 as political uncertainty mounted over the election period. Inflation was expected to average 15.9% in 2005, 12% in 2006, and 13.5% in 2007.

INCOME

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) reports that in 2005 Nigeria's gross domestic product (GDP) was estimated at $132.1 billion. The CIA defines GDP as the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year and computed on the basis of purchasing power parity (PPP) rather than value as measured on the basis of the rate of exchange based on current dollars. The per capita GDP was estimated at $1,000. The annual growth rate of GDP was estimated at 5.2%. The average inflation rate in 2005 was 13.5%. It was estimated that agriculture accounted for 26.8% of GDP, industry 48.8%, and services 24.4%.

According to the World Bank, in 2003 remittances from citizens working abroad totaled $1.677 billion or about $12 per capita and accounted for approximately 2.9% of GDP. Foreign aid receipts amounted to $318 million or about $2 per capita and accounted for approximately 0.6% of the gross national income (GNI).

The World Bank reports that in 2003 household consumption in Nigeria totaled $26.24 billion or about $193 per capita based on a GDP of $57.6 billion, measured in current dollars rather than PPP. Household consumption includes expenditures of individuals, households, and nongovernmental organizations on goods and services, excluding purchases of dwellings. It was estimated that for the period 1990 to 2003 household consumption grew at an average annual rate of 3.7%. In 2001 it was estimated that approximately 51% of household consumption was spent on food, 31% on fuel, 2% on health care, and 8% on education. It was estimated that in 2000 about 60% of the population had incomes below the poverty line.

LABOR

The total labor force in Nigeria was estimated at about 57.21 million in 2005. Of those gainfully employed in 1999 (the latest year for which data was available), an estimated 70% were in agriculture, with about 10% in industry, and 20% in services. The estimated unemployment rate in 2005 was estimated at 2.9%.

The four labor federations were merged in 1978 into the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), which was strengthened by legislation establishing a compulsory dues checkoff system. Unions were strengthened by government decrees and a new constitution in 1999. Freedom of association and the right to strike were restored. The NLC is the only legal trade union organization (outside the petroleum industry) and claimed a membership of about four million in 2001. About 10% of the workforce was unionized in 2002.

In 2002, the minimum wage stood at approximately $75 per month for federal workers and between $55 and $65 per month for state employees. Formal sector private employers follow the public sector standard. These wages are sufficient to provide a family with a decent standard of living. The workweek is set at 40 hours, but there is no law prohibiting excessive compulsory overtime. Children as young as 13 may work with special restrictions. In reality, as a result of crumbling public schools and dire economic conditions, many children of all ages work. The law stipulates minimum occupational health and safety standards, but such standards are not effectively enforced.

AGRICULTURE

In terms of employment, agriculture is an important sector of Nigeria's economy, engaging about one-third of the labor force. Agricultural holdings are generally small and scattered; farming is often of the subsistence variety, characterized by simple tools and shifting cultivation. These small farms produce about 80% of the total food. About 33.4 million hectares (82.5 million acres), or 36% of Nigeria's land area, are under cultivation. Nigeria's diverse climate, from the tropical areas of the coast to the arid zone of the north, make it possible to produce virtually all agricultural products that can be grown in the tropical and semitropical areas of the world. The economic benefits of large-scale agriculture are recognized, and the government favors the formation of cooperative societies and settlements to encourage industrial agriculture. Large-scale agriculture, however, is not common. Despite an abundant water supply, a favorable climate, and wide areas of arable land, productivity is restricted, owing to low soil fertility in many areas and inefficient methods of cultivation. Agriculture contributed 26% to GDP in 2003.

The agricultural products of Nigeria can be divided into two main groups: food crops, produced for home consumption, and export products. Prior to the civil war, the country was self-sufficient in food, but imports of food increased substantially after 1973. Bread, made primarily from US wheat, replaced domestic crops as the cheapest staple food for much of the urban population. The most important food crops are yams and manioc (cassava) in the south and sorghum (Guinea corn) and millet in the north. In 2004, production of yams was 26.6 million tons (67% of world production); manioc, 38.1 million tons (highest in the world and 19% of global production); cocoyams (taro), 4 million tons; and sweet potatoes, 2,516,000 tons. The 2004 production estimates for major crops were as follows (in thousands of tons): sorghum, 8,028; millet, 6,282; corn, 4,779; rice, 3,542; peanuts, 2,937; palm oil, 920; sugarcane, 776; palm kernel, 618; soybeans, 465; and cotton lint, 140. Many fruits and vegetables are also grown by Nigerian farmers.

Although cocoa is the leading non-oil foreign exchange earner, growth in the sector has been slow since the abolition of the Nigerian Cocoa Board. The dominance of smallholders in the cocoa sector and the lack of farm labor due to urbanization holds back production. Nigeria produced 366,000 tons of cocoa in 2004, fifth in the world. Rubber is the second-largest non-oil foreign exchange earner. Despite favorable prices, production has fallen from 155,000 tons in 1991 to 142,000 tons in 2004. Low yield, aging trees, and lack of proper equipment have inhibited production.

Agricultural exports (including manufactured food and agricultural products) decreased in quantity after 1970, partly because of the discouraging effect of low world prices. In 1979, the importing of many foods was banned, including fresh milk, vegetables, roots and tubers, fruits, and poultry. The exporting of milk, sugar, flour, and hides and skins was also banned. During 1985–87, imports of wheat, corn, rice, and vegetable oil were banned as declining income from oil encouraged greater attention to the agricultural sector. In 1986, government marketing boards were closed down, and a free market in all agricultural products was established. In 2004, agricultural exports totaled $486.7 million, while agricultural imports exceeded $2.2 billion.

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY

Livestock production accounts for about 6% of GDP. There were an estimated 15.2 million head of cattle in Nigeria in 2005, over 90% of them in the north, owned mostly by nomadic Fulani. The prevalence of the tsetse fly in other areas restricts the majority of cattle to the fly-free dry savanna areas. The cattle owned by the Fulani and Hausa consist mainly of zebu breeds; cattle in the south are mainly Shorthorns. There were also an estimated 28 million goats, 23 million sheep, 6.7 million pigs, 1 million asses, 206,000 horses, and 140 million chickens.

Improvements in stock, slaughterhouse, cold storage, and transport facilities have made parts of Nigeria almost self-sufficient in meat production, but many Nigerians outside the north suffer protein deficiency in their diet. In 2005, 1.07 million tons of meat and 432,000 tons of cow's milk were produced. The Livestock and Meat Authority controls operations in transport and slaughtering in the north.

FISHING

Fish is an important dietary element and one of the few sources of animal protein available to many Nigerians. Fishing is carried on in Nigeria's many rivers, creeks, and lagoons, and in Lake Chad; trawlers operate along the coast. The total fishing catch was 505,839 tons in 2003 (40% from inland waters), not enough to meet national requirements.

Both federal and state governments are encouraging the development of local fisheries, inland and at sea, by sponsoring research, stocking reservoirs, and offering training in improved fish culture and fishing gear. Fish ponds have been established in the southern part of the country. The fishing industry output has yet to regain its 538,000-ton high of 1983.

FORESTRY

About 14.8% of Nigeria, or roughly 13,517,000 hectares (33,400,000 acres) is classified as forest or woodland. High forest reserves occur mostly in Ogun, Ondo, and Oyo states; savanna forest reserves, chiefly in the northern states, are limited in value, yielding only firewood and local building materials. In 2004, 70.3 million cu m (2.5 billion cu ft) of roundwood were produced, 85% for fuel. That year, Nigeria's consumption of fuel wood and charcoal was third highest in Africa. Exports of timber and finished wood products were banned in 1976 in order to preserve domestic supplies. The ban was subsequently lifted and the forestry sector recorded gains. However, the country suffers from desertification, anemic reforestation efforts, and high levels of domestic wood consumption. The average annual deforestation rate was 2.6% during 1990–2000. In 2004, forestry imports totaled $123 million, while forest product exports only amounted to $18.5 million.

MINING

The oil sector was the cornerstone of the Nigerian economy. Nigeria in 2003 was Africa's largest oil producer, with petroleum and petroleum products accounting for 89.2% of exports in 2003. Other leading industries included cement and other construction materials, chemicals, fertilizer, ceramics, and steel.

Nigeria produced 4,800 metric tons (gross weight) of cassiterite tin concentrate in 2003, up from 3,600 metric tons in 2002. A smelter at Jos produced refined tin for export. In 2003, production of columbium and tantalum concentrates (gross weight) totaled 700 metric tons, up from 500 metric tons in 2002. Nigeria had plentiful supplies of limestone, and production totaled 2.2 million tons in 2003. In addition, Nigeria produced barite, clays, feldspar, gold, granite, kaolin, lead, marble, shale, and topaz. Gypsum output declined from 300,0008 metric tons in 2002 to 100,000 metric tons in 2003. Nitrogen production was halted in 1999, while no iron ore was produced in 1999 or 2003, even though extensive iron deposits included reserves of 2,500 million tons with an average content of 37%.

To attract local and foreign investment in the development of the nonfuel minerals sector and to broaden the country's industrial base, the Mining and Minerals Decree No. 34, enacted in 1999, provided for three-year tax holidays, exemption from customs duties for mining equipment, convertibility of foreign currency, and free transferability of funds. It also reaffirmed that all mineral rights were to be held by the federal government, although the national legislature was debating reallocation of mineral rights to the states. However, the country's reputation for civil strife, corruption, environmental degradation, fraud, poor infrastructure, and political uncertainty continued to temper international investors' interest in most projects. The adoption of Islamic Shariah law in many of the northern states added uncertainty to internal mineral projects in northern Nigeria. Mineral resource companies also had to cope with expectations that the companies should provide extensive physical and social infrastructure.

ENERGY AND POWER

Nigeria, as of April 2005, is reported to be the eleventh-largest producer of oil in the world and the largest oil producer in Africa. It is a major oil supplier to the United States and Western Europe. Nigeria is also a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Nigeria, as of 1 January 2005, has estimated proven oil reserves of 35.5 billion barrels, according to the Oil and Gas Journal. In 2004, the country produced an estimated 2.5 million barrels of oil per day, of which crude oil accounted for 2.3 million barrels per day. In that same year, net exports and domestic consumption of oil were estimated at 2.2 million barrels per day and 321,000 barrels per day, respectively. According to the Oil and Gas Journal, crude oil refining capacity was estimated at 438,750 barrels per day, as of 1 January 2005. As a member of OPEC, Nigeria is subject to a crude oil production quota. As of August 2004, that quota was set at 2.6 million barrels per day.

Nigeria's proven reserves of natural gas makes the country one of the world's top 10 countries so endowed, and the largest in Africa. According to the Oil and Gas Journal, Nigeria's natural gas reserves were estimated at 176 trillion cu ft as of 1 January 2005. Although the Nigerian government plans to raise its earnings from natural gas exports to 50% of the country's revenues from oil by 2010, about 75% of the natural gas currently produced is flared-off due to a lack of infrastructure, according to a November 2004 estimate by the World Bank. In 2002, Nigeria produced an estimated 501 billion cu ft of natural gas, with domestic demand for that year at 225 billion cu ft and exports estimated at 225 billion cu ft.

Nigeria also has coal deposits. In 2002, recoverable coal reserves were estimated at 209 million short tons, with domestic consumption and production each estimated at 0.07 million short tons.

Nigeria's electric generating capacity is heavily dedicated to conventional thermal sources. In 2002, electric power generating capacity stood at 5.888 million kW, of which conventional thermal sources accounted for 67% of capacity, while hydroelectric dedicated capacity accounted for the rest. Electric power output in 2002 came to 14.743 billion kWh, with conventional thermal fueled output accounting for 52.4% of the power produced, and hydropower accounting for the remainder. However, power outages in Nigeria are frequent and operations are well under the nation's estimated capacity. Also, consumers are billed for services rendered, which in part explains the country's widespread power theft, vandalism, and problems involving payments. In addition, only about 40% of the population has access to electricity, most of whom reside in urban areas. In January 2004, Nigeria began a rural electrification program that would connect 1,500 communities to the nation's power grid by 2007.

INDUSTRY

Industry accounted for 30.5% of GDP in 2004, mostly in the oil sector, and experienced 1.8% growth that year. Due to the high costs of production that result from inadequate infrastructure, Nigeria's manufacturing capacity utilization remains low. An estimated 10% of the labor force is employed in the industrial sector.

Nigeria is the eleventh-largest producer of oil in the world, and first in Africa. The oil sector supplies 95% of foreign exchange earnings and some 90% of total exports. Nigeria had proven oil reserves of 35.5 billion barrels in 2005, and planned to expand its proven reserves to 40 billion barrels by 2010. Nigeria's crude oil refining capacity was 438,750 barrels per day in 2005. There are four state-owned refineries in Nigeria, and hydrocarbon production is centered around Eleme, Warri, and Kaduna. Sabotage, fires, extended maintenance, and management problems plague the oil industry, however. There has been political unrest over the issue of the equitable sharing of Nigeria's oil profits with the population. Nigeria had an estimated 176 trillion cu ft of natural gas reserves in 2005, and the natural gas industry is seen to have great potential.

In October 2002, the International Court of Justice ruled in favor of Cameroon in its border dispute with Nigeria over the oilrich Bakassi peninsula.

The textile industry is still in early stages of development. Between 60% and 70% of all raw materials used in textile production come from local sources. Foreign investment in the textile industry is led by Chinese and Indian investors. Other areas of expansion include cement production, tire production, and furniture assembly. The Delta Steel Plant at Aladja, built by a German-Austrian consortium, began production in 1982 and supplied three steel rolling mills at Oshogbo, Katsina, and Jos. The steel complex at Abeokuta began producing in 1983 and was renovated in 1995. As of 1999, most of these steel mills were inoperative, and the ones that did work had very small production rates.

Other important industries include sawmills, cigarette factories, breweries, sugar refining, rubber, paper, soap and detergent factories, footwear factories, pharmaceutical plants, tire factories, paint factories, and assembly plants for radios, record players, and television sets. Nigeria has five state-owned motor-vehicle assembly plants for Volkswagen, Peugeot, and Mercedes products, which by 2006 were put on the path toward privatization.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Learned societies include ones for ecology, engineering, entomology, fisheries, forestry, genetics, geography, medicine, microbiology, nutrition, and veterinary medicine. The Federal Ministry of Science and Technology has 25 attached research institutes that focus on cereals, cocoa, lake ecology, horticulture, forestry, livestock, root crops, veterinary medicine, oceanography and marine sciences, oil palms, rubber, and tropical agriculture, among other areas. The Geological Survey of Nigeria, founded in 1919, is concerned with geological mapping, mineral exploration, geophysical and geochemical surveys, and consultation on geological problems.

The National Museum branch in Jos, founded in 1989, has zoological and botanical gardens and a transport museum. Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife has a natural history museum founded in 1948. Nigeria has 60 universities and colleges offering courses in basic and applied science. Science and engineering students account for about 40% of college and university enrollments.

The Nigerian Academy of Science, founded in 1977, promotes and coordinates scientific and technological activities, trains scientists, advises the government on scientific matters, and organizes symposia and lectures.

DOMESTIC TRADE

The distribution of consumer goods is effected largely through a complex network of intermediary traders, who extend the area of distribution and often break down products into very small units for delivery to the ultimate consumer. A few trading companies, especially those with European equity and management, carry full product lines. Village markets are universal but tend to be more highly organized in the densely populated areas of the south. The great market centers such as Ibadan and Kano are attended by many thousands daily. Domestic commerce is limited by poor infrastructure, widespread fraud and corruption, and shortages of fuel that are exacerbated by illegal smuggling of gasoline across Nigeria's borders. The economy is still primarily cash based. Advertising has increased markedly since independence. Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, billboards, and movies are all utilized.

Businesses and government offices are generally open from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, Monday through Friday. In the Muslim north, establishments close at 1:00 pm on Friday so that Muslim workers can attend Jumat services. Supermarkets and stores are open from 8:30 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday, and from 7:30 am to 1 pm on Saturdays. A large number of smaller shops and restaurants are often open from sunrise to near midnight.

FOREIGN TRADE

Nigeria's exports have been on a dramatic upswing. Between 1998 and 1999, they grew more than three-fold, and by 2000 nearly doubled again. Exports in 2006 were 90% dominated by crude oil. Liquefied natural gas accounted for 8.1% of exports in 2004. Cocoa is the largest agricultural export. Leading imports are machinery, chemicals, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, and food.

In 2004, Nigeria's leading markets were: the United States (49.9% of all exports); India (10.2%); Spain (7.5%); and Brazil (6.9%). Leading suppliers were the United States (8.9% of all imports); China (8.5%); the United Kingdom (8.2%); and the Netherlands (6.2%).

BALANCE OF PAYMENTS

Exports are dominated by oil, and with oil prices forecast to remain relatively high against a background of rising production from 2005–10, substantial trade surpluses were predicted. The trade surplus was estimated at $18.2 billion in 2004. Over the 2001–05 period, the current-account balance averaged 0.6% of GDP. In 2004, the current-account surplus was estimated at $5.228 billion.

BANKING AND SECURITIES

In 1892, Nigeria's first bank, the African Banking Corp., was established, patterned along British lines. Before World War II, two large British banks, the Bank of British West Africa and Barclays

Bank, virtually monopolized Nigerian banking. After 1945, a number of African-owned banks entered the field; between 1946 and 1952, however, more than 20 such banks failed. The bank of issue became the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 1958. It regulated most commercial banking operations in Nigeria, but the federal Ministry of Finance retained control of most international activities of the financial sector. The Nigerian Industrial Development Bank (NIDB) was established in 1964 to provides long- and medium-term financing to concerns in the industrial nonpetroleum, mining, and tourist sectors.

The 1969 Banking Decree required that all banking institutions be incorporated in Nigeria, and a 1976 law gave the government 60% ownership of all foreign banks. The Banking Decree also established minimum capital requirements for licensed banks, based on the total deposits. Important additional sources of credit were provided by thrift and loan societies and by the branches of the National Development Corporation. The National Bank for Commerce and Industry helped finance smaller enterprises. Merchant banking expanded rapidly from 1973 onward, when the Union Dominican Trust Company began operations.

With the adoption of the Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) in 1986, the licensing of new banks was liberalized. In July 1990 the state banks were privatized. Beginning in 1990 the country allowed the establishment of foreign banks, but 60% of the foreign banks that were established in Nigeria had to be held by Nigerian interests. In the same year the government began a program to establish 500 community banks. From 1985 to 1993, the number of banks rose from 40 to 120, but declined to 89 in 1998.

While there are over 100 banks in Nigeria, the main banks in 2002 included the Afribank, Universal Trust Bank, FSB International Bank, Diamond Bank Limited, United Bank for Africa (with Banque Nationale de Paris and Bankers Trust shareholdings), Union Bank of Nigeria, and First Bank of Nigeria (partly owned by Standard Chartered), Nigeria International Bank Limited. All but the last bank on the list were charged in 1996 with import duty and excise collection. Twenty-seven ailing banks were liquidated by the government in 1997, while others merged. The International Monetary Fund reports that in 2001, currency and demand deposits—an aggregate commonly known as M1—were equal to $7.3 billion. In that same year, M2—an aggregate equal to M1 plus savings deposits, small time deposits, and money market mutual funds—was $11.8 billion. The money market rate, the rate at which financial institutions lend to one another in the short term, was 20.5%.

The Nigerian (formerly Lagos) Stock Exchange (NSE) began operations on 1 July 1961, following passage of the Lagos Stock Exchange Act; the government promulgated regulations for the exchange and provided that all dealings in stock be carried out only by members of the exchange. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) fixed prices of all new securities, and regulated the prices of those already being traded. Transactions of 50,000 shares or more were subject to SEC approval. The government encouraged public issues of shares by Nigerian companies in an effort to mobilize local capital for the country's development. The exchange, in Lagos, with branches in Kaduna and Port Harcourt, dealt in government stocks and in shares of public companies registered in Nigeria. After the provision of new investment incentives under the Nigerian Enterprises Promotion Decree of April 1974, activity on the stock exchange increased.

In a bid to encourage foreign interest in the NSE, a computerized central securities clearing system (CSCS) was installed on 14 April 1997, although it got off to a quiet start. The custodian bank for the system was Nigeria International Bank/Citibank. The benefit of the system was that trades would be settled within one week and eventually within two days, compared with the long delays hitherto experienced in effecting share transfers after purchases and sales. On 21 April 1997, a CBN directive lifted the restrictions on equity ownership of individual and corporate investors in Nigerian banks. Under this legislation, it was possible for an individual or another corporation to own up to a 100% share in a bank. Prior to the directive, the maximum shareholding for an individual was just 10%, while for companies it was 30%.

Market capitalization of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) was $14.464 billion in 2004, with 207 companies listed. The NSE All Share Index was up 18.5% in 2004 to 23,844.5.

INSURANCE

The Nigerian Reinsurance Corp. requires foreign insurance companies to reinsure 20% through the corporation. In 1976, the government took a 60% interest in foreign-owned insurance companies. The only compulsory insurance is that for motor vehicles. Laws of 1976 and 1977 regulate insurance firms, particularly those in the life insurance field, and provide for their registration, investigation, and minimum capitalization. The regulatory body is the Director of Insurance, under the Federal Ministry of Trade (Insurance Division). In 2003, the value of all direct insurance premiums written totaled $422 million, of which nonlife premiums accounted for $345 million. In 2002, Nigeria's top nonlife insurer was Nicon, with gross written nonlife premiums of $91.6 million, while the nation's leading life insurer that same year was Aiico, with gross written life insurance premiums of $15.6 million.

PUBLIC FINANCE

The federal government is responsible for collecting taxes on income, profits, and property, as well as import and export taxes and excise duties. It also runs the national transportation system. The petroleum sector provides over 83% of budgetary revenues. A large share of these revenues is redistributed to state governments. The budget is consistently in deficit. In 1998, debt financing amounted to $4.4 billion, but the 1999 budget provided for only $1.7 billion. Public investment flourished during the oil boom years of the 1970s. When the oil market prices collapsed in the 1980s however, the Nigerian government maintained its high level of spending, thus acquiring substantial foreign debt. Although privatization efforts began in 1986, increased government spending outside the official budget since 1990 has damaged public finance reform. As a result, the federal deficit increased from 2.8% of GDP in 1990 to 9% in 1998. Through privatization, the government sold all state-owned banks, fuel distribution companies, and cement plants in 2000. Nigeria sought to sell the troubled Nigerian Airways before it ceased operations as of 2006. The state telephone company NITEL, launched a mobile phone network in 2001; the government also hoped to privatize it. Nigeria's official foreign debt is about $32 billion, about three-fourths of which is owed to Paris Club countries.

The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) estimated that in 2005 Nigeria's central government took in revenues of approximately $12.8 billion and had expenditures of $13.5 billion. Revenues minus expenditures totaled approximately -$680 million. Public debt in 2005 amounted to 11.2% of GDP. Total external debt was $37.49 billion.

TAXATION

By far the most important direct tax is the petroleum profits tax. The rate on taxable profits of petroleum companies since 1975 has been 85%, but a guaranteed profit of $2.30 per barrel was established in 1986.

With the restoration of democracy, most state and local governments have found it necessary to introduce their own local levies in the face of dwindling revenues from the Federation Account to the State and Local Governments.

Nigeria had a standard corporate tax rate of 30%, as of 2005, plus a 2% education tax. A reduced rate of 20% is available for companies engaged in manufacturing, agricultural production or mining solid minerals, and for wholly export-oriented enterprises. There was also a capital gains tax of 10% on the disposal of assets inside or outside of Nigeria, although as of 1 January 1998 capital gains from the sale of stocks and share is exempt. There is a withholding tax of 10% on dividends, interest income, rental income and royalties. There is also a tax on companies engaged in upstream (exploration and production) activities in the petroleum sector.

Under the Personal Income Tax Act, both Nigerian and foreign residents in Nigeria are subject to a progressive tax on their worldwide income, with a top rate of 30%. Property taxes are assessed by state governments.

In 1993, the Value-added Tax Decree (VAT Act) abolished the 1986 Sales Tax Decree of 1986, establishing a VAT with a standard rate of 5% (as of 2005) chargeable on most goods and services. Exempted goods include medical and pharmaceutical products, basic foodstuffs, books and educational materials, baby products, locally manufactured fertilizers, all exports, plants and machinery used in export processing zones (EPZs). Of the proceeds collected, 50% goes to state government, 35% to local governments, and 15% to the administrative costs of the tax. States are also authorized to impose a tax on goods and services rendered in the state. Excise duties on beer, tobacco, textiles, and other goods are also levied.

CUSTOMS AND DUTIES

The federal government levies customs duties on most imports, but these duties were substantially reduced in 1986 and in 1995. The import duty varies from 5–60%, averaging 12%. All imports are also subject to a 7% port surcharge and a 5% value-added tax (VAT). The paperwork necessary for exporting and importing is lengthy. The taxation system has been widely avoided and valuations are arbitrary.

Prohibited exports include raw hides and skins, timber and building materials, raw palm kernels, and unprocessed rubber (to protect building and processing industries). Most goods produced in Nigeria may be freely exported. Prohibited imports include live chicks, flour, vegetable oils, gypsum, mosquito repellent coils, plastic domestic articles, used tires, and weapons.

FOREIGN INVESTMENT

Nigeria is West Africa's most populous country, and one of the most developed. Investment in the petroleum industry was carried out on a very large scale in the 1970s, including funds devoted to production, refining, and petrochemicals. The petroleum industry was largely nationalized during that period. Upstream operations are dominated by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria. The company has been involved in conflict with local groups, particularly the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOPOS), which accused Shell of causing life-threatening environmental damage, while the company contends that the damage was caused by interference with its operations. Downstream, two consortiums with foreign participation have controlled about 30% of the market: Total Fin a Elf Nigeria Plc and Unipetrol/Agip. However, in 2005, Majestic Oil (Sierra Leone) acquired Unipetrol's 24.22% share in the West Africa Oil Refinery when the company failed to invest in the rehabilitation of the facility.

In December 1989, a new Nigerian Enterprises Decree permitted 100% foreign ownership in any new venture except those in banking, oil, insurance, and mining. The government uses an open tender system for awarding government contracts. However, a patronage system exerts powerful influence over the awarding of such contracts. Government scandals, political instability, and endemic corruption (Nigeria is regularly ranked among the most corrupt countries in the world, often at the top of the list) have inhibited foreign investment. Corporate profits, except for those of oil companies, are taxed at 30%.

In 1992, the Nigerian Free Zone Act was passed establishing the Nigerian Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA). Free trade zones (FTZ), so renamed in 2001, are expanses of land with improved ports and/or transportation, warehousing facilities, uninterrupted electricity and water supplies, advanced telecommunications services and other amenities to accommodate business operations. Under the free trade zone system, as long as end products are exported (although 25% can be sold in the domestic market), enterprises are exempt from customs duties, local taxes, and foreign exchange restrictions, and qualify for incentives—tax holidays, rent-free land, no strikes or lockouts, no quotas in EU and US markets, and, under the 2000 African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), preferential tariffs in the US market until 2008. When fully developed, free zones are to encompass industrial production, offshore banking, insurance and reinsurance, international stock, commodities, and mercantile exchanges, agro-allied industry, mineral processing, and international tourist facilities.

In 1995, the military government decreed the establishment of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) as well as the liberalization of the foreign exchange market. These, with amendments, remain the bases of Nigeria's policy of encouraging foreign investment. Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow was reported at $1.5 billion in 1997, and about $1 billion in both 1998 and 1999. In late 2002, the Nigerian government announced that since the return to an elected government in May 1999, n56.94 billion in FDI had flowed into the country, from a total of 170 foreign companies.

In 2003, the stock of FDI was estimated at $24 billion, which accounted for approximately 43% of GDP. Total FDI inflow was $1.2 billion in 2003. Total FDI outflow was estimated at $93 million in 2003, while total FDI outward stock was estimated at $4.6 billion, accounting for 8.3% of GDP. Most FDI inflows continue to fund oil and gas exploration and production, liquefied natural gas projects, and related activities.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

The agriculture sector was the focus of intense development interest during the 1990s, with food self-sufficiency the goal. In 1990, agriculture was the subject of a separate three-year development plan involving public and private spending targets concentrating on the family farmer. The program included price stabilization plans and schemes to revitalize the palm oil, cocoa, and rubber subsectors. The Agricultural Development Projects continued through the decade, but implementation of goals was difficult. The country still imports most of its wheat from the United States.

An integrated petrochemical industry was also a priority. Using the output of the nation's refineries, Nigeria produced benzene, carbon black, and polypropylene. The development of liquid natural gas facilities was expected to lead to the production of methanol, fertilizer, and domestic gas. Nigeria's refineries operated at less than optimal rates throughout the 1990s and into the early- and mid-2000s.

In the manufacturing sector, the government was backing a policy of local sourcing whereby locally produced raw materials were converted into finished products. By 2003, manufacturing accounted for 4% of gross domestic product (GDP), down from 13% in 1982.

By the beginning of the 2000s, the government was more concerned about halting corruption and reigning in the state budget than economic development. Nevertheless, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was created to coordinate economic and social development in the oil-producing region.

Nigeria's foreign debt stood at around $30.55 billion in 2004, a large portion of which was interest and payment arrears. The Obasanjo administration in the early 2000s was supporting private-sector-led, market-oriented economic growth, and had begun economic reform programs. Privatization of state-owned enterprises continued. A Stand-By Arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved in 2000 lapsed in 2001 as the government's economic reform program went off track. By 2005, Nigeria had negotiated a deal for forgiveness of 60% of its debt with the Paris Club.

By 2006, the centerpiece of President Obasanjo's policy agenda was the National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS), which aimed to diversify the economy away from its dependence upon oil. Corruption was an issue that still demanded a great deal of attention. Although the government has called for economic reform, progress in the mid-2000s was held back by strong vested interests opposed to change, especially to privatization and the restructuring of the public sector. With offshore oil production increasing, the need to renegotiate Nigeria's OPEC quota was a priority in 2006. President Obasanjo sought to maintain good relations with Western powers and to promote Nigeria as a leading international and regional power.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

A 2004 law established a unified system of mandatory individual accounts for public employees. The system is not fully implemented in the private sector. The National Social Insurance Trust Fund holds contributions previously made and will transfer the funds into a private pension. Old age pensions are available after age 50, and are not payable abroad. Medical benefits are provided to insured employees of firms with 10 or more workers. Employers fund work injury insurance. There is limited social assistance and health care benefits provided to families.

Although sex discrimination is banned under the constitution, traditional practices still deprive women of many rights and the adoption of Shariah law by many northern states has more severely limited the rights and freedom of women. A Woman may not obtain a passport without her husband's permission. It is customary for all assets to be turned over to the parents after the death of a male, leaving the widow economically destitute. Segregation by gender occurs in some schools, health facilities, and, in some states, on public transportation. Purdah, the Islamic practice of completely segregating a woman from men other than those within her family, is practiced in some families, primarily in the north. In Shariah courts, women's testimony is given less weight than that of men. Female genital mutilation (FGM) is widespread throughout the country despite government opposition. Domestic violence is widespread, and wife beating is permissible under the penal code. According to a 2004 survey, more than 64% of women and 61% of men believed that a husband had justification for beating his wife under certain circumstances, including burning food.

As of 2006, Nigeria's human rights situation had improved, but serious abuses remained. Arbitrary arrest and detention were still used to silence the government's critics. Reports of torture and extrajudicial killings persisted, and prison conditions were considered to be life threatening. Overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions were compounded by limited food, water, and medicine for inmates. Sentences of stoning and amputation were still imposed.

HEALTH

Nigeria's health care delivery system consists of a network of primary, secondary, and tertiary facilities. As of 2004, there were an estimated 27 physicians, 66 nurses, 2 dentists, 8 pharmacists, and 52 midwives per 100,000 people. The target areas for mass procurement of medical equipment are the teaching hospitals. The lack of proper facilities and inadequate remuneration of public sector health care workers have also spurred the development of a limited number of privately-owned hospitals which cater to those who can afford them. The country is in need of medical supplies and equipment. Some pharmaceuticals are manufactured in Nigeria. Approximately 57% of the population had access to safe drinking water and 63% had adequate sanitation. Total health care expenditure was estimated at 2.8% of GDP.

Despite the receding influence of such endemic diseases as yellow fever, health problems in Nigeria remain acute. Malaria and tuberculosis are the diseases of most frequent incidence, but serious outbreaks of cerebrospinal meningitis still occur in the north. Just under half of all deaths are thought to be among children, who are especially vulnerable to malaria and account for 75% of registered malaria deaths. The prevalence of child malnutrition for children under age five was 46%. Goiter was present in 20% of all school-age children. Nigeria had the highest number of measles cases reported of all African nations, and. diarrheal diseases remain prevalent. Close to 15% of all Nigerian children did not live to their fifth birthday. Immunization rates for children up to one year old were as follows: tuberculosis, 53%; diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus, 45%; polio, 45%; and measles, 69%. Only 1% of children were immunized for yellow fever.

Schistosomiasis, guinea worm (19,766 cases in 1995), trachoma, river blindness, and yaws are other diseases of high frequency. Progress has been made in the treatment of sleeping sickness (trypanosomiasis) and leprosy. The former has been nearly eliminated by the introduction of new drugs, while the introduction of sulfone therapy has nearly halted the incidence of new cases of leprosy in the eastern states. A program for the eradication of river blindness and malaria has been undertaken in cooperation with the World Health Organization.

The government is also working on the control of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, through public education and behavior change. HIV/AIDS has reached epidemic levels in Nigeria. The HIV/AIDS prevalence was 5.40 per 100 adults in 2003. As of 2004, there were approximately 3,600,000 people living with HIV/AIDS in the country, the third-highest in the world. There were an estimated 310,000 deaths from AIDS in 2003.

Only 15% of married women used contraceptives. The fertility rate in 2000 was 5.3 children per woman surviving her childbearing years. The life expectancy for the Nigerian was only 46.74 years in 2005. In that year the infant mortality rate was 98.80 per 1,000 live births. As of 2002, the crude birth rate and overall mortality rate were estimated at, respectively, 39.2 and 14.1 per 1,000 people.

HOUSING

Housing generally has not ranked high on the scale of priorities for social spending and state governments have tended to rely upon local authorities to meet the problem. Efforts at providing low-cost rural housing have been minimal, despite the creation of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria in 1977, and shantytowns and slums are common in urban areas. Overcrowding in urban housing is a serious problem. It has been estimated that about 85% of the urban population live in single rooms, often with eight to twelve persons per room. Living conditions are poor. The total number of housing units in 1992 was 25,661,000. In 1996, only about 27% of urban dwellers had access to piped water. Less than 10% of urban dwellers had an indoor toilet.

In 1979, at the establishment of a civilian government, about 37% of all housing units were cement or brick roofed with asbestos or corrugated iron; 34% were mud plastered with cement and roofed with corrugated iron. In the same year, 44% of urban dwellings were rented, 37% were owner occupied, 17% were rent free, and 2% were "quasi-rented" at below-average rates. Since then, the government has initiated a number of projects aimed at providing adequate housing at all income levels; but many of these were unsuccessful and because of the poor quality of workmanship in some of developments, many finished dwellings were soon left vacant.

EDUCATION

The 1979 constitution made primary education the responsibility of the states and local councils. State and federal authorities have concurrent powers over postprimary education. The first six years of primary education were made compulsory in 1976. These are followed by six years of general secondary studies or technical school studies. Primary education begins in the local language but introduces English in the third year. The academic year runs from October to July.

In 2001, about 8% of children between the ages of three and five were enrolled in some type of preschool program. Primary school enrollment in 2003 was estimated at about 67% of age-eligible students; 74% for boys and 60% for girls. The same year, secondary school enrollment was about 29% of age-eligible students; 32% for boys and 26% for girls. It is estimated that about 82.3% of all students complete their primary education. The student-to-teacher ratio for primary school was at about 42:1 in 2003; the ratio for secondary school was about 35:1. In 2003, private schools accounted for about 7% of primary school enrollment and 20.7% of secondary enrollment.

The advancement in education in the southern states, compared with the relative lag in the northern states, reflects the contribution of Christian missions to the Nigerian educational system. Teacher-training colleges are operated by missions or voluntary societies; their schools, however, are regulated and largely supported by the government. There are 13 polytechnic colleges and 4 colleges of technology. A major obstacle to the further advancement of education in Nigeria is the shortage of qualified teachers; large numbers of foreigners are employed, particularly by the universities. In 2003, about 8% of the tertiary age population were enrolled in some type of higher education program. The adult literacy rate for 2004 was estimated at about 66.8%, with 74.4% for men and 59.4% for women.

Public expenditure on education was estimated at less than 1% of GDP.

LIBRARIES AND MUSEUMS

The National Library of Nigeria was founded in Lagos in 1962 and has over one million volumes, including some 35,000 United Nations documents and the National Information and Documentation Center. In 2004 there were 18 state branches of the National Library. The National Archives are in Enugu State. State governments have libraries in their respective capitals and in all the local government headquarters. Almost all of the 20 universities have libraries. The largest public library in Kano holds over 300,000 volumes. The chief university library is that of the University of Ibadan, which contains 450,000 volumes. Other sizable university collections are at the University of Lagos (375,000 volumes), the University of Ife (401,000), and the University of Nigeria at Nsukka and Enugu (717,000). The High Court of Lagos State holds a collection of 600,000 volumes. There are dozens of other privately maintained collections throughout the country.

The National Museum in Lagos contains many specimens of Nigerian art, mostly pieces of statuary and carvings, remarkable for their variety and quality. It also has archaeological and ethnographic exhibits. Other museums represent more specialized interests: the museum at Ife opened in 1955 in response to halt the looting of national art treasures, and contains world-renowned bronze and terra cotta heads; the decorative arts museum at Benin City has a collection of bronzes; and that at Oron has a valuable collection of ancestor carvings. The museum at Jos, opened in 1952 originally as the National Museum, is a center of research into the prehistoric culture of Nigeria. The Esie Museum, at Ilorin in Kwara State, has stone antiquities, and the National Museum at Kaduna has archaeological and ethnographic exhibits, including a "craft village." The Owo Museum, in Ondo State, displays arts, crafts, and ethnographic relics. There are also museums in Kano, Argungu, and Oshogbo. Lagos also houses the Centre for Black and African Art and Civilization.

MEDIA

Telephone and telegraph communications are the responsibility of the Federal Ministry of Communications through its parastatal NITEL. Trunk lines and UHF links connect all the major towns, and all of these have exchange units, including automatic exchanges at Lagos, Ibadan, Kaduna, Kano, Jos, and Port Harcourt. In 2003, there were an estimated seven mainline telephones for every 1,000 people. The same year, there were approximately 26 mobile phones in use for every 1,000 people. Postal services are provided by another parastatal—NIPOST. There are post offices in all 305 local-government headquarters and other major towns.

Radio broadcasting is the joint responsibility of the federal and state governments, operating under the Federal Radio Corp. of Nigeria, created in 1978; state radio stations broadcast in English and local languages. Television, introduced in 1959, now operates throughout the country under the direction of the Nigerian Television Authority, with stations in all state capitals and channels set aside for the state governments. Several states also run their own stations. In 2001, there were nine television stations and six radio stations that were privately owned. In 2003, there were an estimated 200 radios and 103 television sets for every 1,000 people. The same year, there were 7.1 personal computers for every 1,000 people and 6 of every 1,000 people had access to the Internet. There were 13 secure Internet servers in the country in 2004.

In 2002 there were 26 major daily newspapers in Nigeria, some of them published by the federal or state governments. Leading Nigerian daily newspapers (with their 2002 estimated circulations) are: Daily Times (national, 400,000), National Concord (Lagos, 200,000), Daily Champion (Lagos, 150,000), Nigerian Observer (national, 150,000), The Punch (national, 150,000), Nigerian Tribune (national, 109,000), New Democrat (Kaduna, 100,000), Nigerian Standard (Jos, 100,000), New Nigerian (national, 80,000), The Guardian (Lagos, 80,000).

The constitution provides for freedom of speech and of the press and the government generally respected these rights; however, there were problems in some areas, particularly in restrictions on antigovernment reports.

ORGANIZATIONS

Cooperatives are very important in Nigerian economic life. Many different societies are included in this category—consumers' societies, thrift and credit societies, and others—but the most important are the marketing societies, which play a significant role in handling export produce, and sometimes in the production of both food and cash crops. Examples include the African Groundnut Council and the Cocoa Producers' Alliance. However, the Structural Adjustment Program is gradually replacing cooperatives with farmers' societies and export societies. There are chambers of commerce in all 19 state capitals and Abuja, and a National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines, and Agriculture in Lagos and Abuja.

The Girl Guides, the Boy Scouts, YWCA organizations, Muslim societies, Jamat Aid groups, and other community, social, and service groups are active in all towns and villages. There are sports clubs in Lagos and all the state capitals and national chapters of sports associations. Other national youth organizations include the National Association of Nigerian Students, the Ahmadyya Youth Association of Nigeria, 4-H, and the Catholic Youth Organization of Nigeria. National women's organizations include the Nigeria Association of University Women and the National Center for Women in Development.

Literary and art associations meet regularly in Lagos, Kaduna, Enugu, and other major cities. Nigerian Academy of Sciences promotes public interest and education in the sciences. The Nigerian Medical Association promotes research and education on health issues and works to establish common policies and standards in healthcare. There are several other associations dedicated to research and education for specific fields of medicine and particular diseases and conditions.

The Constitutional Rights Project, founded in 1990, is a social action group. Volunteer service organizations, such as the Lions Clubs and Kiwanis International, are also present. International organizations with national chapters include Amnesty International, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Habitat for Humanity, Caritas, and the Red Cross.

TOURISM, TRAVEL, AND RECREATION

There are five-star hotels in Lagos, Abuja, and Kaduna, and firstclass hotels in all the state capitals. All of the cities have museums, which attract visitors to their historical artifacts. Many of the beaches are underdeveloped and lack accommodations and tourist facilities. Sports and social clubs offer facilities for swimming, sailing, tennis, squash, golf, and polo.

A passport valid for at least six months from visa purchase, return/onward ticket, and proof of sufficient funds are required for entry into Nigeria. Citizens of 106 countries including the United States and Canada also need visas. Travelers from infected areas are required to show a certificate of yellow fever vaccination. Precautions are recommended against malaria, meningitis, and typhoid.

There were 2,253,115 tourists who visited Nigeria in 2003, of whom 16.5% came from Europe. Receipts from tourism amounted to $263 million in 2002.

In 2004, the US Department of State estimated the daily cost of staying in Abuja at $266, and Lagos, $315.

FAMOUS NIGERIANS

Famous Nigerians of the 19th century include 'Uthman dan Fodio (d.1817), who founded the Fulani empire at the beginning of the century, and Samuel Ajayi Crowther (1809–92), a Yoruba missionary of the Church of England who was consecrated first bishop of the Niger Territories in 1864.

The Palm Wine Drinkard and other stories by Amos Tutuola (1920–1997) exploit the rich resources of traditional Nigerian folk tales. Benedict Chuka Enwonwu (1921–1994), Nigeria's leading painter and sculptor, gained international fame, as has Wole Soyinka (b.1934), a prominent playwright who was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize for Literature, the first African so honored. Novelists of note include Chinua Achebe (b.1930) and Cyprian Ekwensi (b.1921). Sports figures include Dick Tiger (1929–71), twice world middleweight champion and once light-heavyweight champion.

Herbert Macaulay (1864–1946) is regarded as the father of Nigerian nationalism. Among contemporary political figures, Dr. (Benjamin) Nnamdi Azikiwe (1904–96), long one of the leading West African nationalists and formerly premier of the Eastern Region, was a founder of the NCNC and first governor-general and president of independent Nigeria. Former chief rival of Azikiwe and founder of the Action Group, Chief Obafemi Awolowo (1909–87) resigned as premier of the Western Region to lead the opposition in the federal House of Assembly. The hereditary leader of the Hausa-Fulani ruling class in northern Nigeria and leader of the NPC until his assassination in January 1966 was Alhaji Sir Ahmadu Bello, sardauna of Sokoto (1909–66), who became prime minister of the Northern Region in 1954. The first prime minister was Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (1912–66), who also was assassinated in the 1966 coup. Chief Simeon Olaosebikan Adebo (1913–94), a leading Nigerian diplomat, has held several UN posts. Maj. Gen. Yakubu Gowon (b.1934) headed the Federal Military Government from July 1966 to July 1975, when he was deposed in a bloodless coup during his absence from Nigeria at an OAU meeting. Gowon is credited with formulating the postcivil war policy of reconciliation with the Ibos that resulted in the country's rapid recovery. Alhaji Shehu Shagari (b.1925) served in several high government posts before being elected president in 1979. Reelected in 1983, he was subsequently deposed in a military coup from which Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (b.1942) emerged as leader of the Supreme Military Council and head of state. Basketball player Hakeem Alajuwon (b.1963) was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History by the National Basketball Association in 1996–97.

DEPENDENCIES

Nigeria has no territories or colonies.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Badru, Pade. Imperialism and Ethnic Politics in Nigeria, 1960–1996. Trenton, N.J.: Africa World Press, 1998.

Falola, Toyin. Culture and Customs of Nigeria. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2001.

——. Development Planning and Decolonization in Nigeria. Gainesville, Fla.: University of Florida Press, 1996.

Forrest, Tom. Politics and Economic Development in Nigeria. 2nd ed. Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press, 1995.

Ihonvbere, Julius Omozuanvbo. Nigeria: The Politics of Adjustment and Democracy. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1994.

Kastfelt, Niels. Religion and Politics in Nigeria: A Study in Middle Belt Christianity. New York: British Academic Press, 1994.

King, Mae C. Basic Currents of Nigerian Foreign Policy. Washington, D.C.: Howard University Press, 1996.

Oyewole, Anthony, and John Lucas. Historical Dictionary of Nigeria. 2nd ed. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2000.

Thompson, Joseph E. American Policy and African Famine: the Nigeria-Biafra War, 1966–1970. New York: Greenwood Press, 1990.

Umoren, Joseph A. Democracy and Ethnic Diversity in Nigeria. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1996.

Uwazie, Ernest E. et al, eds. Inter-Ethnic and Religious Conflict Resolution in Nigeria. Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 1999.

Zeilig, Leo and David Seddon. A Political and Economic Dictionary of Africa. Philadelphia: Routledge/Taylor and Francis, 2005.

Nigeria

History & Background

Nigeria ranks as the tenth largest nation in the world, and by far the largest nation in Africa, with an estimated population of 123,337,822 people. Located north of the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa, Nigeria is bordered on the east by Cameroon, on the northeast by Chad, on the north by Niger, and on the west by the Republic of Benin. Land features change dramatically in Nigeria, from rain forests along the coast to rolling savanna hills about 200 miles north of the coastline. The savanna extends another 200 miles northward across the Niger and Benue Rivers. In the northeast, mountains form the border between Cameroon and Nigeria. The central and western part of northern Nigeria is a flat, semi-desert land called the Sahel. The Sahara Desert expands southward into the northern edges of Nigeria. The total land area is 356,669 square miles (923,773 square kilometers).

In 2000, more than 50 percent of the people in Nigeria lived in urban areas. Lagos, the former capital on the southwestern coast, has an estimated 13.5 million citizens. Lagos is among the 10 largest cities in the world. Other large cities include Ibadan in the west with 1.5 to 2.0 million people, Ogbomosho in the west with more than 720,000 people, and Kano in the north with almost 800,000 people. In 1991 the capital was moved to Abuja, located in the central part of Nigeria north of the Niger and Benue River confluence. By 2000, the capital had grown to more than 335,000 people.

Four major ethnic groups make up about 65 to 70 percent of the population. The largest group is the Hausa/Fulani, a mixture of two ethnic groups living primarily in the northern half of the country. The Hausa/Fulani people number about 35 to 40 million. The Yoruba in western Nigeria number about 30 million people, and the Igbo in eastern Nigeria number about 15 million people. More than 300 ethnic groups, each speaking a different language, live in Nigeria. English, nonetheless, is the common language used for business, education, and government.

Before the British arrived in the early nineteenth century, there were two major types of education in Nigeria. In the Islamic north, education was strictly religious in nature. In each Muslim community, a mallam drilled children as young as five years old in the teachings of the Qur'an and the Arabic alphabet. During the colonial era, larger cities set up more expansive Islamic schools that included subjects such as math and science. In 1913, these Islamic schools, almost all in the north, numbered 19,073 and enrolled 143,312 students. In the 1970s the government took control of the Islamic schools, but in the 1990s, the schools were allowed to operate independently again.

The indigenous system was the second type of education before the British occupation. Students were taught the practical skills needed to function successfully in traditional society. Usually children within two or three years of age belonged to an age-group. Together, they learned the customs of their community and were assigned specific duties around the village, such as sweeping lanes or clearing brush. As the children grew older, the boys were introduced to farming and more specialized work, such as wood carving or drumming. Girls would learn farming and domestic skills. Boys would often enter into apprenticeship-type relationships with master craftsmen. Even in the twenty-first century, this kind of education is common.

Formal, Western-type of education was introduced by British missionaries in the 1840s. The Anglican Church Missionary Society (CMS) started several schools in the mid-1800s. The colonial government gave the church financial aid, but in the early twentieth century the government began building primary and secondary schools. By the time the British combined the northern and southern regions into one colony in 1914, a total of 11 secondary schools were in operation, all but 1 run by missionaries. There were also 91 mission and 59 government elementary schools.

Western education slowly entered the northern region. In 1947, only 66,000 students were attending primary schools in the north. Ten years later, the number enrolled had expanded to 206,000 students. In the western region, over the same period, primary school enrollment expanded from 240,000 to 983,000 students. The eastern region experienced the most dramatic growth in primary enrollment during this period, jumping from 320,000 to 1,209,000 students. The number of secondary school students in the entire nation grew much less dramatically, increasing from 10,000 in 1947 to 36,000 in 1957. Most of this growth, 90 percent, was almost entirely in the south.

In the 1950s, Nigeria adopted the British system called Form Six that divided grades into six elementary years, three junior secondary years, two senior secondary years, and a two-year university preparation program. Those who scored high on exit examinations at the end of Form Six usually were qualified to enter universities.

Although Nigeria celebrated its independence in 1960, the second half of the sixties brought the chaos and disaster of the Nigeria Civil War. After a long series of ethnic riots and killings against the Igbo of eastern Nigeria, the Igbos seceded from Nigeria in May 1967, naming their new country the Republic of Biafra. The war destroyed much of the nation's educational framework, especially in eastern Nigeria. Biafra surrendered in 1970, but the country never fully resolved the issues that led to the war.

In 1976, Nigeria passed a law making education compulsory for all children between the ages of 6 and 12. By 1980, approximately 98 percent (15,607,505 students) of this age group were enrolled in primary school, up from 37 percent in 1970. The military and civilian governments paid little attention to education, however, and the quality of education deteriorated nationwide.

By 1985, the country as a whole had 35,000 primary schools with fewer than 13 million students. Another 3.8 million primary school-aged children lived on the streets. Conditions became progressively worse. By 1994, the number of primary students in school had changed little, even with the country's high birth rate.

Secondary education fared worse than the other levels of education. During the 1970s and 1980s, the majority of primary students finishing sixth grade never went on to junior secondary school. Those who did rarely went on to senior secondary school, and for those who were qualified for higher education, very few openings existed in the 1960s. At independence, with about 6,000 students, there were only six higher educational institutions in Nigeria: the University Ibadan, the University of Ife, the University of Lagos, Ahmadu Bello University, the University of Nigeria at Nsukka, and the Institute of Technology at Benin. More universities and polytechnics were built in the 1970s, and more students were able to go on for postsecondary education. In 1971, approximately 19,000 students were studying in institutions of higher education. By 1985, the number had increased to 125,000 students, but this still represented a tiny portion of the population.

Nigeria has since struggled through a series of military dictatorships that ended in May 1999 with the democratic election of President Olusegun Obasanjo. The government seems determined to restore a damaged educational system over the last two decades of the twentieth century.

Constitutional & Legal Foundation

A nationwide Board of Education was established by the colonial government in 1926. The education departments of Southern and Northern Nigeria were shortly thereafter merged to form a federal Department of Education. Government planning occurred after World War II. The 1946 Ten-Year Development Plan stimulated rapid expansion of schools especially in the south. In 1951 Nigeria was divided into three regions: North, East, and West. Each region had its own Board of Education and Ministry of Education. Four years later, the West took the lead in Universal Primary Education (UPE) by passing a law making primary education free. Two years later the East made the first three years of primary education free.

In 1973, the government created the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to promote patriotism among the young. The program required all students finishing schools that grant diplomas and certificates (postsecondary programs), to serve one year in public service in areas such as primary education, rural health, and construction.

In September 1976, the federal government initiated a national UPE program. Its success was mixed because of the political and economic turmoil of the following two decades. In the late 1970s, however, the government was optimistic that it could bring the people together through an expansive educational program. Consistent with this goal, the government declared in 1977 that education was an instrument of national development. The 1983 Constitution placed elementary schools under the responsibility of local governments and secondary schools under the combined administration of state and federal governments. Chapter II of the Constitution passed in 1999 promised "equal and adequate educational opportunities at all levels," to "promote science and technology," and "to eradicate illiteracy" by working toward "(a) free, compulsory and universal primary education; (b) free secondary education; (c) free university education; and (d) free adult literacy programs."

In September 1999, President Obasanjo introduced Universal Basic Education (UBE), which promised free education for all Nigerians through junior secondary school (grade nine). Nigeria received a $55 million loan from the World Bank to help implement UBE. The money helped train about 30,000 teachers a year for 5 years. In addition, the president announced that Nigeria built 28,000 classrooms in the year 2000. UBE also includes a nation-wide literacy push to educate those outside the formal schooling system, including schools for families of pastoral nomads and migrant fishermen.

Educational System—Overview

Nigerian law requires compulsory education for all students between the ages of 6 and 15. Students in primary and secondary school attend three equally divided sessions from January through December, with about a month vacation between sessions.

In 1982, Nigeria switched to the American system of six primary, three junior secondary, and three senior secondary school grades, but the rigid examination system remained. To qualify for entry into Junior Secondary School (JSS), Senior Secondary School (SSS), and higher education, nationwide examinations are held each year. Because exam scores determine a student's future educational choices, schools tend to stress memorization of facts, rather than creative problem solving. There are not enough senior secondary schools in Nigeria, so most students who finish JSS go into the workforce.

Certain federal and state agencies plan and carry out special education programs. Teachers receive training to teach in these programs. Mostly, though, the government encourages integration of special education students into the regular schools. The Ministry of Social Development, Youth, and Sports also runs centers throughout the nation to help train people with special needs.

There are three major categories of higher or tertiary education. One is postsecondary, which is non-university level training in technical and vocational fields. Students receive certificates of training for completing work-oriented courses. The second type of higher education institution consists of higher technical, but non-university level programs offered at technical colleges, polytechnics, and colleges of education. They usually offer a variety of options for students that lead to a National Diploma (ND) for two years of study or a Higher National Diploma (HND) for four years of study. The third type of tertiary institution is the degree-granting institution offering bachelor's and higher degrees.

About two-thirds of the universities are federally owned, and a majority of the others are state-owned. There are 13 federally owned and 14 state-owned polytechnic colleges. Unlike primary and secondary schools, the institutions of higher education normally follow a 15-week semester system, running from October to mid-July.

Preprimary & Primary Education

Most preschools and kindergartens are privately owned, but they must register with the government and follow federal guidelines. They are normally very expensive, so only the wealthy can afford to send their children to preschools and kindergartens. The federal government initiated an Early Childhood Care Development Education (ECCDE) program in the early 1990s, but rapid changes in political events prevented it from making progress. In 1991, only 4.7 percent of preschool children had some preprimary education. The program called for community-based childcare. In 2001, as support for the UBE program, some communities began building their own nursery and preschool facilities with federal money and international grants and loans.

Primary school is free, paid for by local governments, but there are expenses the families must pay, such as school uniforms, supplies, and transportation. In October 2000, there were almost 19 million students enrolled in more than 41,500 elementary schools. Estimates suggest that about 65 percent of primary students complete grades 1 through 6, but only about 45 percent of these continue on to junior secondary school.

A major factor in the quality of education is the teacher-student ratio. In Islamic schools, often the ratio is ideal, only eight or nine students per teacher. In the public schools where the vast majority of students are educated, the average pupil-teacher ratio in 1996 was 34:1. The range varies considerably, as UNESCO figures illustrate: Anambra, 21:1; Kwara, 21:1; Taraba, 22:1; Plateau, 26:1; Ogun, 26:1; Abuja (federal capital), 26:1; Adamawa, 53:1; Yobe, 73:1; and Kano, 565:1

The major courses taught in primary schools are mathematics, English, Bible or Qur'an, science, social sciences, and one of the three major Nigeria languages: Hausa, Igbo, or Yoruba. Most courses are taught in the local language. In some schools computer skills, art, and/or French are offered. In their sixth year, students take the National Common Entrance Examination (NCEE) for entry into federal and state government secondary schools.

In 1983, a 144-page guide was published by the government detailing the social science syllabus for primary grades 1 through 6. Using Nigerian culture as a base, the syllabus focused even more on social topics: problems of living in the family, problems of employment, problems of group conflict, and religious problems. In the late 1980s, the government added emphasis on health and safety. With some adjustments to encourage problem-solving skills, this guide remains to be used.

Primary school classrooms across Nigeria lack basic supplies for teaching. A study published by UNESCO indicates that 10 percent of the sampled schools had no chalkboards, and most of the chalkboards in use needed replacement. Ten percent of the schools with chalkboards had no chalk, and in more than 50 percent of the schools, the supply was too little. Teaching materials, such as charts and maps, were missing in 42.0 percent of schools, and another 44.5 percent had inadequate supplies of these materials. Almost 89 percent of the schools had no science equipment.

Secondary Education

Secondary schools are mostly state or federally owned, although in 2001 the federal government began encouraging the return of former church mission schools. The federal government promised to continue paying teacher salaries. Generally, the federal government funds and manages two federal government colleges (secondary schools) in each state. In addition, each state owns and operates secondary schools. In 1996, there were 7,104 secondary schools with 4,448,981 students. The teacher-pupil ratio was approximately 32:1. The government pays most of the fees for students, but students must pay incidental costs and sometimes part of their board or other expenses that can amount to $200 a year, a considerable amount in a nation where the average annual income was only about $300 in 2000.

Students attend junior secondary school for grades seven through nine. At this point, the majority of students are at least 15-years-old and are no longer required to attend school. In the ninth grade, students take the Junior Secondary Certificate Examination (JSCE) to qualify for the limited number of openings in senior secondary schools. Those who do well on the exam may continue at the same institution or transfer to a different school if they qualify.

The language of instruction for all secondary school grades is English, except for special courses that require another language. Students study 9 to 12 subjects, including a core group that consists of mathematics, English language, a major Nigeria language (Hausa, Igbo, or Yoruba), social studies, creative arts, integrated science, practical agriculture, religious studies (Christianity or Islam), and physical education. Depending on the school, students may select electives from courses such as introduction to technology, home economics, business studies, local crafts, and foreign languages (often Arabic or French).

Many of the subjects taken at the JSS level are offered in SSS, except in more depth. Students are streamed through testing and counseling into one of three areas of concentration: academic (science or humanities), technical/commercial, or teacher education. The core of required courses for all students includes English language, a Nigerian language, mathematics, science (physics, chemistry, and biology), humanities (literature, history, or geography), and either an agricultural science or a vocational subject. Students also select three more subjects from a wide range of electives depending on each school's resources. The more common electives are Christian or Islamic religion; business subjects such as economics, commerce, and accounting; foreign languages; computer science; fine arts; physical education; food and nutrition; home management; clothing and textile; applied electricity; auto mechanics; technical drawing; woodwork; and metalwork.

In their twelfth year, students take the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE). They are required to register for a minimum of seven and a maximum of nine subjects. English and mathematics examinations are mandatory. The government estimated that over 500,000 registered to take the SSCE in May/June 2001.

To receive their Secondary School Certificate (SSC or West African Senior Secondary School Certificate), students are evaluated by a formula that combines continuous assessment in their courses, which counts 30 percent, and by their scores on the SSCE, which counts 70 percent. Those students who want to apply for higher education but who do not score high enough on the SSCE may take the General Certificate Examination (GCE) in the fall of the following year to attempt to qualify for openings.

The SSCE is prepared and administered by the West African Examination Council (WAEC), an organization that has operated school examinations in several West African countries since 1954. In 1989, the SSCE replaced the West African General Certificate of Education O and A levels.

In 1999, the Nigerian government established the National Examination Council of Nigeria (NECO) to compete with the WAEC. The NECO first try at offering the SSCE, in June and July 2000, was considered a failure. The rivalry between the two testing organizations increased so much that by early 2001 there was much confusion among students over which organization's exam they should take. The issue was not resolved by the spring of 2001, but more students will likely choose WAEC examinations for several years, especially if WAEC follows up on its promise to upgrade its system with modern technology.

Although technical and vocational education is offered at several kinds of institutions, including some academic secondary schools, most technical and vocational students attend specialized secondary schools or colleges. The programs can be short, such as welding programs that take only a few months, to longer programs, such as auto mechanics that lasts three years. Usually, students finishing vocational courses are offered apprenticeships for training in specific crafts. Apprenticeship programs vary from six months to three years of work under close supervision. Some technical schools offer the entire six years of secondary education and prepare students to take the SSCE. The majority, however, take national exams in their specialties, such as the Federal Craft Certification Examination (FCCE) and the National Business and Technical Board Examination (NABTEB).

Another group of students who finish primary school go into teacher training colleges that cover the entire six years of secondary school. Successful students receive the Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE), qualifying them to teach in grades one through nine and in technical colleges.

In an effort to promote Nigerian patriotism and discourage ethnic rivalry, the federal government established 63 Unity Secondary Schools around the country. These special schools use a quota system to admit students from all the states in the nation. The purpose is to bring together young boys and girls from many different ethnic groups to study and live together in harmony, so that in the future they might serve as good role models for others in the nation.

Higher Education

Because there are only enough openings annually for about 20 percent of the qualified applicants, competition for places in higher education is severe. In 1996-1997, for example, 475,923 applied for university places but only 79,904 received offers. Almost 50 percent of those enrolled in higher education go to universities to work on bachelor level degrees. The annual dropout rate for all university students is about 18 percent. For the 1996 academic year, teacher educational institutions of higher education enrolled 89,247 students. Those enrolled in technical education at the postsecondary level numbered 148,666. Most of the college fees for government universities are paid by the federal government. Whether this includes meals and other extras depends on the individual university and on the availability of funds.

There are several types of tertiary institutions, but the four most common are: those that offer university degrees; those that offer national diplomas; those that offer teacher training; and those that offer a variety of professional and skill certificates. In 1998, Nigeria had 37 arts and sciences universities, 3 agriculture universities, 1 military university, 4 polytechnics, and 63 colleges of education. In 1999 the National Universities Commission (NUC), which oversees the university system, approved the creation of private universities. In addition, there are 24 federal and 12 state government universities.

The technical colleges, polytechnics, and colleges of education offer the ND for two years of study, and the HND for four years of study. University programs in the arts, social sciences, and pure sciences usually take four years for the bachelor's degree. Engineering and technology degrees typically take five years. Medicine and dentistry are six-year programs. For a master's degree, one or two years is normal. Doctoral degrees take two or three years after finishing a master's degree.

In late 2000, President Obasanjo initiated the Nigerian University Systems Innovation Project (NUSIP), which began the process of making universities independent, so they would not rely on federal funds for survival. They would be run more like private businesses. The opposition to this plan was immediate, with students and teachers believing the plan required much higher fees and put higher education beyond the reach of most students, and the outcome is still in doubt.

In general, to gain admittance to a postsecondary institution, candidates need the SSC. Those with high enough scores on five major SSCE subjects, in no more than two attempts, qualify to take the Universities Matriculation Examination (UME). The major subjects on the SSCE include biology, chemistry, English language, geography, history, mathematics, and physics.

Begun in 1978 by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), the UME is more difficult than the SSCE. Students must register for English language and three more subjects in their major field. Candidates have traditionally scored low in mathematics and sciences. For the 2001 academic year, the average score in mathematics was 38.90 percent; in biology, 48.33 percent; and in chemistry, 45.51 percent.

For students who finished secondary school and took the West African GCE A Level or GCE O Level before 1989, high scores on these exams qualify candidates for university admission. There are several other possible options, including high scores on the NCE and ND. In addition, there might be other requirements depending on a student's major field.

In the spring of 2000, President Obasanjo introduced a new plan that required all primary and secondary schools to teach courses in African culture. In order to enter a university, students will have to provide proof that they have passed cultural knowledge courses. The courses focus on African and Nigerian history, mythology, and proverbs.

Higher educational institutions must also follow federal guidelines that attempt to balance the differences among ethnic groups receiving a higher education. They must weigh test scores, residency of the candidate, and whether the candidate is from an educationally less developed state in determining who is admitted.

The polytechnic colleges have different requirements for admission. Normally they require the SSC, but other requirements are generally set by the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and vary with programs. Most candidates must take an entry exam called the Polytechnics and Colleges of Education Exam (PCE). About 120,000 candidates took the exam for the 2001 academic year. A few polytechnics are beginning to offer bachelor's degrees in technical fields, but most offer programs leading to the ND and HND.

One striking feature of university education is the lack of majors in the sciences. Only 10.3 percent graduated in 1992 with degrees in pure science, engineering, agriculture, and technology. The government's goal is to shift the admission ratio of majors for incoming freshmen away from the humanities to 60 percent science and technology. In 2000, though, only 20 percent committed to science while 80 percent went into the humanities. The enrollment at technical training institutions, colleges of agriculture, and polytechnics remained disappointingly low as well.

Administration, Finance, & Educational Research

At the federal level, two major groups prepare and propose national policy for primary and secondary education: The Joint Consultative Committee on Education (JCC) and the National Council on Education (NCE). Drawn from federal and state ministries, university faculty, WAEC, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), and other groups, the JCC considers educational proposals and recommends policy to the NCE. The NCE, with the federal Minister of Education as the head, consists of state education commissioners and recommends policy to the federal executive council.

The organizations that consider policies for higher education are the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE). The latter considers policies for both bachelor level and lower certificate programs in the vocational and technical fields.

Money for education comes mainly from the federal government's Education Tax Fund (ETF). In 2001, the government allocated 35 percent of the budget, or 24.8 billion Nigerian dollars (about US$248 million) to education. This money was distributed to the states, and they determined how to divide it among the local governments. As a result, decision-making and policy implementation began at the federal level. The idea, however, is for the federal and state education agencies to cooperate in planning and allocating funds.

Some states, such as Rivers State in southern Nigeria, have built schools to serve as "centers of excellence" as part of a nationwide attempt to improve the educational system. Sometimes, state governments use the money to improve the lives of their students. For example, Lagos provides free lunch for all its primary students. Enugu State in eastern Nigeria offers students free train service. Many of the states pay for students' major national examinations.

In the universities, research is common. Some universities have received international recognition for their scholar and research programs. Funding is a problem, therefore, the most successful research programs are those with international funding.

In Nigeria's federal system, most educational decisions are made at the local and state level. A good example is Lagos in southwestern Nigeria, with the largest concentration of students being in the country. Lagos has a Ministry of Education made up of several departments, including Basic Education Services, Curriculum and Education Technology, Private Education and Special Programmes, Science and Technology, Finance and Administration, Inspectorate, and Curriculum Services. Lagos also has a Legal and Policy Unit, Examination Board, Scholarship Board, and a Library Board.

The state Ministry of Education actually depends on local Education Districts (ED) to carry out policies in the schools. A state Primary Schools Management Board (PSMB) performs much of the overall administering of primary education. The PSMB recruits teachers and staff; oversees promotion; disburses money from the federal, state, and local governments; and advises on school construction. The Lagos Post-Primary Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM) addresses similar issues at the secondary level. The state also has an Examination Board with the duty of conducting and supervising examinations sponsored by the state, including the NCEE, JSSCE, SSCE, and Civil Service Examinations.

Nonformal Education

Nigeria has an illiteracy rate close to 50 percent. The government spends a lot of effort promoting nationwide literacy and life-skills programs. Each state has agencies that also offer programs. The Agency for Mass Education in Lagos has set up 310 mass literacy centers around the state, which served 9,088 learners in 2000. They also have established 73 postprimary continuing education centers with almost 1,000 teachers.

Some universities are major forces in community education. The Adult Education Department of the University of Ibadan, for example, has won international prizes for its community-based programs to teach literacy in rural areas. The Department set up a Community Development Literacy and Health program in 1989 that evolved into the University Village Association, which promotes and offers money for literacy classes and small-business start-ups.

Teaching Profession

In the past, to teach in primary school a person needed a Teacher Certificate Grade II (TCGDII) from four years of secondary school at a Grade II Teacher-training college. These were phased out after 1998, when the Nigerian Certificate of Education (NCE) became the required diploma for all primary and junior secondary school teachers. In 1996, out of approximately 420,000 primary school teachers in the country, about 80 percent had either the NCE or TCGDII (equally divided between the two).

The government created the National Teachers Institute (NTI) in 1978 to conduct programs that would upgrade teacher qualifications to the NCE level, with most of this training carried out by distance learning. Between 1993 and 1996, the NTI graduated 34,486 in their NCE distance learning programs. In 2000, it trained 20,000 teachers. A Bachelor of Education program with NTI received approval by the government at the end of 2000. NTI also conducts workshops and conferences on curriculum development and in other areas of teacher training.

To teach in senior secondary schools a person must have either a bachelor's degree in education or a bachelor's degree in a subject field combined with a postgraduate diploma in education. The faculty in senior secondary schools are among the best qualified in the country, almost all holding bachelor's degree. A few teachers possess the NCE.

The bachelor's degree programs in education are offered at major teacher universities, such as Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, the University of Ibadan in Ibadan, and the University of Nigeria in Nsukka. Of the 63 colleges of education offering the three-year NCE program, about a third are owned by the federal government, and about half by state governments. The remaining are privately owned. All are under the supervision of the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE), which sets and maintains standards and approves of courses and programs for all universities in Nigeria.

To teach at Nigerian universities, teachers must have qualifications that are similar to professors at U.S. and European universities, usually a doctorate. At the university level, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) represents university faculty, and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) bargains for the senior non-academic workers. The Academic Staff Unions of Polytechnics (ASUP) represents polytechnic faculty members. These unions are very active.

The major teacher organization representing primary and secondary school teachers is the Nigeria Union of Teachers. Although it is very active, NUT has been unable to change the unsatisfactory conditions under which teachers work. UNESCO reports that "34.4 percent of the teachers had neither the pupils' textbook nor the teachers' guide for any of the school subjects."

Another major concern of teachers is salary. Not only is payment often incomplete, but the salaries are low. Salaries are set by the local, state, and federal governments, depending on which level controls the institution. Some of the higher paid teachers are in the northeastern state of Jigawa where the State Commission of Education reported that in September 2000 the lowest paid teacher received 20,000 Nigerian dollars monthly (about US$176). A senior lecturer in higher education received about 80,000 Nigerian dollars monthly (approximately US$704).

This is a dramatic improvement from the long years of decline under the military governments. A senior lecturer in a university averaged about $23,500 annually in 1982. Within four years, poor economic policy and the decline in international oil prices led to the near disappearance of the Nigerian middle class. The salary of senior lecturers fell to about $2,630 and continued to fall for many years. In 1994, for example, the average annual salary for senior lecturers was $754. Only after the May 1999 election of Obasanjo were any serious attempts made to reverse this downward trend in salaries.

Summary

The problems in Nigeria's education system stem from a complicated mix of economic, political, and social situations. Three decades of political instability followed civil war in the late 1960s. Economic wealth from huge oil reserves in the southeast were diverted away from education and other socially progressive programs into the pockets of corrupt politicians and military leaders. The formula of corruption, poor planning, and a worldwide drop in oil prices in the 1980s resulted in the crash of Nigeria's economy. According to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Nigeria's per capita income dropped from US$1,200 in the 1980s to US$300 in 2000.

The economic decline and the political rivalries, especially dividing the northern Muslim states from the southern non-Muslim states, resulted in deterioration in the educational system all over the country, but the most dramatic figures are reported from the northern states. Of the 19 states labeled "educationally disadvantaged," 17 are in the North. In 1995, for example, there were 4,448,869 secondary students enrolled in Nigeria. The northern area, with about half the country's population, accounted for only 1,417,645 of these students. In 1999, the six states with the most candidates applying for university admission (all in the south) had a total of 200,506 applicants. The bottom six states in number (about the same population) were all in the north, with a total of 5,619. The numbers for applications to polytechnics and colleges of education showed similar results. Out of a nationwide total of 160,724 candidates, some 72,830 were from 6 southern states, while the bottom 6 states, all in the north, had only 375 candidates. The qualification of teachers mirrors the same unequal distribution. In the late 1990s, only 16 percent of the primary school teachers in the north held the NCE, considered the minimum qualification for teaching. In the south, more than 94 percent held the NCE.

The educational infrastructure needs to be revamped, especially at the primary level. At most schools, there is a desperate shortage of texts. Even in better areas, such as Abia State, primary schools only have enough texts in core subjects for 45 to 50 percent of the pupils. In the poorest states, the number is lower than 10 percent.

Another serious problem is the dropout rate at all levels of education, especially among boys. In 1995, the percentage of elementary students dropping out by the sixth year stood at 30.8 percent. The dropout rate in areas with long reputations for high achievement in education is especially surprising. In Enugu State, for example, nearly 100 percent of primary-school-aged boys and 91 percent of the girls were enrolled in schools in 1992. As political and economic conditions worsened, the figures declined. In 1996 the enrollment figures showed only 42 percent for boys and 35 percent for girls. In the conservative Islamic state of Sokoto in northwest Nigeria, the enrollment statistics for 1992 and 1996 were 41 and 49 percent for boys and 12 and 15 percent for girls. People in conservative Islamic states, however, often send their children to Qur'anic schools, so it is likely that a higher percentage of their children were attending schools.

Because school graduates often have difficulty finding jobs that match their education, the younger generation frequently sees little practical value in staying in school beyond a few primary grades. This problem is especially severe in the eastern region among the Igbo people. The dropout rate becomes critical at the junior secondary level. In 1994, for example, the distribution of boys and girls in Enugu state is about equal in primary school. Of the 156,001 students enrolled in secondary schools, 81,080 were females. The dropout rate in the following year for boys was astronomical. In 1995, of the 99,867 students enrolled in secondary schools, some 91,311 were girls. Boys had dropped out to find work in businesses and trade, while girls stayed in school. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the completion rate for boys in the east stood at only 30 percent.

The federal government has made a strong commitment to education. The UBE is a positive step towards educational success. The goal is to create an educated public whose best interests are to support a unified nation. Emphasizing African and Nigerian history and culture in social sciences is another important step in developing a feeling of unity among the people. Another step is the creation of Unity Secondary Schools throughout the country.

Probably the most promising long-term programs involve local communities throughout the country taking control of their future. These range from integrating teaching in Qur'anic schools with national basic literacy programs to private businessmen offering prizes for students who win literacy contests. They include community involvement, such as the pilot school program initiated by NPEC for the state education boards to seek schools and communities that will set up community participation programs. They come together and raise funds, provide supplies, and help coordinate the various social services available such as health and child care.

The prospects for the future are uncertain. The federal government must deal with great divisions between regions politically, the gap in economic development, and the strong identity of people with their local cultures. People still distrust a strong centralized government. The idea of a unified nation of people who should sacrifice ethnic loyalty for the welfare of the country as a whole is still being tested in Nigeria. The government leaders realize that the survival of Nigeria as a unified country is at risk if the educational system remains inefficient and inconsistent.

Bibliography

Aborisade, Oladimeji. "Additional Universities: Hope for the New Candidates." NigeriaWorld: Letters & Viewpoints, 14 May 1999. Available from http://nigeriaworld.com/letters/1999/may/0514995.html.

Adegbamigbe, Ademola. "West African Examinations Council Versus National Examination Council." The News (Lagos), 27 November 2000. Available from http://allafrica.com/stories/.

Ajao, Wale. "WAEC Plans Hitch-Free Exam Next Year." Vanguard Daily (Lagos), 18 December 2000. Available from http://allafrica.com/stories/.

Aluko, Mobolaji E. "Monday Quarterbacking: I Hereby Declare an Education State of Emergency." Nigeria World Letters & Viewpoint, 25 January 2000. Available from http://nigeriaworld.com/feature/publication/.

"Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999."NigeriaWorld, 2 July 1999. Available from http://nigeriaworld.com/focus/republic/constitution/.

Edomaruse, Collins. "Former SGF, Idris, Laments Illiteracy in the North." Africa News Service, 22 January 2001. Available from http://www.elibrary.com/.

Godonoo, Prosper. "Marginalization of Universities in Africa: The Case of Nigeria." Paper. Comparative and International Education Society Conference. Urbana, IL. 31 October-2 November 1997. Available from http://www.ed.uiuc.edu/EPS/MWCIES97/godonoo.html.

International Consultative Forum on Education for All (EFA Forum). "Education For All. The Year 2000 Assessment. County Reports: Nigeria." UNESCO, 15 February 2001. Available from http://www2.unesco.org/wef/countryreports/nigeria/.

International Association of Universities. "Higher Education Systems: Nigeria." UNESCO, March 2001. Available from http://www.unesco.org/.

Merryfield, Merry M., and Josiah Tlou. "The Process of Africanizing the Social Studies: Perspectives from Post-Independence Curricular Reform in Botswana, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe." The Social Studies, 21 November 1995. Available from http://www.elibrary.com/s/edumark/getdoc.

Nigerian Embassy. "Education in Nigeria." Available from http://nigerianembassy-argentina.org/.

Njoku, Felix 'Machi. "Nigeria Seeks Co-operation to Revamp Education Sector." Africa News Service, 5 November 1999. Available from http://elibrary.com/s/edumark/getdoc.

Ogbonnaya, Roland. "Nigerian Teachers and the Salary Problems." Africa News Service, 17 January 2000. Available from http://www.elibrary.com/s.

Olori, Toye. "Nigeria: More than 3.8M Children Eke Out a Living on the Street." Interpress Service English News Wire. 26 February 1999.

Oyo, Remi. "Nigeria-Education: You Don't Need School to Make Money," 29 March 1996. Available from http://www.elibrary.com/s/edumark/getdoc.

United States Agency for International Development. "Nigeria: FY 2001 Program Description and Activity Data Sheets. Developing the Foundation for Education Reform." Available from http://www.usaid.gov/country/afr/ng/nigeria_ads.html.

Yoloye, E.A. "Nigeria: System of Education." The International Encyclopedia of Education, 7, 2nd ed. New York: Elsevier Science Pergamon, 1994.

West African Examination Council. "The Council's Examinations." Available from http://www.africaonline.com.

—John A. Zurlo

Nigeria

Basic Data

Background & General Characteristics

A multiplicity of media voices can be found in Nigeria largely because of the diversity of the population of the country and the history preceding its independence. The nation remains unsettled and its constitution is not enforced in all regions equally. This has led to confusion, frustration, and violence resulting in numerous deaths in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Reports of deaths from Islamic fundamentalists are commonplace in media reports particularly in the northern states of Nigeria.

The British reporter Flora Shaw coined the term "Nigeria" which was to become the name of the country. In the 1890s she took the term from the Niger River to apply it to the region during the era of colonial rule.

Like other segments of society, media reflects the population of the people. Nigeria has over 250 different ethnic groups. It is nearly twice the size of California, and with a population of approximately 110 million, is the most densely populated country in Africa. Other estimates have the population even higher. One source reports that because tribalism is so sensitive an issue population estimates based on pre-independence data are intentionally inexact so as not to ignite controversy. Hundreds of thousands of Nigerians live in the United States, and nearly 200,000 of them have attained U.S. citizenship. English is the official language of Nigeria. Broadcast stations and print media provide content to audiences in English. Other dominant languages spoken are Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, and Fulani. Hausa and Fulani are primarily in the north. Yoruba is in the southwest, while Ibos are located in the southeast.

The country has had varying degrees of freedom of the press over its tumultuous history. There has generally been a diversity of voices in the media; however, as the government changed hands frequently and in violent circumstances, the media voices that were in support of a leader would find themselves without a voice as a replacement emerged. At some points, newspapers and magazines were proscribed entirely due to their criticism of government authorities.

Examples of this form of silencing the press are found in the late 1970s and mid 1980s. Although newspapers and magazines were privately owned, the government prohibited them from expressing their editorial opinions. In 1977 Newbreed was closed down. In 1984 the government closed down the Tribune and four years later in 1988 Newswatch was a victim of government censorship. Also during this time period, government leaders harassed individual journalists. In 1971 Minere Amakiri, a reporter for the Nigerian Observer, was detained and had his hair shaved. Numerous other journalists experienced similar assaults.

The cause of violence in the country is sometimes difficult to determine because ethnic and religious differences both enter the mix. The largest religious group is Muslim, making up about 50 percent of the population. Christians account for about 40 percent, while the remaining 10 percent of the people follow traditional beliefs or some combination of the two major groups.

Rivalries between various ethnic groups within Nigeria can be traced back for as far as these groups have existed. Tensions flare for a period, then a temporary peace follows. During the waning days of the colonial period these ancestral rivalries played a role in the country's evolution to independence. In January 1956, Queen Elizabeth II visited Nigeria for a ceremonial tour, which was in part a reaction to anti-colonialism that had taken place in other African nations such as the Mau-Mau uprising in Kenya. The concern in the United Kingdom was that Moslems in northern Nigeria would stir passions of revolt. Two years earlier Nigeria had been granted a degree of autonomy with the aim of solidifying British loyalty, according to a report in the Chronicle of the twentieth Century.

The internal conflict has taken its toll on life expectancy. The nation has the 15th highest infant mortality rate in the world, 87 deaths per 1,000 live births. Life expectancy in Nigeria is 56 years, compared to 76 years in the United States. Steps are being taken to improve the plight of the Nigerian people, however. The United States has initiated a series of actions to help provide some stability to the emerging democracy. In 2000 a $19.9 million agreement was signed by USAID to assist Nigeria in reforming its educational policies. The goal was to encourage civic participation on a broad basis. Under the plan six Community Resource Centers would be built that would provide increased Internet access to every region of the nation. The U.S. Education for Development and Democracy Initiative (EDDI) provided $4.5 million to establish the centers. Local educators would receive training at the centers, which would also be used to support distance education to Nigerian universities, provide computer, and targeted vocational educational training to local communities, and support adult literacy and AIDS education. An additional part of the initiative is $500,000 which allowed girls who would otherwise not have access to educational opportunities to attend school from the primary to university level.

Although the press was intended to be a "watchdog" for the country, similar to its role in free countries such as the United Kingdom or the United States, it has had difficulty fulfilling that role due to the demands of the various competing special interest groups. The large number of different voices created something of a marketplace of ideas although some of the ideas resulted in violence.

At the end of the twentieth century Nigeria had more than thirty national and provincial newspapers. There were more than twenty general interest magazines and journals in circulation, along with more than twenty television and radio stations. Just because media fare was available, that does not necessarily mean the people were reached with its content. In spite of the relatively large number of newspapers and magazines nearly one third of men and half the women are illiterate.

One of the country's most respected philosophers, Chinua Achebe, described the tragedy facing the press by writing "listen to Nigerian leaders and you will frequently hear the phrase 'this great country of ours.' Nigeria is not a great country. It is one of the most disorderly nations in the world. It is one of the most corrupt, insensitive, inefficient places under the sun. It is dirty, callous, noisy, ostentatious, dishonest and vulgar. In short it is among the most unpleasant places on earth" (Hudgens and Trillo 914).

Nigeria is governed under a constitution that was adopted in 1999. It is largely based on an earlier constitution that was written in 1979. Over the course of those two decades violence and turmoil has remained constant. Besides high rates of illiteracy, another one of the many problems faced by media personnel seeking to serve in a watchdog capacity is the constant turnover of the government. Cordelia C. Nwagwu points out that since achieving independence in 1960, Nigeria has experienced a turnover in the government averaging every 3.5 years. Nwagwu describes the havoc this has on an integral part of any society such as the educational system. With the vast majority of the short-term governments being military regimes the consideration for public approval was ignored.

There is some indication that some of the earlier restrictions on freedom, which resulted when the constitution was ignored may ending. The Times of India reports that the attorney general declared strict Islamic law unconstitutional in that it discriminates against Nigerians on the basis of religion and sex as it applies only to Muslims, and in some cases, only to women.

In its 2000 annual report the United States Department of State expressed concern over the constitutional liberties lost due to the implementation of Sharia law in the northern states of Nigeria. The report said "although Christians were exempt from the law, the societal ramifications of expanded Sharia law infringed upon the rights of non-Muslims in the north to live in society governed by secular laws." The report went on to add "plans to implement expanded Sharia laws in Kaduna state, which has a large Christian population, sparked violence in February 2000 that lasted for several days and resulted in an estimated 1,000 to 1,500 deaths."

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was elected president of Nigeria in 1999. He had previously been head of state between 1976 and 79, but voluntarily resigned and handed the reigns of power over to the democratically elected Aljaji Shehu Shagari. The web page of the Consulate General of Nigeria in Atlanta reports that Obasanjo was born in former Western Nigeria, a part of what is now Ogun State in 1937. He was educated in military academies in Nigeria, India, the United Kingdom, and the United States. He reluctantly became the head of state after his military forces defeated Biafran forces in January 1970. He was an outspoken critic of military rule during this time in the nation's history.

Not only is the press faced with political instability and uncertainty, but the infrastructure of the nation is lacking in many basic services too. The internal infrastructure of Nigeria has not been maintained over the years. Portions of the government are not fully functional. Due to political corruption, including bribes and payoffs, oil-rich Nigeria does not have the basic services available to its citizens that other nations provide which have fewer natural resources, but are better managed.

It is interesting to note the career track Nigerian journalists have taken historically. In the early 1980s John Merrill noted that newspapers in Nigeria attempted to recruit former broadcast journalists. This runs counter to the career path in many other countries where electronic media managers have sought to recruit print journalists.

Economic Framework

Nigeria is a nation of many mineral resources, but the political uncertainty of the country is such that the assets of the region are not realized by the population. Oil-rich Nigeria has been held back by years of political instability, corruption, mismanagement, and lack of direction. The various military leaders neglected to diversify the nation's economy and as a result the country has found itself in a situation of overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector. Petroleum products provide about 20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product.

Agriculture in Nigeria has failed to keep up with the rapid population growth. At one time in its history, Nigeria exported agricultural products, now it is an importer. In August 2000, following the signing of an IMF standby agreement, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club. Additionally the nation was granted a $1 billion loan from the IMF. Both the restructuring and the loan were contingent on economic reforms.

Increases in foreign investment and oil production enhanced economic for the country for a while. Nigeria remains vulnerable to world oil prices. This is one factor over which leadership has no control.

Press Laws & Censorship

Adigun A. B. Agbaje explains the reason the press laws of Nigeria are so difficult to describe is because of the complexity of the ever-changing society in which they are found. He describes myriad competing influences on how the press constructs legitimacy for the Nigerian people. Agbaje describes it as a "battlefield of representations."

Engaged in this battlefield are such segments of society as the educational system, the work environment, popular culture, the mass media, the languages of the various groups, sports, and other competing forms of entertainment. Agbaje goes on to describe the problem being exacerbated by the colonial heritage and non-Africans trying to explain the realities of the nation's complex social structure.

The lack of enforced freedom of press laws is in part due to the competing power bases. Various cultural, religious, and tribal groups continue to be at odds over how the country should be governed. Even reaching an agreed upon political philosophy is a significant challenge to the various groups within the country.

This ongoing battle of ideas can be seen throughout Nigeria's history. For example, in debating a constitutional draft in the late 1970s, then Head of State, General Muhammed said of ideology:

Since the inception of this Administration, and particularly since the announcement of your appointment as members of the Constitution Drafting Committee, there has been a lively debate in the Press urging the introduction of one form of political ideology or another. Past events have, however, shown that we cannot build a future for this country on a rigid political ideology. Such an approach would be unrealistic. The evolution of a doctrinal concept is usually predicated upon the general acceptance by the people of a national political, philosophy and, consequently, until all our people, or a large majority of them, have acknowledged a common ideological motivation, it would be fruitless to proclaim any particular philosophy or ideology in our constitution.

In spite of the framework that has been set in place for press freedom, Nigeria continues to fight to be able to publish opinions freely.

Censorship is a recurring problem in Nigeria regardless of the supposed freedoms expressed in the constitution. Both during periods of civilian rule and military dictatorships, the nation has never experienced a complete assurance of a free press. Government philosophy and documents may state press freedoms exist, but in the day to day affairs of life such freedoms fluctuate widely.

Among the newspapers and magazines that have been proscribed are: Newbreed in 1977, the Tribune in 1984, and Newswatch in 1988.

Four years after Nigerian gained independence from Britain, the Nigerian Federal House of Parliament passed a controversial newspaper law. The Newspapers (Amendment) Act of 1964 imposed restrictions on the press in the new nation's early development stage. The act stated:

(a) Any person who authorises for publication, publishes, reproduces or circulates for sale in a newspaper any statement, rumour or report knowing or having reason to believe that such statement, rumour or report is false shall be guilty of an offense and liable on conviction to a fine of two hundred pounds or to imprisonment for a term of one year. (b) It shall be no defence to a charge under this section that he did not know or did not have reason to believe that the statement, rumour or report was false unless he proves that prior to publication, he took reasonable measures to verify the accuracy of such statement, rumour or report.

Nigerian scholar Luke Uka Uche points out the irony of this act, adopted by the leaders of the nation so soon after gaining independence. He notes, "if the colonial government had stringently imposed such sanctions, it would have been very doubtful that Nigerian nationalism would have seen light of day through the pages of newspapers. Ironically, we have just seen how Azikiwe, who later became the first Nigerian President, fought a 1948 newspaper ordinance that merely sought for the payment of cash as part of a security deposit prior to the publication of a newspaper."

State-Press Relations

Due to the instability of the various governments over the years the relationship between the state and the press has fluctuated, depending upon a number of factors. At times there have been some moderate consideration given to press freedoms, while other times the crackdown on journalists disagreeing with the government has been blatant and violent.

In reviewing the history of the nation, the long-term trend has been that of the repression of a free press. The constitutional privileges that are in writing have simply not been experienced in the real world of daily Nigerian life. On the surface it appears there is much diversity of expression due to the large number of media outlets in the nation. However when a closer observation is made, the complex political and social systems of the nation are the context in which these media organizations operate and it is discovered that the "societal watchdog" function of the press does not operate in reality in Nigeria as it does in more free and open societies.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York based nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that monitors press freedoms globally, reported serious reservations about Nigeria's government-press relations following the election of President Obasanjo. CPJ noted that "although a new constitution was promulgated on May 5 (1999), it was modeled largely after the 1979 constitution and offered the media no specific protection."

About 20 anti-media decrees were identified by CPJ in the revised Nigeria constitution. One of the measures was repealed, the one that called for newspapers and magazines to register with the government. Later it was surreptitiously introduced as the Nigerian Press Council (Amendment) Decree Number 60 of 1999.

While press attacks decreased significantly after the transition from military to civilian rule, there remained reported abuses. CPJ reported that shortly after the election, police raided the editorial offices of the independent Lagos newspaper, The News and arrested several employees. Around the same time, Lanre Arogundade, chairman of the Lagos Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), was arrested on charges that seemed to be politically motivated. Even government owned media employees experienced harassment. Two reporters for the state-owned newspaper The Observer were suspended for publishing statements considered to be critical of the election process made by international observers.

Attitude toward Foreign Media

Nigerians want to interact with foreign news agencies, but they do not want to lose control of the way their nation is presented in the global marketplace of ideas. They generally advocate limited involvement with foreign media.

The U.S. Department of State warned of Nigeria: "permission is required to take photographs of government buildings, airports, bridges or official-looking buildings. these sites are not always clearly marked, and application of these restrictions is subject to interpretation. Permission may be obtained from Nigerian security personnel. Penalties may include confiscation or breaking of the camera, exposure of the film, a demand for payment of a fine or bribe, or a roughing-up."

News Agencies

There are no domestic news agencies in Nigeria. Some news bureaus are maintained by news agencies from other countries in Nigeria. The BBC and CNN are two Western media organizations that continually monitor developments in the nation.

Broadcast Media

Due to the volatile nature of Nigerian politics there is no predictability in the way laws granting free speech will be interpreted at any given time. Broadcasters are vulnerable in such a climate. Violence is one component that has never left Nigeria's history regardless of the persons in the top elected offices.

There were 2 government controlled television broadcast stations in Nigeria in 1999 and 14 licenses to operate private television stations. The nation has 82 AM radio stations and 35 FM stations. There are 11 short-wave stations in Nigeria. Throughout the country there are 23.5 million radios and 6.9 million television sets.

In 1992 the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) was founded to monitor and regulate broadcasting on a national basis. One goal of the organization is to open up the industry to the marketplace paradigm. Both foreign and domestic participation is sought. A total of nine mandates are itemized in the charter of the NBC.

Additionally, the agency has the role of arbitrator between the industry and other areas of the government. Education is also a component of the organization's work. It is charged with ensuring the development of trained personnel through accredited curricula and programs that offer courses in mass communication and broadcasting. And the final mandate is to guarantee the liberty and protection of the broadcasting industry under the constitution.

Nigeria's president appoints the Board of Commission for the NBC based on the advice of the Minister of Information. The Commission consists of a Chairman, the Director-General. Ten other members are also on the board representing law, business, culture, education, social science, broadcasting, public affairs, engineering, and state security service. Members serve on the board on a part-time basis. The Director-General, who occupies the role of chief executive, conducts day-to-day oversight. That position is assisted by the Secretary to the Commission and the Board of Management, which includes the Heads of Directorate and Departments. On July 26, 1999, Mallam Nasir Danladi Bako was named the Director-General.

Electronic News Media

Nigerians are active in Internet technology. The Internet country code for Nigeria is.ng. Eleven Internet Service Providers (ISPs) operate in the nation. An estimated 100,000 Nigerians are Internet users. Numerous media outlets are available on the Internet. These include specialty media, designed for target audiences to general interest publications.

All Nigeria.com is an Internet source for a broader audience. It contains daily news updates, viewpoints, feature articles and essays on Nigeria, Africa and the world at large from a Nigerian perspective. Nigeria Infonet is a site on the Internet that provides a listing of numerous news and media sources available to anyone interested in either niche or general interest publications.

An example of international media outlets providing news analysis on Nigeria's political situation can be found on the websites of both American and British media outlets. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Cable News Network (CNN) both maintain special websites on events and personalities related to the 1999 election.

Nigeriaworld is an example of a state of the art newspaper online. Its URL is www.nigeriaworld.com . The Daily Times is another Nigerian newspaper found online. It serves as a contrast to Nigeriaworld in that it lacks both the content and distribution advantages of its competitor. It is not updated on a consistent basis and it does not have the stable of writers found in the pages of Nigeriaworld. Nigeria Daily is between the other two newspapers in terms of quality. It updates its web page on a consistent basis, yet it does not have the resources Nigeriaworld has to provide content from such a wide number of credentialed sources.

The international nature of news flow on the Internet makes it more difficult for the government to control content distributed through this means. Some of the Nigerian newspapers that have daily updated Internet sites have columnists and editorial writers based in the United States and Europe. Many of these people have been educated in American and British institutions of higher learning. A significant number have graduate degrees.

Education & Training

Nigeria has a long history of interacting with other nations in the pursuit of education and training. Not only are many Nigerian reporters educated in the U.S. and the U.K., but seminars by educators from these countries provide refresher courses for decision makers in Nigerian media organizations.

The largest academic department for acquiring a degree in media studies in west Africa is the University of Jos in Nigeria. Over 500 students are enrolled in the program. Although the title of the department is the Theatre and Communication Arts Department, there is a heavy emphasis on mass communication in the curriculum.

A student can study a wide range of media related topics. Both undergraduate and graduate programs are available. In addition to journalism courses, students have the option of taking courses in media management or public relations.

Among the problems encountered in Nigeria's educational systems were: poor funding, inadequate facilities, admission and certificate racketeering, personnel problems, examination malpractice, frequent strikes, lack of discipline, the emergence of secret cults, and a general abandonment of academic standards. Nwagwu sees the solutions as: dedicated teachers, adequate facilities, staff and support personnel in sufficient number, and a democratically elected government.

Summary

Nigeria seems to always be in a state of transition. The constitutional framework for an open society is in place. Educational systems encourage the tradition of free speech, as experienced in the U.S. and western Europe. The freedom of the press will be greatly increased when the many ethnic and other conflicts raging in Nigeria are able to be resolved.

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Merrill, John C. Global Journalism: A Survey of the World's Mass Media. White Plains, NY: Longman, 1983.

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"Nigerian Broadcasters Benefit from a Sales and Management Training Program in the U.S." U.S. Embassy Nigeria. 30 March 2002. Available from www.usembassy.state.gov/nigeria/wwwhdec7.html.

"Nigeria's Heads of Government: 1960 to Present." Consulate General of Nigeria, Atlanta. 23 March 2002. Available from www.nigeria-consulate-atl.org/leaders.htm .

Nwagwu, Cordelia C. "The Environment of Crises in the Nigerian Educational System." Comparative Education 33 (1997): 87-96.

Onadipe, Abiodun. "Nigeria and Democracy: Third Time Lucky?" Contemporary Review Company Ltd. 30 March 2002. Available from www.findarticles.com.

Soyinka, Wole. The Open Sore of A Continent: A Personal Narrative of the Nigerian Crisis. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996.

"Top Blacks: Profiles of People of Color." 22 March 2002. Available from www.topblacks.com.

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Uche, Luke Uka. Mass Media, People and Politics in Nigeria. New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company, 1989.

"Villagers Kidnap American, Nine Others in Nigeria." Las Vegas Sun. 4 April 2002. Sec. 9A.

William Covington, Jr.

Nigeria , officially Federal Republic of Nigeria, republic (2006 provisional pop. 140,003,542), 356,667 sq mi (923,768 sq km), W Africa. It borders on the Gulf of Guinea (an arm of the Atlantic Ocean) in the south, on Benin in the west, on Niger in the northwest and north, on Chad in the northeast, and on Cameroon in the east. Abuja is the capital and Lagos is the largest city.

Land and People

The Niger River and its tributaries (including the Benue, Kaduna, and Kebbi rivers) drain most of the country. Nigeria has a 500-mile (800-km) coastline, for the most part made up of sandy beaches, behind which lies a belt of mangrove swamps and lagoons that averages 10 mi (16 km) in width but increases to c.60 mi (100 km) wide in the great Niger delta in the east. North of the coastal lowlands is a broad hilly region, with rain forest in the south and savanna in the north. Behind the hills is the great plateau of Nigeria (average elevation 2,000 ft/610 m), a region of plains covered largely with savanna but merging into scrubland in the north. Greater altitudes are attained on the Bauchi and Jos plateaus in the center and in the Adamawa Massif (which continues into Cameroon) in the east, where Nigeria's highest point (c.6,700 ft/2,040 m) is located.

In addition to Abuja and Lagos, other major cities include Aba , Abeokuta , Ado , Benin , Enugu , Ibadan , Ife , Ilesha , Ilorin , Iwo , Kaduna , Kano , Maiduguri , Mushin , Ogbomosho , Onitsha , Oshogbo , Port Harcourt , and Zaria .

Nigeria is easily the most populous nation in Africa and one of the fastest growing on earth. The inhabitants are divided into about 250 ethnic groups. The largest of these groups are the Hausa and Fulani in the north, the Yoruba in the southwest, and the Igbo in the southeast. Other peoples include the Kanuri, Nupe, and Tiv of the north, the Edo of the south, and the Ibibio-Efik and Ijaw of the southeast. English is the official language, and each ethnic group speaks its own language. About half of the population, living mostly in the north, are Muslim; another 40%, living almost exclusively in the south, are Christian; the rest follow traditional beliefs. Religious and ethnic tensions have at times led to deadly violence in which hundreds of Nigerians have died.

Economy

The economy of Nigeria historically was based on agriculture, and about 70% of the workforce is still engaged in farming (largely of a subsistence type). The chief crops are cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, soybeans, cassava, yams, and rubber. In addition, cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs are raised.

Petroleum is the leading mineral produced in Nigeria and provides about 95% of foreign exchange earnings and the majority of government revenues. It is found in the Niger delta and in the bights of Benin and Biafra. Petroleum production on an appreciable scale began in the late 1950s, and by the early 1970s it was by far the leading earner of foreign exchange. The growing oil industry attracted many to urban centers, to the detriment of the agricultural sector, and the huge government revenues from oil led to widespread corruption that has continued to be a problem. In the 1980s a decline in world oil prices prompted the government to bolster the agricultural sector. Nonetheless, both refinery capacity and agriculture have not kept pace with population growth, forcing the nation to import refined petroleum products and food. Other minerals extracted include tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, columbite, lead, zinc, and gold.

Industry in Nigeria includes the processing of agricultural products and minerals, and the manufacture of textiles, construction materials, footware, chemicals, fertilizer, and steel. Fishing and forestry are also important to the economy, and there is small commercial shipbuilding and repair sector. In addition, traditional woven goods, pottery, metal objects, and carved wood and ivory are produced. Nigeria's road and rail systems are constructed basically along north-south lines; the country's chief seaports are Lagos, Warri , Port Harcourt, and Calabar .

Except when oil prices are low, Nigeria generally earns more from exports than it spends on imports. Other important exports include cocoa, rubber, and palm products. The main imports are machinery, chemicals, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, food, and live animals. The United States is by far the largest trading partner, followed by China, Brazil, Spain, and Great Britain.

Government

Nigeria is governed under the constitution of 1999 as amended. The president, who is both head of state and head of government, is popularly elected for a four-year term and is eligible for a second term. The bicameral legislature, the National Assembly, consists of the 109-seat Senate and a 360-seat House of Representatives; all legislators are elected by popular vote for four-year terms. Administratively, the country is divided into 36 states and the federal capital territory.

History

Early History

Little is known of the earliest history of Nigeria. By c.2000 BC most of the country was sparsely inhabited by persons who had a rudimentary knowledge of raising domesticated food plants and of herding animals. From c.800 BC to c.AD 200 the Nok culture (named for the town where archaeological findings first were made) flourished on the Jos Plateau; the Nok people made fine terra-cotta sculptures and probably knew how to work tin and iron. The first important centralized state to influence Nigeria was Kanem-Bornu, which probably was founded in the 8th cent. AD, to the north of Lake Chad (outside modern Nigeria). In the 11th cent., by which time its rulers had been converted to Islam, Kanem-Bornu expanded south of Lake Chad into present-day Nigeria, and in the late 15th cent. its capital was moved there.

Beginning in the 11th cent. seven independent Hausa city-states were founded in N Nigeria—Biram, Daura, Gobir, Kano, Katsina , Rano, and Zaria. Kano and Katsina competed for the lucrative trans-Saharan trade with Kanem-Bornu, and for a time had to pay tribute to it. In the early 16th cent. all of Hausaland was briefly held by the Songhai Empire. However, in the late 16th cent., Kanem-Bornu replaced Songhai as the leading power in N Nigeria, and the Hausa states regained their autonomy. In southwest Nigeria two states—Oyo and Benin—had developed by the 14th cent.; the rulers of both states traced their origins to Ife, renowned for its naturalistic terra-cotta and brass sculpture. Benin was the leading state in the 15th cent. but began to decline in the 17th cent., and by the 18th cent. Oyo controlled Yorubaland and also Dahomey. The Igbo people in the southeast lived in small village communities.

In the late 15th cent. Portuguese navigators became the first Europeans to visit Nigeria. They soon began to purchase slaves and agricultural produce from coastal middlemen; the slaves had been captured further inland by the middlemen. The Portuguese were followed by British, French, and Dutch traders. Among the Igbo and Ibibio a number of city-states were established by individuals who had become wealthy by engaging in the slave trade; these included Bonny , Owome, and Okrika.

The Nineteenth Century

There were major internal changes in Nigeria in the 19th cent. In 1804, Usuman dan Fodio (1754–1817), a Fulani and a pious Muslim, began a holy war to reform the practice of Islam in the north. He soon conquered the Hausa city-states, but Bornu, led by Muhammad al-Kanemi (also a Muslim reformer) until 1835, maintained its independence. In 1817, Usuman dan Fodio's son, Muhammad Bello (d.1837) established a state centered at Sokoto , which controlled most of N Nigeria until the coming of the British (1900–1906). Under both Usuman dan Fodio and Muhammad Bello, Muslim culture, and also trade, flourished in the Fulani empire. In Bornu, Muhammad al-Kanemi was succeeded by Umar (reigned 1835–80), under whom the empire disintegrated.

In 1807, Great Britain abandoned the slave trade; however, other countries continued it until about 1875. Meanwhile, many African middlemen turned to selling palm products, which were Nigeria's chief export by the middle of the century. In 1817 a long series of civil wars began in the Oyo Empire; they lasted until 1893 (when Britain intervened), by which time the empire had disintegrated completely.

In order to stop the slave trade there, Britain annexed Lagos in 1861. In 1879, Sir George Goldie gained control of all the British firms trading on the Niger, and in the 1880s he took over two French companies active there and signed treaties with numerous African leaders. Largely because of Goldie's efforts, Great Britain was able to claim S Nigeria at the Conference of Berlin (see Berlin, Conference of ) held in 1884–85.

In the following years, the British established their rule in SW Nigeria, partly by signing treaties (as in the Lagos hinterland) and partly by using force (as at Benin in 1897). Jaja , a leading African trader based at Opobo in the Niger delta and strongly opposed to European competition, was captured in 1887 and deported. Goldie's firm, given (1886) a British royal charter, as the Royal Niger Company, to administer the Niger River and N Nigeria, antagonized Europeans and Africans alike by its monopoly of trade on the Niger; in addition, it was not sufficiently powerful to gain effective control over N Nigeria, which was also sought by the French.

Colonialism

In 1900 the Royal Niger Company's charter was revoked and British forces under Frederick Lugard began to conquer the north, taking Sokoto in 1903. By 1906, Britain controlled Nigeria, which was divided into the Colony (i.e., Lagos) and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria and the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria. In 1914 the two regions were amalgamated and the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria was established.

The administration of Nigeria was based on a system devised by Lugard and called "indirect rule" ; under this system, Britain ruled through existing political institutions rather than establishing a wholly new administrative network. In some areas (especially the southeast) new African officials (resembling the traditional rulers in other parts of the country) were set up; in most cases they were not accepted by the mass of the people and were able to rule only because British power stood behind them. All important decisions were made by the British governor, and the African rulers, partly by being associated with the colonialists, soon lost most of their traditional authority. Occasionally (as in Aba in 1929) discontent with colonial rule flared into open protest.

Under the British, railroads and roads were built and the production of cash crops, such as palm nuts and kernels, cocoa, cotton, and peanuts, was encouraged. The country became more urbanized as Lagos, Ibadan, Kano, Onitsha, and other cities grew in size and importance. From 1922, African representatives from Lagos and Calabar were elected to the legislative council of Southern Nigeria; they constituted only a small minority, and Africans otherwise continued to have no role in the higher levels of government. Self-help groups organized on ethnic lines were established in the cities. A small Western-educated elite developed in Lagos and a few other southern cities.

In 1947, Great Britain promulgated a constitution that gave the traditional authorities a greater voice in national affairs. The Western-educated elite was excluded, and, led by Herbert Macaulay and Nnamdi Azikiwe , its members vigorously denounced the constitution. As a result, a new constitution, providing for elected representation on a regional basis, was instituted in 1951.

Three major political parties emerged—the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC; from 1960 known as the National Convention of Nigerian Citizens), led by Azikiwe and largely based among the Igbo; the Action Group, led by Obafemi Awolowo and with a mostly Yoruba membership; and the Northern People's Congress (NPC), led by Ahmadu Bello and based in the north. The constitution proved unworkable by 1952, and a new one, solidifying the division of Nigeria into three regions (Eastern, Western, and Northern) plus the Federal Territory of Lagos, came into force in 1954. In 1956 the Eastern and Western regions became internally self-governing, and the Northern region achieved this status in 1959.

Independence and Internal Conflict

With Nigerian independence scheduled for 1960, elections were held in 1959. No party won a majority, and the NPC combined with the NCNC to form a government. Nigeria attained independence on Oct. 1, 1960, with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of the NPC as prime minister and Azikiwe of the NCNC as governor-general; when Nigeria became a republic in 1963, Azikiwe was made president.

The first years of independence were characterized by severe conflicts within and between regions. In the Western region, a bloc of the Action Group split off (1962) under S. I. Akintola to form the Nigerian National Democratic party (NNDP); in 1963 the Mid-Western region (whose population was mostly Edo) was formed from a part of the Western region. National elections late in 1964 were hotly contested, with an NPC-NNDP coalition (called the National Alliance) emerging victorious.

In Jan., 1966, Igbo army officers staged a successful coup, which resulted in the deaths of Federal Prime Minister Balewa, Northern Prime Minister Ahmadu Bello, and Western Prime Minister S. I. Akintola. Maj. Gen. Johnson T. U. Aguiyi-Ironsi, an Igbo, became head of a military government and suspended the national and regional constitutions; this met with a violent reaction in the north. In July, 1966, a coup led by Hausa army officers ousted Ironsi (who was killed) and placed Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon at the head of a new military regime. In Sept., 1966, many Igbo living in the north were massacred.

Gowon attempted to start Nigeria along the road to civilian government but met determined resistance from the Igbo, who were becoming increasingly fearful of their position within Nigeria. In May, 1967, the Eastern parliament gave Lt. Col. Chukwuemeka O. Ojukwu , the region's leader, authority to declare the region an independent republic. Gowon proclaimed a state of emergency, and, as a gesture to the Igbos, redivided Nigeria into 12 states (including one, the East-Central state, that comprised most of the Igbo people). However, on May 30, Ojukwu proclaimed the independent Republic of Biafra , and in July fighting broke out between Biafra and Nigeria.

Biafra made some advances early in the war, but soon federal forces gained the initiative. After much suffering, Biafra capitulated on Jan. 15, 1970, and the secession ended. The early 1970s were marked by reconstruction in areas that were formerly part of Biafra, by the gradual reintegration of the Igbo into national life, and by a slow return to civilian rule.

Modern Nigeria

Spurred by the booming petroleum industry, the Nigerian economy quickly recovered from the effects of civil war and made impressive advances. Nonetheless, inflation and high unemployment remained, and the oil boom led to government corruption and uneven distribution of wealth. Nigeria joined the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in 1971. The prolonged drought that desiccated the Sahel region of Africa in the early 1970s had a profound effect on N Nigeria, resulting in a migration of peoples into the less arid areas and into the cities of the south.

Gowon's regime was overthrown in 1975 by Gen. Murtala Muhammad and a group of officers who pledged a return to civilian rule. In the mid-1970s plans were approved for a new capital to be built at Abuja, a move that drained the national economy. Muhammad was assassinated in an attempted coup one year after taking office and succeeded by Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo . In a crisis brought on by rapidly falling oil revenues, the government restricted public opposition to the regime, controlled union activity and student movements, nationalized land, and increased oil industry regulation. Nigeria sought Western support under Obasanjo while supporting African nationalist movements.

In 1979 elections were held under a new constitution, bringing Alhaji Shehu Shagari to the presidency. Relations with the United States reached a new high in 1979 with a visit by President Jimmy Carter . The government expelled thousands of foreign laborers in 1983, citing social disturbances as the reason. The same year, Shagari was reelected president but overthrown after only a few months in office.

In 1985 a coup led by Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Babangida brought a new regime to power, along with the promise of a return to civilian rule. A new constitution was promulgated in 1990, which set national elections for 1992. Babangida annulled the results of that presidential election, claiming fraud. A new election in 1993 ended in the apparent presidential victory of Moshood Abiola, but Babangida again alleged fraud. Soon unrest led to Babangida's resignation. Ernest Shonekan, a civilian appointed as interim leader, was forced out after three months by Gen. Sani Abacha, a long-time ally of Babangida, who became president and banned all political institutions and labor unions. In 1994, Abiola was arrested and charged with treason.

In 1995, Abacha extended military rule for three more years, while proposing a program for a return to civilian rule after that period; his proposal was rejected by opposition leaders, but five political parties were established in 1996. The Abacha regime drew international condemnation in late 1995 when Ken Saro-Wiwa, a prominent writer, and eight other human-rights activists were executed; the trial was condemned by human-rights groups and led to Nigeria's suspension from the Commonwealth of Nations. Also in 1995, a number of army officers, including former head of state General Obasanjo, were arrested in connection with an alleged coup attempt. In 1996, Kudirat Abiola, an activist on behalf of her imprisoned husband, was murdered.

Abacha died suddenly in June, 1998, and was succeeded by Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, who immediately freed Obasanjo and other political prisoners. Riots followed the announcement that Abiola had also died unexpectedly in July, 1998, while in detention. Abubakar then announced an election timetable leading to a return to civilian rule within a year. All former political parties were disbanded and new ones formed. A series of local, state, and federal elections were held between Dec., 1998, and Feb., 1999, culminating in the presidential contest, won by General Obasanjo. The elections were generally deemed fair by international monitors. The People's Democratic party (PDP; the centrist party of General Obasanjo) dominated the elections; the other two leading parties were the Alliance for Democracy (a Yoruba party of the southwest, considered to be progressive), and the All People's party (a conservative party based in the north).

Following Obasanjo's inauguration on May 29, 1999, Nigeria was readmitted to the Commonwealth. The new president said he would combat past and present corruption in the Nigerian government and army and develop the impoverished Niger delta area. Although there was some progress economically, government and political corruption remained a problem. The country also was confronted with renewed ethnic and religious tension. The latter was in part a result of the institution of Islamic law in Nigeria's northern states, and led to violence that has been an ongoing problem since the return of civilian rule. Army lawlessness was a problem as well in some areas. A small success was achieved in Apr., 2002, when Abacha's family agreed to return $1 billion to the government; the government had sought an estimated $4 billion in looted Nigerian assets.

In Mar., 2003, the Ijaw, accusing the Itsekiri, government, and oil companies of economic and political collusion against them, began militia attacks against Itsekiri villages and oil facilities in the Niger delta, leading to a halt in the delta's oil production for several weeks and military intervention by the government. The presidential and earlier legislative elections in Apr., 2003, were won by President Obasanjo and his party, but the results were marred by vote rigging and some violence. The opposition protested the results, and unsuccessfully challenged the presidential election in court. The Ijaw-Itsekiri conflict continued into 2004, but a peace deal was reached in mid-June. The Ijaw backed out of the agreement, however, three weeks later. Christian-Muslim tensions also continued to be a problem in 2004, with violent attacks occurring in Kebbi, Kano, and Plateau states.

Obasanjo's government appeared to move more forcefully against government corruption in early 2005. Several government ministers were fired on corruption charges, and the senate speaker resigned after he was accused of taking bribes. A U.S. investigation targeted Nigeria's vice president the same year, and Obasanjo himself agreed to be investigated by the Nigerian financial crimes commission when he was accused of corruption by Orji Uzor Kalu, the governor of Abia and a target of a corruption investigation. Ijaw militants again threatened Niger delta oil operations in Sept., 2005, and several times in subsequent years, resulting in cuts in Nigeria's oil production as large as 25% at times. Since early 2006 the Niger delta area has seen an increase in kidnappings of foreign oil workers and attacks on oil operations; the resulting government focus on protecting oil facilities allowed criminal gangs to expand their influence in populated areas there. In Oct., 2005, the government reached an agreement to pay off much of its foreign debt at a discount, a process that was completed in Apr., 2006.

The end of 2005 and early 2006 saw increased contention over whether to amend the constitution to permit the president and state governors to run for more than two terms. The idea had been rejected in July, 2005, by a national political reform conference, but senators reviewing the conference's proposals indicated they supported an end to term limits. The change was opposed by Vice President Atiku Abubakar , but other PDP leaders who objected were removed from their party posts. A census—a contentious event because of ethnic and religious divisions in Nigeria—was taken in Mar., 2006, but the head count was marred by a lack of resources and a number of violent clashes, and many Nigerians were believed to have been left uncounted. In May the Nigerian legislature ended consideration of a third presidential term when it became clear that there was insufficient support for amending the constitution. Nigeria agreed in June, 2006, to turn over the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon after a two-year transition period; the region was finally ceded in Aug., 2008.

In July the vice president denied taking bribes from a U.S. congressman, but in September the president called for the Nigerian senate to remove the vice president from office for fraud, based on an investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The senate agreed to investigate the charges, and the PDP suspended the vice president, blocking him from seeking the party's presidential nomination. Abubakar counteraccused Obasanjo of corruption. The EFCC was also investigating most of Nigeria's state governors, but the commission itself was tainted by charges that it was used for political retaliation by Obasanjo and his allies. Several state governors were impeached by legally unsound proceedings, moves that were seen as an attempt by Obasanjo to tighten his control prior to the 2007 presidential election.

When the vice president accepted (Dec., 2006) the presidential nomination of a group of opposition parties, the president accused him of technically resigning and sought to have him removed, an action Abubakar challenged in court; the government backed down the following month, and the courts later sided with Abubakar. In Jan., 2007, the results of the 2006 census were released, and they proved as divisive as previous Nigerian censuses. The census showed that the largely Muslim north had more inhabitants than the south, and many southern political leaders vehemently rejected the results.

In February, the EFCC declared Abubakar and more than 130 other candidates for the April elections unfit due to corruption, and the election commission barred those candidates from running. Abubakar fought the move in court, but the ruling was not overturned until days before the presidential election. The state elections were marred by widespread and blatant vote fraud and intimidation, but the election commission certified nearly all the results, handing gubernatorial victories to the PDP in 27 states. In the presidential election, Umaru Yar'Adua , the relatively unknown governor of Katsina state who was hand-picked by Obasanjo to be the PDP candidate, was declared the winner with 70% of the vote, but fraud and intimidation were so blatant that EU observers called the election a "charade" and the president was forced to admit it was "flawed." Nonetheless, Yar'Adua's inauguration (May) marked the first transition of power between two elected civilian presidents in Nigeria's post-colonial history.

Yar'Adua subsequently moved to reorganize and reform the national petroleum company, but those efforts stalled, as did action to fight government corruption. The federal government did not, however, interfere with challenges in the courts to state elections. In Dec., 2008, challenges in the courts to Yar'Adua's election came to an end when the supreme court ruled that opposition lawyers had not provided sufficient evidence to annul the vote.

In Feb., 2009, KBR, a U.S. company, pleaded guilty in U.S. court to giving $180 million in bribes to Nigerian officials to obtain a contract to build a liquefied natural gas plant. A significant army offensive against Niger delta militants that began in May, 2009, provoked an increased round of attacks against oil facilities, particularly pipelines. At the same time, however, Yar'Adua offered (June) amnesty to militants who lay down their weapons by Oct. 4, and many militants ultimately accepted the amnesty, though some did not. Subsequent slow progress by the government led to increased tensions in 2010. In July, 2009, Boko Haram, an extremist Islamist sect, launched attacks against the government in NE Nigeria after several leaders were arrested; the subsequent fighting was especially fierce in Maiduguri, where the group's headquarters was destroyed and some 700 died. The group began a new series of attacks in Sept., 2010, that continued throughout 2011.

The president traveled to Saudi Arabia in Nov., 2009, to seek medical treatment. As his stay there prolonged into 2010 many prominent Nigerians called for executive powers to be transferred on an interim basis to the vice president, Goodluck Jonathan , but the president did not initiate the constitutional process necessary for it to happen. In Feb., 2010, the National Assembly unanimously voted to make Jonathan acting president, but the lack of a formal letter from the president notifiying the Assembly of his absence raised constitutional issues. Jonathan remained acting president after Yar'Adua returned later in the month, and succeeded him as president when Yar'Adua died in May.

Jonathan's subsequent decision to run for a presidential term in his own right threatened to split the PDP, which had alternated fielding northern and southern presidential candidates. In Dec., 2010, however, he won the support of most of the state governors who were members of the PDP, and the following month the PDP nominated him for the presidency. In Sept., 2010, one faction of Niger delta militants announced an end to their cease-fire, and the group subsequently set off car bombs in Abuja during an independence day parade on October 1.

The Apr., 2011, elections were won by Jonathan and the PDP. Jonathan won 57% of the vote, but overwhelmingly majorities in a number of southern states led to charges of vote rigging. The opposition candidates challenged the results, and in some northern states, where support for the opposition was strong, there were riots after the results were announced. International observers, however, generally described the presidential election as the country's freest and fairest in many years. In the National Assembly elections, the PDP won with a reduced majority in both houses, and it also lost control of a number of governorships in the subsequent gubernatorial elections.

Bibliography

See S. J. Hogben and A. H. M. Kirk-Greene, The Emirates of Northern Nigeria (1966); R. K. Udo, Geographical Regions of Nigeria (1970); C. K. Eicher and C. Liedholm, ed., Growth and Development of the Nigerian Economy (1970); S. K. Painter-Brick, Nigerian Politics and Military Rule: Prelude to Civil War (1970); T. Hodgkin, ed., Nigerian Perspectives (2d ed. 1975); M. Crowder, The Story of Nigeria (4th ed. 1978); A. H. M. Kirk-Greene and D. Rimmer, Nigeria Since 1970 (1981); J. O. Irukwu, Nigeria at the Crossroads (1983); R. Olaniyan, Nigerian History and Culture (1984); T. Falola, The Rise and Fall of Nigeria's Second Republic, 1979–1984 (1985).

Nigeria

Nigeria is a multitribal, multilingual, and, consequently, multicultural country in the West African subregion. It occupies an area of 923,770 square kilometers with an estimated population of more than 100 million people. The capital of Nigeria is Abuja; the official language is English. Nigerians speak more than 300 languages and dialects; the major ones are Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba. Nigeria has about equal numbers of Christians and Muslims (about 45% of each). The remaining 10 percent of the population follows traditional religions or are atheist and freethinkers.

Families in Nigeria

A family, which is usually made up of people who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption, is very important to most Nigerians. There are two major family types; the nuclear family, which is made up of one man, his wife, and their unmarried children, and the extended family, which is usually made up of a series of nuclear families. Culturally, most Nigerian cultural groups practice patrilineal descent, have patriarchal authority, have patrilocal rule of residence, and are generally patricentric in outlook. The children are socialized with this arrangement in mind, and female children are consciously socialized to serve and be subordinate to males. This hierarchical structure has sometimes led to dissolution of marriages on the grounds of the birth of only or mostly female children (Omokhodion 1996).

In Nigeria, having many children is fashionable and is a status symbol. For example, although a large family brings a greater economic burden, many families in the eastern part of Nigeria have ten or more children. Thus, the national fertility rate was estimated at 6.31 children per woman in 1995. The birth rate was 43.26 births per 1,000 people, while the death rate was 12 deaths per 1,000 population. However, the infant mortality rate was 72.6 deaths per 1,000 live births due to the poor medical facilities and the poverty of most Nigerians. This rate is one of the highest in the world and had a negative influence on the birth rate. The maternal mortality rate is also high.

A unique feature of the Nigerian family is the existence of a loose matrilineage and use of various terms to describe households and unions. For example, some households are headed by women. This may be the result of the women being widowed or divorced. The women might also be out-side wives. This term describes women who function as wives to married men who live with their original wives and have extra wives outside their homes. These men are mobile husbands who move among their various partners, spending nights, having sex with their partners, and supporting them financially. These outside wives use the surname of their "husbands," and in many cases, are known to the man's original wife. Those who are not part of the culture may find this confusing, but the practitioners seem to manage well. The Nigerian legal system has improvised ways of accommodating such women and their children. In many cultures in Nigeria, there is no such status as illegitimate child.

Nigerian families are also distinctive in their loose use of the word uncle when referring to all older male relatives and sometimes nonrelatives as well. Also, all older female relatives and nonrelatives may be referred to as "aunty." Similarly, women above the age of forty-five are loosely called "mommy," while men who are about fifty or older are loosely called "daddy." People of greater social status, regardless of age, are addressed as sir or madam. This may be based on the traditional cultural deference to elders or superiors, which is very important to most Nigerian cultures.

The Yorubas of southwestern Nigeria practice bilateral descent. Thus, many of the current traditional rulers (Obas) have ascended the throne from their mother's lineage. In most parts of Nigeria, family linkage and consanguinity are very important. Thus, people have fourth, fifth, sixth, or even seventh cousins. They may refer to people from their village or town as brothers or sisters and create associations to perpetuate the linkage.

As a result of urbanization and migration and associated economic factors, however, the nuclear family is gradually becoming the dominant family type. It functions slightly differently from the typical nuclear family in Western countries. This may be the result of traces of the extended family system of being "our brothers' keepers."

Marriages in Nigeria

Two major types of marriage exist in Nigeria: monogamy, a marriage of one man to one woman, and polygyny, a marriage of one man to two or more wives. In most cultural groups in Nigeria, traditional marriage is usually an arrangement between two families as opposed to an arrangement between two individuals. Accordingly, there is pressure on the bride and bridegroom to make the marriage work as any problem will usually affect both families and strain the otherwise cordial relationship between them. In most Nigerian cultures, the man usually pays the dowry or bride-price and is thus considered the head of the family. Adultery is acceptable for men, but forbidden for women. Marriage ceremonies vary among Nigerian cultures.

Idoma marriage. The Idoma people live in central Nigeria, in the Benue State. The myth of their origin states that they are descended from the Zulu tribe of South Africa. They are mainly warriors. Some of their subgroups are the Adors, Otupas, Ogbanibos, Apas, Ofokanus and Owukpas. Marriage in Idoma land is considered a lifelong state, although divorce is possible on the grounds of adultery or other concrete reasons. When an Idoma man is at least twenty-five years old and has the financial and physical capacity to maintain a wife and children, he searches for and finds a woman of his choice, who is at least eighteen years old. He reports his findings to his family, which then chooses a go-between, a person who is familiar with the girl's family. The go-between investigates the family of the prospective bride to ascertain that the family has no history of mental disease, epilepsy, or similar problems. If the result of this investigation is positive, the prospective groom's family visits the woman's family with gifts of kola nut and hot drinks. After the first visit, another visit is scheduled for the woman to meet her future husband, after which a final visit is scheduled for the future groom and his family to pay the bride-price and offer other gifts. If the woman refuses to marry the man after these gifts have been provided, the groom's family keeps them (Omokhodion 1998).

On the wedding day, in addition to the bride-price, the groom must pay a dowry first to the bride's mother and then another dowry to the father; this involves a significant amount of bargaining. Also every member of the bride's mother's family must be given money, with the groom's family determining the amount. The bride's age group and her more distant relatives also are given money, with the amount varying with level of the bride's education and productivity. Then the groom's family gives the bride a rooster and some money. If she accepts these gifts and gives them to her mother, she indicates her acceptance of the groom, but if she refuses, she signifies her refusal. If she accepts him, she is showered with gifts and money, and the two families eat and drink together. Before the bride is finally handed over to her husband, however, her age group will pose as a mock barrier to those who want to take her and extort money from the anxious groom's family. The bride's mother buys her cooking utensils and food because she is not expected to go to the market for the first five market days after her marriage. At the end of the eating and drinking, the wife is finally handed over to her husband's family. (Omokhodion 1998).

Ideally the bride should be a virgin at marriage, which brings pride and joy to her family. If she is found not to be a virgin, she is taken to the husband's family' ancestral shrine for cleansing. After this the Ije is put on her to invoke fertility on her. This marks the beginning of married life among the Idoma tribe.

Marriage in Okrika land. Okrika is located in the eastern part of the Niger Delta of Nigeria, in the Rivers State. The Okrika clan is made up of nine major towns and more than fifteen villages.The fifteen villages are known as Iwoama (new towns). Okrika is the largest town with the largest population and is the administrative and traditional headquarters of the clan. In the Wakirike area, there are two main types of marriages—the Ya or Iyaye and the Igwa.

The Ya marriage ceremony involves certain customary functions that precede the consummation of the marriage. Here the bride and groom must come from the same tribe. When the husband is ready, members of the family assemble for the essential marriage rites, including the tying of the knot. The man is required to produce three to five pieces of kano cloth or Ikpo, one piece of real India cloth, or injiri, four yards of raffia palm cloth sewn together (okuru), and another separate yard of the same material. If the husband is wealthy, he adds additional kinds of cloth. He also provides three or four large pots of palm wine and twenty-two or twenty-four manila. These offerings are placed in the shrine of the family ancestors, and an elderly person in the family takes up the single yard of raffia cloth and ties the knot. The husband and wife stand before the shrine, side by side. The elder then ties the raffia cloth round the waist of the wife seven times, each time uttering some words that invoke blessings on the couple. Palm wine is poured into a drinking cup, and the bride and groom drink from it simultaneously. The knot has thus been tied, and divorce becomes virtually impossible. The single yard of raffia cloth is the essential thing to make the marriage binding. In case of unavoidable divorce as aresult of adultery on the woman's part, the parents of the wife are bound to return double the cumulative expenses of the husband (Ikiriko 1984).

The second system, Igwa, means mixed; the woman and the man may marry even though they are from different families. A woman married under the Ya system can be married under Igwa if the Ya husband is not living with her as husband and wife under the same roof. All offspring of this second marriage belong not to the biological father but to the Ya husband, who by custom is regarded as their legal father. If the woman has not been previously married to any man under the Ya system, children from the Igwa marriage belong either to the lawful husband of the wife's mother or to her brothers. However, the once unchangeable custom of the possession of children born under the Igwa system of marriage is relaxing under the pressure of modern times. Many adult men and young people engage in Igwa marriage if their previous marriage produced no children (Omokhodion 1998).

Marriage among the Ibos. The Ibos are a very class-conscious group. They have a caste system and encourage endogamy. In the Ibo society, the castes include the Nwadiani, who are the upper caste of freeborn and land owners, and the Osu, who are the lower caste and descendants of former slaves. In the past, the Osu were used in human sacrifices. (Though the Osus are no longer slaves, yet they are still discriminated against by the free-born, who will usually oppose any of their children marrying an Osu.)

Within the Nwadiani are three groups:

1. The freeborn, who are able to trace their lineage to the founder of a segment of the community.
2. The Omoru, whose ancestors came from elsewhere to settle and become attached to the founder of the community. Their descendants are accepted as full members of the village or town because of their freeborn status in their place of origin.
3. The descendants of the autonomous groups who lived in the area before the founders of the state arrived and incorporated them into the structure of the community, which they established.

Intermarriage among Nwadiani has united these three categories in a closely knit kinship system. All the lineages in the village were believed to have descended from one ancestor or the other. Kinship links were sometimes invoked to create special relationships with neighboring village groups or village. Owing to their close kinship ties, men had to find their wives outside the village. One kind of link is between villages and village groups. Villages in a group, as well as neighboring villages, were linked by bonds forged by marriage alliances.

Endogamous marriage seemed to have served to perpetuate the Osu status, which is inferior. At Oguta, Osomari, Onitsha, and Abo, Osu could only marry an Osu because of their outcast status. They are thus despised by the freeborn. This discrimination was carried further at Osamari where the Osu class had their exclusive residential quarters (ebo) in each division. This also gave the servile quarters a sense of corporate solidarity in opposition to the "Freeborn" quarters. Through the intermarriage between members of different Ogbe, Ebo and the Osu of a community they have developed a web of kinship similar to that, which characterizes the Nwadiani. However, permitted intermarriage between Osu and Nwadianins and children born of such mixed marriages are allowed to have the status of Nwadiani. (Note that though this caste system is historical, the descendants of these castes have inherited their ancestors' classes and are therefore stratified along that line even today.)

Marriage ceremonies in traditional Ibo society are elaborate affairs celebrated with much fanfare and merriment. The couple must have had some period of courtship during which the prospective groom informs his parents of his intention to take a woman of a certain village as wife. The parent of his intended wife must be known to his parents, and the courtship requires the prospective bride to pay at least one courtesy call on her potential inlaws to enable them to get to know her. After getting acquainted with the woman, the parents of the bridegroom will give their approval if they are satisfied that their prospective daughter-in-law has an unblemished reputation. Such courtships usually become public knowledge. The day of the marriage must be mutually agreed upon by both families (Omokhodion 1998).

On the day of marriage, the bride proceeds to her future spouse's village, accompanied by her mother, many girls of her own age, and her mother's female friends. An Ibo bride may also carry with her a "bride's dowry," which usually consists of kitchen utensils, mortar, palm oil, cassava, locust beans, and other condiments. The bride's dowry is usually contributed by her parents, their friends, and her own friends. The bridegroom and the two families, including friends and well-wishers, sit in their compound to eagerly await the arrival of the bride. When she comes, several young, unmarried women of the host village attend to her as a sign of welcome. An Ibo bride is usually colorfully decorated and given a beauty mark and other embellishments to set her apart. Jigida, which are waist beads of different colors (as many as fifteen or eighteen), adorn her waist. The young women dance in a circle around her, while her future husband and in-laws occasionally break through the circle one or two at a time and stick money on her forehead. As the money falls to the ground, one of the young women picks it up for her. As she dances, the jigida that covers her waist and the upper part of her buttocks jingle. After the feasting, the mother and others from her village return home, while the bride remains in her husband's village.

Marriage in the Hausa culture. The Hausas live in northern Nigeria. They are also found in Ghana, Togo, and Benin. The Hausas generally attach great importance to premarital chastity. A Hausa husband who discovers that the girl he has married is not a virgin will proclaim her shame to the entire town by breaking a pot outside his house. Among most Fulani, and other subtribes of the Hausa, custom forbids sexual intercourse between young people who are betrothed. Other tribes, however, view premarital intercourse as a kind of trial marriage. The Piri suitor cohabits with his fiancée for a period of four months in her mother's compound. Some of them may bear children before marriage, depending on the length of courtship. The young men are usually happy to marry these young mothers. Among tribes who accept premarital sex, no stigma is attached to the young woman girl who bears a child before marriage. The child is claimed by the girl's family, except where the father of the child is the girl's betrothed and has paid the bride-price in full. Kona boys and girls who are betrothed may cohabit. If the girl conceives, the boy has to make additional payments to her father, presumably on the ground that her fertility has been proven.

Some tribes practice the custom of placing young women under the care of their betrothed before they reach marriageable age; this is common among the Kona, Margi, Mumuye, and Mumbake, as well as the Mosi tribe. The objective appears to be twofold (Omokhodion 1996, 1998). First, the responsibility for the girl's upbringing and chastity is thrown on the fiancé's family, and second, the appropriation of the girl by her betrothed is clearly signified. As a result of pre-nuptial relations, a man can repudiate his betrothal at any time without the payment of damages in Hausaland.

Types of marriages in Hausaland. The Hausas practice various kinds of marriage. They include junior levirate marriage, whereby a younger brother may marry his late senior brother's wife or wives, and sororate marriage, whereby a man may marry his late wife's sister. Other types of marriage in Hausaland include cousin marriage known as auren zumunta, whereby a man or woman may marry anyone from a second cousin onward. Polygyny is also very popular, while many of the women, especially among the Muslims, are kept in the harems. The Hausas also practice a special type of polyandry that is a counterpart of concubinage. Among the Fulani pagan nomads, "wife lending" to a husband's brother or son is regarded as an act of reciprocal hospitality. The Munshi, Amgula, Yergurn, Rukuba, and Lungu practice marriage by "wife abduction." Other types of marriages in Hausaland include "marriage by purchase" (women are seen as transferable property) and "marriage by exchange" (one man gives his sister or daughter to a friend for a wife in exchange for a wife for himself). Marriage can also be by "capture," in most cases with the girl's consent, or by elopement.

Marriage Ceremony

If a man desires to marry a woman who is a virgin, he will first ask her. If she agrees, he goes to her father, and if he gives his consent, the prospective husband gives the father money. This money is divided into two parts, with half going to the girl's mother and half to her father. This is the preliminary part of the marriage ceremony.

About two or three months later, if the woman is still willing to marry, the groom may go to her father and discuss the bride-price with him. Once he knows the amount, he then tries to gather the money, which is usually handed over to the bride's father as soon as it is ready. The father then passes the money to the girl's mother to buy clothes and food for the marriage feast, including the white cloth that the bride will wear during the marriage ceremony. Also, part of the money will be used to purchase the food that the bride will eat after marriage for at least two weeks.

For about five to seven days after the ceremony, the bride remains in her father's house. She wears a white cloth and covers up her face, while her fingers are printed with henna. Usually, other young women come to play with her, while she is taught various homemaking skills. These girls usually eat food provided by the bride's father at the husband's expense. After about seven days, her relatives come to her house and take her to her husband's house, where the husband's friend (grooms men) try to get her to enter the house. Traditionally, she is supposed to refuse. At this stage, some money is usually given to the bridesmaids while a struggle ensues, with some pushing the bride while others pull her until she eventually enters her husband's house. All the women usually enter with her, singing, clapping, and dancing. At this stage the bridegroom's friends enter the house and distribute money to the dancing young women, who then spend some nights with the bride before returning home.

While the above is taking place, the bridegroom is not usually there, but in his best man's house. He only returns to his own house after five or seven days. If he decides to come home before this time, the bridesmaids will drive him away, but from the sixth day he can come and give the bridesmaids money and urge them to return to their homes, thus marking the end of the marriage ceremonies. Thereafter, the newly married couple will be free to live together as husband and wife (Omokhodion 1998).

Conclusion

The cultural diversity, richness, and distinctive qualities of Nigerian society are reflected in the various family types within the country. Culturally, Nigerian society is patrilineal, and the average man is socialized to have an inflated image of himself and other men. The desirability and permanence of marriage is the ideal of all the cultural groups in Nigeria. The payment of at least token dowry or bride-price is a cultural prescription cherished by most Nigerian cultural groups because it depicts the value of a properly socialized wife and conveys respect and appreciation for her family. Thus, marriage and family types in Nigeria are one major area of cultural similarity among the more than 300 diverse tribes and cultural groups that make up Nigeria.

See also:Kinship; Yoruba Families

Bibliography

ikiriko, i. okrika. (1984). okrika people. oragold publishers porthacort, nigeria.

omokhodion, j. o. (1996). sociology of education: anafrican experience. lagos, nigeria: tropical publications.

omokhodion, j. o (1998). socialization in some nigeriancommunities: readings in sociology of education. lagos, nigeria: john odionuwa publishers.

JULIA O. OMOKHODION

Nigeria

Recipes

1 GEOGRAPHIC SETTING AND ENVIRONMENT

The name Nigeria is taken from the Niger River, which plays an important part in Nigerian lives. Not only is it a transportation highway, it is an excellent source of fish, including carp, Nile perch, and catfish. It also provides the water needed to cultivate crops.

Nigeria is located on the west coast of Africa at the inner corner of the Gulf of Guinea (part of the Atlantic Ocean). Its land area is comparable to being about twice the size of California.

An area of mangrove (a type of tropical tree) swamp forest lines the coast of Nigeria. Beyond the forest lies a wide tropical forest, then a plateau that leads to the Shebshi Mountains (on the eastern side of the country). The extreme north borders on the Sahara Desert.

Many different climates mirror the varied land regions, although Nigeria is mostly in a tropical zone. On the coast, it is very humid, and the nights are hot. Inland there is a wet season from April to October and a dry season from November to March.

2 HISTORY AND FOOD

Trade was largely responsible for changing the flavors of African cuisine. Before trading between continents began, main staples included rice, millet (a type of grain), and lentils. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach Nigeria. There, they established a slave trade center around the 1400s. Portuguese explorers and traders introduced cassava to western Africa (including present-day Nigeria) through their trade with the African coasts and nearby islands. British, Dutch, and other European traders later competed for control of the trade. By the 1700s, the British were the main traders of slaves on the Nigerian coast.

European explorers and traders introduced several food staples to western Africa, such as beans, cassava, and maize. These foods were introduced to the explorers while on journeys to America; they, in turn, brought the foods to western Africa. Asian seasonings such as pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg were also brought back, and are still used to flavor dishes.

3 FOODS OF THE NIGERIANS

Nigeria is one of the world's most ethnically diverse countries. The Hausa and Yoruba make up around 21 percent of the population; the Igbo/Ibo, 18 percent; the Fulani, around 11 percent; and Ibibio, 5 percent. Various other groups make up the remaining 23 percent.

Nigeria has such a variety of people and cultures that it is difficult to pick one national dish. Each area has its own regional favorite that depends on customs, tradition, and religion. The different foods available also depend on the season: the "hungry season" is before the rains arrive in March, and the "season of surplus" follows the harvest in October and November. Fruits, however, are enjoyed year-round. A large part of Nigeria lies in the tropics, where many fruits are available. Some of the popular fruits are oranges, melons, grapefruits, limes, mangoes, bananas, and pineapples.

People of the northern region (mostly Muslim, whose beliefs prohibit eating pork) have diets based on beans, sorghum (a type of grain), and brown rice. The Hausa people of this region also like to eat meat in the form of tsere or suya (kebabs, which are chunks of roasted, skewered meat). Muslims love to drink tea, making coffeehouses popular places to socialize.

The people from the eastern part of Nigeria, mostly Igbo/Ibo, eat gari (cassava powder) dumplings, pumpkins, and yams. Yams are usually eaten in place of potatoes and are an important part of the Nigerian diet. However, African yams are different than Western yams. They are pale, barely sweet, and are not commonly found in United States supermarkets.

Isu (Spiced Boiled Yams)

Ingredients

• 2 pounds yams, peeled and thickly sliced (regular yams can be used in place of African yams)
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 4 Tablespoons butter, melted
• Cayenne pepper, to taste

Procedure

1. Place the yams in a large saucepan and add enough water to cover them.
2. Add the salt, garlic clove, and cinnamon. Bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium and cook until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Drain the yams and remove the garlic clove and discard it.
5. Place the yams on a platter and drizzle the butter over the top.
6. Sprinkle with a little cayenne pepper (be careful, cayenne pepper tastes very hot) and serve.

The Yoruba people of the southwest and central areas eat gari with local varieties of okro (okra) and spinach in stews or soups. They also like to eat mashed yams or mashed cassava.

Near the coast of the Gulf of Guinea, Nigerians prefer eating seafood stews (made with fish, shrimp, crab, and lobster), yams, rice, and vegetables. Fish is important to the Nigerian diet since it is one of only a few sources of protein. A common way coastal Nigerians prepare fish is to make a marinade of ginger, tomatoes, and cayenne pepper, and then cook the fish in peanut oil. Efo (stews) are also popular.

Nigerian Stew

Ingredients

• 2 pounds fish fillets, thinly sliced (although it won't be authentic Nigerian, chicken may be substituted for fish)
• Salt, to taste
• Pinch of thyme
• ¼ cup red bell pepper, minced
• ¾ cup tomato paste (6-ounce can)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 cups water
• ¼ cup peanut or vegetable oil
• 1 chicken bouillon cube

Procedure

1. Season fish fillets with salt and thyme. Set aside.
2. Place the pepper, tomato paste, onion, and water in a large pot.
3. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat.
4. Add the oil and bouillon cube. Simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
5. Add the seasoned fish fillets and simmer for 10 minutes. (If using chicken, simmer for 20 minutes.) Serve with rice.

Serves at least 8.

People living in the cities tend to buy their food from "chop bars" (bars that sell food), street vendors, hawkers (peddlers who shout what they are selling), or from restaurants. They may purchase dishes such as ukwaka, a steamed pudding made from corn and ripe plantains, and moin-moin, a steamed cake of ground dried beans and fish. These dishes may be served with jollof rice (a spicy tomato-based rice), cassava, yams, okro, beans, plantains, or kebabs.

Nigerian stews, such as ikokore (made with fish and yams), are typically spicy and eaten with rice, yams, cassava, and corn. Peppers and chilies are used regularly in dishes and as a relish. A Yoruba Proverb says, "The man that eats no pepper is weak, pepper is the staff of life..."

4 FOOD FOR RELIGIOUS AND HOLIDAY CELEBRATIONS

Nigerians practice traditional African religious beliefs in addition to various branches of Islam and Christianity. Muslims make up 45 percent of the population. Muslim and Christian holidays include the end of Ramadan (a month of fasting), Easter, Good Friday, and Christmas. Nigerians return to their villages for Christmas to be with their families. In the afternoon, children open gifts and go from house to house, singing carols and hoping for candy and cookies. A Christmas feast may include obe didin (roasted goat), jollof rice with chicken stew, moin-moin, iyan (pounded yams), and chopped liver.

Jollof Rice

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1½ cups cooked rice
• 1 green chili, seeded and chopped (green pepper can be substituted)
• 1 cup meat or vegetable stock

Procedure

1. Cook the rice according to package directions.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion until soft, but not browned.
3. Add the tomato paste and chili and cook on medium heat while stirring, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the rice and continue stirring.
5. Add the stock and bring the mixture to a boil.
6. Reduce heat to medium and cook until almost all of the stock has evaporated. Serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Iyan (Pounded Yams)

African yams are not readily available elsewhere in the world, so regular yams may be substituted.

Ingredients

• 4 yams, peeled (canned yams may be substituted, if necessary)
• Water
• Salt, to taste

Procedure

1. Rinse the yams in water and slice them into chunks. Place chunks in a large pot or saucepan. If substituting canned yams, pour the contents of the can into a saucepan, but do not add additional water.
2. Bring to a boil and cook, uncovered, about 20 minutes (10 minutes for canned yams), or until soft enough that a fork is easily inserted.
3. Drain the yams and place them into a blender (or mash by hand). Blend until smooth.
4. Season with salt and serve with soup or stew.

Serves 6.

Besides religious holidays, there are many cultural festivals throughout the year. The Argungu Fish and Cultural Festival is held on the banks of the River Sokoto. Several months before the festival, the River Sokoto is dammed (blocked at a certain point). When the celebration begins, hundreds of fishermen jump into the river at once to scare the fish into the air and into waiting nets.

Igbo Day is a festival of Iri-ji, which means, "new-yam eating." It is held by the Igbo people in Nigeria in August and is a day to celebrate the end of the cultivation season. The oldest man in the community performs the solemn ritual of eating the first new yam. This ritual is meant to express the community's appreciation to the gods for making the harvest of farm crops possible. Only yams are served at the festival.

5 MEALTIME CUSTOMS

Many Nigerians rise as early as 5 a.m., when a small breakfast is eaten to begin their day. Breakfast usually consists of rice and mangoes, or stewed soybeans. Dodo (fried plantains) is a common dish, as well as leftovers from the night before.

Lunch is eaten around 11 a.m. and considered the most important meal of the day. A late dinner may be served with dishes similar to those offered at lunch. Most Nigerian meals are made up of one course and are cooked outside over an open fire (gas and kerosene stoves are sometimes used, but the two fuels are very expensive for many Nigerians). Dishes such asefo (stew) or moin-moin may be served at lunch. Soups and stews are common lunchtime foods, eaten with hands cupped like a spoon. Many Nigerians only use their right hand. In southern Nigeria, two favorite soups are egusi soup and palm nut soup. Egusi is a spicy yellow soup made with meat, red chilies, ground dried shrimp, and greens. Palm nut soup is a stew made with meat, chilies, tomatoes, onions, and palm nut oil.

Efo (Greens Stew)

Ingredients

• 1 pound collard greens or spinach
• 1 can (8-ounce) tomato paste
• 1 can (8-ounce) tomato puree
• 1 large onion, diced
• l Tablespoon vegetable oil

Procedure

1. Wash the greens and tear into small pieces.
2. In a large pot or saucepan, place the greens in water and add the oil.
3. Boil greens until tender.
4. Add tomato paste, tomato puree, and diced onion.
5. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until vegetables are tender. Serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Lunch and evening meals are typically served on large communal plates and shared among children according to their gender and age. Young children may eat from a dish with their mother, but when they reach the age of seven or eight, the boys and girls are separated and meals are eaten with members of the same sex.

Dodo (Fried Plantains)

Plantains are slightly larger than bananas and can be found in most supermarkets. When ripe, their skins are yellowish green or yellow (or black if extremely ripe). Plantains do not taste sweet, like yellow bananas.

Ingredients

• 4 ripe plantains, peeled and sliced
• Vegetable oil, for frying
• Salt, to taste

Procedure

1. Heat oil in a large frying pan.
2. Place the sliced plantains in the frying pan and fry, turning as needed, until golden brown.
3. Drain on paper towels.
4. Season with salt and serve hot or warm.

Nigerians enjoy many different snacks that are eaten throughout the day. Some examples are fried yam chips, boiled groundnuts, and meat pastries. Akara, which is a puffy, deep-fried cake made with black-eyes peas, is sometimes eaten with chili dip. Other snacks are kulikui (small deep-fried balls of peanut paste), suya, a hot and spicy kebab, and a few sweets like chinchin (fried pastries in strips). Snack foods are an important part of a child's diet. Fresh fruits (mangoes are a favorite to many), fried bean cakes, cookies, or candy are commonly sold by street vendors. Snacks provide an opportunity for children to eat on their own, without having to share with siblings.

Chinchin

Ingredients

• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup butter or margarine
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ cup water
• ½ cup milk (or an additional cup of water)
• Sugar
• Vegetable oil, for frying

Procedure

1. Mix all the ingredients together (except oil) to form a dough.
2. Sprinkle some flour on a cutting board or other flat surface. Knead the dough until smooth (about 10 minutes).
3. Tear off a piece of dough and flatten it (about ½-inch thick) on the cutting board.
4. Cut the dough into 1-inch squares.
5. Pour some sugar in a paper bag (to coat the chinchin after it is fried).
6. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
7. Place a few of the squares into the oil and fry until golden brown.
8. Place the fried chinchin on a paper towel for a few seconds to soak up the extra oil (do not cool).
9. Place the chinchin into the bag of sugar and shake to coat all sides. Serve.

Makes about three dozen.

6 POLITICS, ECONOMICS, AND NUTRITION

About 8 percent of the population of Nigeria are classified as undernourished by the World Bank. This means they do not receive adequate nutrition in their diet. Of children under the age of five, about 39 percent are underweight, and over 39 percent are stunted (short for their age).

Many families are fairly self-sufficient where food is concerned. They harvest their own food crops, such as yams, cassava, corn, and millet.

7 FURTHER STUDY

Books

DeWitt, Dave. Flavors of Africa: Spicy African Cooking. Rocklin, CA: Prima Publishing, 1998.

Hafner, Dorinda. A Taste of Africa. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press, 1993.

Imoisi, Janice. Cooking Nigerian Style: Delicious African Recipes. Houston, TX: Gayle Publishing., 2000.

Nason, Ian. Enjoy Nigeria: A Travel Guide. Ibadan: Spectrum Books Ltd., 1991.

West Africa. Melbourne, Oakland, CA: Lonely Planet Publications, 1999.

Web Sites

IWon.com. [Online] Available http://www.iwon.com/home/food_n_drink/globaldest_overview/0,15463,801,00.html (accessed April 12, 2001).

Emeagwali.com. [Online] Available http://emeagwali.com/nigeria/cuisine/nigerian-jollofrice.html (accessed April 12, 2001).

Recipes from Nigeria. [Online] Available http://www.siftthru.com/recipes_from_nigeria.htm (accessed August 17, 2001).

Nigeria A large West African country consisting of a federation of 21 states, with the highest population (95 million) of any African country.

Physical

Nigeria has a southward-facing coast and is bounded by Benin on the west, Niger and Chad on the north, and Cameroon on the east. The sandy coast is bordered by mangrove swamp, inland of which there is a low plain with tropical rainforest spreading up the valleys of the Niger to the north-west and the Benue to the east.

Economy

Oil accounts for 97.9% of Nigeria's exports (1992); other minerals include abundant supplies of natural gas, iron ore, coal, lead, and zinc. Heavy investment in petroleum and other industries such as steel, cement, and vehicles was halted by the drop in world oil prices in the mid-1980s, but led to a massive foreign debt ($41 billion in 1989) and the neglect of agriculture. IMF austerity measures were achieving some degree of success by the early 1990s, but political instability during the mid-1990s has affected the economy badly.

History

The earliest known culture in Nigeria was the Nok culture, which existed from about the 6th century BC to the third century AD. Many different peoples have moved into the region; there are over 250 ethnic groups still living in Nigeria. The kingdom of KANEM-BORNU rose during the 11th century and fell during the 14th century. Islam was introduced to the area during the 13th century. The Portuguese arrived in the 15th century and established a slave trade, supported by the people of the kingdom of BENIN. The British were involved in the slave trade by the 17th century. The HAUSA people broke away from the SONGHAY kingdom and began to mingle with the nomadic FULANI, some of whom settled in Hausa towns. In the early 19th century a Fulani empire emerged. The kingdom of Benin and the YORUBA empire of Oyo occupied southern Nigeria.

The island of Lagos was a centre for the slave trade when this was banned by the British in 1807. The British had to use military force to stop the slave ships. In 1851 the British attacked and burnt the city of Lagos and ten years later bought it from King Do-sunmu, administering it first from Free-town, Sierra Leone, and then from the Gold Coast (Ghana), until in 1886 a separate protectorate (later colony) of Lagos was formed. Explorers worked their way inland, but until the discovery of quinine (1854) to provide protection against malaria, the region remained known as ‘the white man's grave’. During the second half of the 19th century trading companies were established, forming the Royal Niger Company in 1886, which was then taken over by the British Colonial Office to become the Niger Coast protectorate in 1893. Following the conquest of the kingdom of Benin, this became the protectorate of Southern Nigeria (1900). The protectorate of Northern Nigeria was proclaimed in 1900. In 1906 the colony of Lagos was absorbed into the southern protectorate and in 1914 the two protectorates were merged to form the largest British colony in Africa, which, under its governor Frederick Lugard, was administered indirectly by retaining the powers of the chiefs and emirs of its 150 or more tribes. In Northern Nigeria Muslim chiefs of the Fulani tribes maintained a conservative rule over the majority of the country's Hausa population. In the West, the Yoruba dominated; the Ibo tribe was centred in the East.

Under the constitution of 1954 a federation of Nigeria was created, consisting of three regions: Northern, Eastern, and Western, together with the trust territory of Cameroons and the federal territory of Lagos. In 1960 the federation became an independent nation within the COMMONWEALTH OF NATIONS, and in 1963 a republic. In 1967 the regions were replaced by twelve states, further divided in 1976 into nineteen states. Oil was discovered off Port Harcourt and a movement for Ibo independence began. In January 1966 a group of Ibo army majors murdered the federal Prime Minister, Sir Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa BALEWA, the Premiers of the Northern and Western regions, and many leading politicians. In July a group of northern officers retaliated and installed General GOWON as Head of State. A massacre of several thousand Ibo living in the North followed. Attempts to work out constitutional provisions failed, and in May 1967 the military governor of the Eastern region, Colonel Ojukwe, announced his region's secession and the establishment of the republic of BIAFRA. Civil war between the Hausa and Ibo peoples erupted, and Biafra collapsed in 1970. General Gowon was deposed in 1975. In 1979 the military government organized multiparty elections. Corruption and unrest precipitated more military takeovers, in 1983 and 1985, when General Ibrahim Babangida became Head of State. Progress towards restoration of full civilian rule was threatened by outbreaks of violence between Shiite Islamic fundamentalists and Christians. Political parties were re-legalized in 1989, but only two parties were allowed to register for elections, both having manifestos devised by the government. Open presidential elections in 1993 were, according to unofficial reports, won by Moshood Abiola, but Babangida annulled the elections, prompting serious social unrest. Babangida resigned and handed power over to another military government, promising that an elected civilian government would be installed in 1994. Abiola fled the country and sought international aid; he and his supporters continued to protest that the 1993 elections had been free and fair. The social and political crisis continued and Sanni Abacha took over as head of state in November 1993. He dismantled many existing political institutions and re-instituted the 1979 military constitution, but continued to insist that a civilian government would eventually be installed. Abiola returned to Nigeria to campaign for democracy and was arrested in 1994. In 1995 the government announced that civilian rule could not be introduced before 1997, but lifted the ban on political activity. However, in October 1995 nine pro-democracy activists were charged with murder and executed, provoking international outrage. As a result, Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth. Social unrest has persisted. Following Abacha's death in 1998, General Abdulsalam Abubakar became President. He released the remaining political prisoners and restored democratic rule. In subsequent elections General Obasanjo was elected President and Nigeria was readmitted to the Commonwealth in 1999.

Nigeria

Climate and Vegetation

Lagos has a tropical climate, with high temperatures and rain throughout the year. The n is drier and often hotter than the s, though the highlands are cooler. Kano in n central Nigeria has a marked dry season from October to April. Behind the coastal swamps are rainforests, although farmers have cleared large areas. The plateau contains large areas of tropical savanna with forested river valleys. Open grassland and semi-arid scrub occur in drier areas. To the n lie the dry grasslands of the Sahel.

History and Politics

Excavations around the Nigerian village of Nok have uncovered some of the oldest and most beautiful examples of African sculpture. The Nok civilization flourished between 500 bc and ad 200. In the 11th century, the Kanem-Bornu kingdom extended s from Lake Chad into Nigeria, and the Hausa established several city-states. In sw Nigeria, the state of Benin and the Yoruba kingdom of Oyo flourished in the 15th century. They produced superb brass, bronze and ivory sculptures. The Songhai Empire dominated n Nigeria in the early 16th century.

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach the Nigerian coast, and they established trading links with Benin in the late 15th century. Nigeria became a centre of the slave trade, with major European powers competing for control. The Igbo established city-states built on the wealth of the trade. In the early 19th century, the Fulani captured many of the Hausa city-states. Sokoto retained its independence. The sw began a protracted civil war. In 1807, Britain renounced the slave trade, but other countries continued the practice. In 1861, Britain seized Lagos, ostensibly to stop the trade. By 1885, Britain controlled all of s Nigeria and gradually extended northwards. By 1906, Britain had conquered all of Nigeria, and divided the country into the Colony (Lagos) and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria and the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria. The two merged in 1914, and Britain ruled indirectly through colonial officials and local rulers. Cities, infrastructure and industries developed. In 1954, Nigeria federated into three regions (n, e, and w) plus the territory of Lagos. In 1960, Nigeria gained independence. It became a republic in 1963. The division of Nigeria into 30 states reflected the fact that it contains more than 250 ethnic and language groups, and several religious ones. In 1966, Igbo army officers staged a successful coup, but a Hausa-led coup quickly toppled the regime. In 1967, the Igbo, increasingly concerned for their safety within the federation, formed the independent republic of Biafra. For the next three years, civil war raged before Biafra finally capitulated.

The early 1970s were more peaceful. Nigeria expanded its oil industry and joined OPEC in 1971. Oil revenue created widespread government corruption and widened the wealth gap. Drought in the Sahel killed much livestock and led to mass migration to the s. After several military coups, civilian rule briefly returned in 1979. Following 1983 elections, the military seized power again. Between 1960 and 1996, Nigeria enjoyed only nine years of civilian government. The military government declared the 1993 presidential elections, won by Chief Moshood Abiola, invalid. The army commander in chief, General Sanni Abacha, gained power. In 1994, nationwide demonstrations prompted Abiola to form a rival government, but he was swiftly arrested. In 1995 Abacha received an open-ended term in office, vowing to restore civilian rule by 1998. His regime was criticized for human rights abuses and the suppression of opposition. After the execution of nine activists, Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth of Nations (1995–99).

In 1998, Abacha died and General Abubakar succeeded. In July 1998, Abiola's death in prison prompted widespread rioting. In 1999 elections, General Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military ruler (1976–79) of Nigeria, became president. In 2000, the adoption of Islamic Sharia law by some of Nigeria's n states led to violent clashes between Muslims and Christians.

Economy

Nigeria is a low income developing country, with great economic potential (2000 GDP per capita, US$950). Corruption is an endemic problem. Nigeria is the world's eleventh-largest producer of crude oil, which accounts for 95% of its exports. Agriculture employs 43% of the workforce. It is the world's third-largest producer of palm oil and palm kernels, fourth-largest producer of groundnuts, sixth-largest producer of cocoa, and seventh-largest producer of rubber. Cattle rearing is important in the n grasslands, while fishing is a major activity in the s. Manufacturing is diversifying. Products include chemicals and clothing. Nigeria has oil refineries, vehicle assembly plants, and steel mills.

Political map

Physical map

Websites

http://www.nopa.net

NIGERIA A country of West Africa and the most populous country in Africa. Languages: English and the main languages of each state (official); the most widely spoken of the estimated 400 indigenous languages are Hausa (27%), Igbo (11%), Yoruba (18%); Nigerian Pidgin English is a widely used LINGUA FRANCA. English is the language of education after the first three years of primary school.

History

The Portuguese established the first trading posts along the Guinea coast in the 15c and various European nations traded in the area for gold, ivory, and slaves. British contacts with Nigeria go back at least to the 16c and varieties of English were well established in coastal areas in the 18c. British missionaries began to teach English in Nigeria during the first half of the 19c, but relations between Britain and parts of Nigeria were not formalized until 1861 when the settlement of Lagos was declared a colony. The Berlin Conference of 1885 recognized Britain's claim to the Oil Rivers Protectorate created in 1882 in the Niger delta area. This was enlarged and renamed the Niger Coast Protectorate in 1893. The Protectorate of Southern Nigeria and the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria were created in 1900 from territories controlled by the Royal Niger Company. These were amalgamated into the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria in 1914. Nigeria became independent in 1960, a republic within the Commonwealth in 1961, and a federal republic in 1963.

Nigerian English

A wide spectrum of English is used in Nigeria, including standard English whose spoken forms are influenced by various mother tongues, more general English whose structures are influenced by the mother tongues, the Indian English of many traders and teachers, and Nigerian Pidgin English, which is part of the continuum of WEST AFRICAN PIDGIN ENGLISH is used throughout the country as a lingua franca. It is sometimes acquired as a mother tongue in such urban areas as Calabar and Port Harcourt, but almost always in conjunction with one or more local languages. It has many forms that reflect mother-tongue and English influence and, although a number of PIDGIN dictionaries have been written and cyclostyled, it has not yet been standardized. It has been used in prose by many writers, including Chinua Achebe, and as a vehicle for poetry by Frank Aig-Imoukhuede and for drama by Ola Rotimi.

Pronunciation

(1) All varieties of Nigerian English are non-rhotic. RP is no longer the norm for the media, but continues to have prestige and to influence pronunciation. (2) There is a tendency towards syllable-timing that becomes more pronounced as one moves from standard English to Pidgin. Polysyllables tend to have all syllables equally stressed. (3) The central vowels /ə/ and /ɪ/ in RP tend to be replaced by /a/, /ɔ/, or /ɛ/, so that but can rhyme with got or in hypercorrect forms with get, and all three can occur in church. (4) There are fewer vowel contrasts in Nigerian English: often no distinction between cheap and chip, caught, court, and cot, pool and pull. (5) The diphthongs in RP day and dough tend to become the single vowels /e/ and /o/; those in hear and hair tend to have the SCHWA replaced by /a/. (6) There are differences in the pronunciation of consonants in different parts of the country. The initial consonants in thin and then tend to be replaced by /t, d/ in Igbo and Yoruba-influenced English, and by /s, z/ in Hausa-influenced English. Igbo and Yoruba speakers tend to replace the final consonant /ʒ/ as in rouge by sh (‘roosh’), while Hausa speakers often use /dʒ/ (‘roodge’).

Grammar

Educated Nigerians use standard forms especially in the written medium, but the following features are widely described as occurring in general Nigerian English: (1) Uncountable nouns are often treated as countable: I had only fruits to eat; I am grateful for your many advices. (2) Definite articles are sometimes used as if the rules of standard English have been reversed: Lorry was overcrowded; What do you think of the Structuralism? (3) The use of prepositions can differ from BrE and AmE norms: He came to my office by four o'clock (that is, at four o'clock); She is the best teacher for our school (in our school). (4) PHRASAL VERBS are sometimes used differently (as in He couldn't cope up with any more money worries) or drop their particles (Pick me at the corner: not pick me up). (5) The MODAL VERBS could and would are often used instead of can and will: He has assured me that he could come tomorrow; They say that he would be attending our next meeting. Will is also sometimes used for would: I will first of all like to thank you. (6) Themselves is often used with like/love for each other: The husband and wife loved themselves dearly; Why do they like themselves so much?

Vocabulary

There are three groups of distinctive words in Nigerian English: (1) BORROWINGS from local languages and Pidgin: danshiki (Hausa) male gown, oga (Yoruba) master, boss, obanje (Igbo) spirit child, dash (Pidgin) to give, a gift. (2) LOANTRANSLATIONS from local languages: have long legs to exert influence, throw water to offer a bribe. (3) Items given local meanings or coined for local purposes: come, as in I'm coming I'll be with you soon, You've come! Welcome; decampee a person who moves to another political party; hear to understand, as in I hear French; senior elder, as in senior sister elder sister. See WEST AFRICAN ENGLISH.

Nigeria Africa's most populous country, its history has been characterized by its ethnic and religious diversity: its 430 ethnic groups are dominated by three peoples, the Islamic Hausa, the Fulbe, the Yoruba, and the Christian Ibo. Under British rule since the 1880s, the former two peoples were little interfered with under the principle of indirect rule, while the Ibo came to form an educated elite in the south. Under the leadership of Awolowo, Azikiwe, Balewa, and Bello, Nigeria achieved independence on 1 October 1960, and became a federal state with a constitution based largely on the British political system. This soon became paralysed because of the country's ethnic divisions, and unrest erupted in 1966. After two successive military governments, the leadership passed to General Gowon.

The repression during these years triggered civil war in 1967–70, when the Ibo fought in vain for independence as the state of Biafra. After this, Nigerian domestic politics were characterized by military rule and frequent coups, except for a brief period of democratization introduced by General Obsanjano, 1978–83. This instability and unrest was created by the fact that only military rule could (and did) establish the predominance of the northern Hausa-Fulbe, while the southern tribes of the Yoruba and Ibo not only were more educated but profited from their significant oil reserve. In 1992 General Ibrahim Babangida introduced a system of controlled democracy, in which two parties were allowed to operate, both to be controlled by him. Nevertheless, he lost the presidential elections of 12 June 1993 to Abiola (a Yoruba). Babangida annulled the elections and established an interim government under Adegunle Oladeinde Shonekan. Both were forced into exile by the military coup of 17 November 1993, which brought to power General Abacha.

Abacha imprisoned Abiola and instituted a harsh system of repression previously unexperienced even in Nigeria. Widespread strikes and demonstrations were followed by waves of imprisonment and executions, such as that of the human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa in 1995. Despite Nigeria being one of the world's largest oil producers, the average annual income per head was one of the lowest in the world at $300 (1993). This was due to corruption and economic as well as political mismanagement, leading to neglect of the country's industry and agriculture. Neglect also caused an environmental disaster in the largely Ibo coastal lands. According to a 1996 report by D. Moffat and O. Linden at Stockholm University, the coastal areas were contaminated by an estimated 23 billion cubic metres of oil every year. Oil production in the area generated 35 million tons of carbon dioxide per year (1995), which made it the world's largest single producer of global warming. The political and economic hardship was made possible by the tolerance of the world community, which felt dependent on Nigerian oil, and the obsessively non-political and unenvironmental stance adopted by the oil companies there, of which Shell was the most important.

Growing domestic protest, worsening economic mismanagement and increasingly blatant corruption, and international protests undermined the military regime. Following Abacha's death in 1998, an interim military government freed political prisoners, among them Obsanjano. He won the ensuing 1999 elections, but embezzlement by government, military, and public administration continued to make Nigeria one of the world's most corrupt countries. The continuing poverty of the Yoruba and Ibo population, as well as the growing fundamentalism of the Muslim north, exacerbated the social, cultural, and economic conflicts that had characterized Nigeria for decades.

Nigeria The Federal Republic of Nigeria since 1963 after independence from the UK in 1960 when it was named the Federation of Nigeria. The northern half of the UN Trust Territory of British Cameroons (also known as the Northern Cameroons), formerly part of the German protectorate of Kamerun, was incorporated into Nigeria's Northern Region as the province of Sardauna in 1961. Lagos was annexed by the British in 1861. It became a colony in 1886 while its hinterland became a protectorate; the Niger delta had also become a protectorate, known as the Oil Rivers Protectorate, the year before. In 1893 this protectorate was renamed the Niger Coast Protectorate and seven years later it merged with the territory of the Royal Niger Company to form the Protectorate of Southern Nigeria. Lagos Colony and Protectorate joined it in 1906 and it was then renamed the Colony and Protectorate of Southern Nigeria. Simultaneously, the remainder of modern Nigeria became the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria. In 1914 the two parts merged to form the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. The country takes its name from the Niger River which flows through it. The name Nigeria dates from 1900 when the Southern Nigeria Protectorate was created. Earlier the territory had been known informally as Negroland or Nigritia.

Nigeria. Former British colony and protectorate in West Africa. British missionaries arrived in Nigeria in the 1840s and in 1853 Lagos was annexed as a British colony as part of the campaign to halt the West African slave trade. When the activities of legitimate British traders in the Niger delta region were threatened by French rivals, the British government took responsibility for the conquest of the interior in 1900. The presence of powerful Muslim emirates in the north and of disparate systems of tribal organization in the south resulted in the division of Nigeria by the British into three distinct administrative regions, amalgamated under one central authority in 1914. Cocoa and palm-oil products brought a measure of wealth to the two southern regions but the north remained poor. The religious and economic differences between north and south resulted in the creation of an uneasy federal system of government when Nigeria became independent in 1960. The declaration of independence by the province of Biafra in 1966 provoked a bloody civil war, and though the Biafrans were defeated in 1970, Nigeria, a large and populous country, remains a prey to military coups.

Kenneth Ingham

Nigeria Former British colony and protectorate in West Africa. British missionaries arrived in Nigeria in the 1840s and in 1853 Lagos was annexed as a British colony as part of the campaign to halt the West African slave trade. When the activities of legitimate British traders in the Niger delta region were threatened by French rivals, the British government took responsibility for the conquest of the interior in 1900. The religious and economic differences between north and south resulted in the creation of an uneasy federal system of government when Nigeria became independent in 1960.

Nigeria

The people of Nigeria are called Nigerians. The main ethnic groups, distinguished by different languages, are the Hausa, the Igbo (Ibo), the Yoruba, and the Fulani. The Hausa have been officially estimated to constitute 21 percent of the population; Yoruba, 20 percent; Igbo, about 16.1 percent; and Fulani, 12 percent. For information on the Fulani, see the chapter on Guinea in Volume 4.

Nigeria, see British West Africa.

Nigeria •barrier, carrier, farrier, harrier, tarrier •Calabria, Cantabria •Andrea • Kshatriya • Bactria •Amu Darya, aria, Zaria •Alexandria •Ferrier, terrier •destrier •aquaria, area, armamentaria, Bavaria, Bulgaria, caldaria, cineraria, columbaria, filaria, frigidaria, Gran Canaria, herbaria, honoraria, malaria, pulmonaria, rosaria, sacraria, Samaria, solaria, tepidaria, terraria •atria, gematria •Assyria, Illyria, Styria, Syria •Laurier, warrior •hypochondria, mitochondria •Austria •auditoria, ciboria, conservatoria, crematoria, emporia, euphoria, Gloria, moratoria, phantasmagoria, Pretoria, sanatoria, scriptoria, sudatoria, victoria, Vitoria, vomitoria •Maurya •courier, Fourier •currier, furrier, spurrier, worrier •Cumbria, Northumbria, Umbria •Algeria, anterior, bacteria, Bashkiria, cafeteria, criteria, cryptomeria, diphtheria, exterior, hysteria, Iberia, inferior, interior, Liberia, listeria, Nigeria, posterior, Siberia, superior, ulterior, wisteria •Etruria, Liguria, Manchuria, Surya