Nigeria Map

Nigeria is one of the countries located in West Africa whose official name is the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is a country that accommodates over 250 nationalities who have more than 500 dialects as well as has close association with different cultures all over the world.

History:

Present-day Nigeria originated from the colonial masters the Britain in the nineteenth century and adopted the present geographical area after the amalgamation of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate in January 1914 in exercise of power conferred by instruction of the Colonial Office, London by Lord Lugard.

African/Pre-colonial Nigeria The geographical locus of present-day Nigeria had been inhabited by several strong kingdoms as well as empires including the Oyo Empire, the Benin Kingdom, and the Sokoto Caliphate. These entities had strong political systems, trade relations, and commendable culture.

The British took control of Nigeria in the late 19th century and this led to great changes in the Nigerian’s political and social systems. Another major point was the country formation in 1914 when the Northern and the Southern Protectorates were joined together to form the Nigerian state.

The Nigerian nation became a completely independent federation on the 1st of October in the year 1960. The country was involved in the civil war a year later in the year 1967 to 1970 which is referred to as the Biafran War, the effect contributed to the deaths and economic downturn. Nigeria, after the war underwent a series of military rulers and civilian rules before getting to a stable democracy in the year 1999 through presidential elections.

Culture:

Although Nigeria is a single country, its culture comprises a variety of ethnic groups. The three big ethno-geographical groups are Yoruba, Hausa/Fulani, and Igbo. The Fulani, formerly a nomadic group, inhabit most of the West and the Central parts of Africa. The Fulani and Hausa are followers of the Islamic religion, while the major ethnic groups in Nigeria that embrace the Christian religion include Igbo, Bini, and the Ibibio.

Afro-pop evolved in the mid-1970s from a fusion of various indigenous music, with influences of African-American Jazz and Soul music bringing about Afrobeats which in a way influenced Hip hop. King Sunny Adé, made JuJu music popular which is a form of African pop music that has ethnic Yoruba influences.

The country of Nigeria possesses quite several festivals and among them, some have origins in the pre-Muslim and pre-Christian Nigeria, which is ethnically very rich. It is interesting to note that major Muslim and Christian festivals and other festivities are normally observed with practices that are either standard to Nigeria or applicable to the part of the nation where the festival is being observed.

Language:

In some Nigerians areas, there are ethnic variations and individuals use more than one language when communicating. As a colony of Great Britain till 1960, the official language in Nigeria is the English language. This was done in a bid to foster unity as far as the different cultures and languages are concerned. The major languages spoken in Nigeria represent the three major African language families: These are Afro Asiatic Nilo Saharan and Niger-Congo.

Geography:

Nigeria is located in West Africa on the Bight of Benin having its coordinates ranging between latitude 4°N to 14°N and longitudes 2°E to 15°E. These are the Benue and the Niger whose water merges and forms the Niger Delta. The delta is one of the biggest in the global landscape and it covers vast tracts of mangrove areas.

Mountainous terrains are to be found to the southwest of the Niger River. Further to the southeast, there are mountains and hills along the Benue River that comprise the Mambilla Plateau. This plateau is partly continued in Cameroon where the highlands form a part of the Bamenda Highlands.

Economy:

Nigeria’s economy is one of the largest in the African continent depending on various industries for instance the oil and gas industry as well as the agriculture and service industries. Other resources include: Natural resources are also present in large supply and the most permanent resource for this economy is the petroleum and natural gases.

While Nigeria is globally accepted to be among the largest oil producers, oil and gas chiefly contribute through additions to Nigeria’s total GDP and government revenue. I want to stress the fact that the region in question is the heart of oil industry, but the latter has not completely spared it from catastrophe like oil leakage, gas flaring, etc.

Enough with the agricultural sector is essential for the country and people as many people can work in the agricultural sector as the majority of the populace. Among the samples, the frequently produced farm products include cassava, yams, maize, and rice. It also belongs to one of the largest cocoa and palm oil producers as well as farming products.

Telecommunication, banking, and retailing services sectors has shown great growth over the past few years. Nigeria is also home to the emerging tech start-ups which are referred to as Silicon Lagoon that have operational hubs in Lagos. Regarding this, it comes in operating industries that concern the production of products such as textiles, cement, and food products among others.

Government and Politics:

Nigeria has a presidential form of government and it is a federal state. Nigeria’s President is a political leader elected for four years with possibility of renewing his/ her service for another four years but not more than two terms. The National Assembly; the Senate and the House of Representatives which is the law-making body. The nature of political competition is closely affiliated to the multi-party democracy with the two main parties namely the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

Education:

The education system in Nigeria is basic and compulsory for children in the age range of 6 to 15 years. There exist numerous public and private schools in the country along with several universities and institutions of higher learning. The government has tried to work on education to enhance its quality but there are a few issues like no proper funding and fewer infrastructural facilities available.

Healthcare:

In Nigeria, there are both public and private health facilities but they are faced with some challenges such as poor funding, dilapidated structures, and a lack of an adequate number of qualified health personnel. For this reason, there is a high infant mortality ratio, low life expectancy, and high incidences of diseases. The public health sector is poorly funded and thus has few facilities and human resources to address the needs of the population; thus, overcrowded buildings, lengthy waiting lists, and poor health outcomes. Private health care is expensive and most of the population cannot afford the health care services hence increasing the inequalities in health. The more that has been done concerning the improvement of the Nigerian healthcare system, revealed that access, quality, and equity for many Nigerians has not been solved leading to inadequate access to the necessary healthcare services.

Transportation:

Transportation in Nigeria is the use of road, rail, air, and water transport as the means of moving commodities but it faces some problems. The main Road transport system includes private and fleet that is predominantly confined to BRT corridor and has inadequate structures, common accident rates, and poor quality vehicles. Private cars, taxis, and other ride-hire services are present but most of the time they are caught up in traffic jams. Rail transport is considerably undeveloped, air transport is relatively expensive and is not readily accessible to many, and water transport is not optimally exploited even though the given country has a relatively long coastline and many water channels. The use of non-motorized transport like; walking, cycling, motorcycle is however more common at short distances. Hence, the current state of transportation in Nigeria includes congestion, lack of adequate and safe network infrastructure, insecurity, and high cost, all of which bear negative impacts on the economy, society, and individual welfare.

Environment and Sustainability:

There are numerous environmental problems in Nigeria among them being deforestation, soil erosion, and pollution. Some of the effects of development that we have observed include pollution and deforestation which have had impacts on natural ecological systems and men’s well-being. These challenges are further compounded by climate change where increased temperatures and the changes in the rainfall pattern Authorities also spend a lot of on food resources and water supplies. These measures are in place in Nigeria in a bid to achieve sustainable development, some of them include the Great Green Wall project that seeks to address the issue of desertification and the National Environmental Policy to address issues of pollution. However, to overcome these significant challenges and protect the future of the environmentally vulnerable population of the country additional efforts are still required. Collective action is crucial.

FAQs

Q.1. How is the government structure of Nigeria?

Ans. Nigeria is a federal republic and all the executive powers are vested by the President.

Q.2. What is the major economic activity on which Nigeria’s economy is largely dependent?

Ans. The major strength of Nigeria’s economy lies in the exploration and export of oil which makes Nigeria one of the major oil-exporting countries globally. However, the country is also endowed with natural resources such as natural gas, coal, and agricultural produce.

Q.3. What is the official language of Nigeria?

Ans. English is formally spoken in Nigeria but there are other languages which include more than 250 ethnic languages like; Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo.