NIGERIA
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NIGERIA
@Nigeria:Geography
Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between
Benin and Cameroon
Map references: Africa
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NIGERIA - MAJOR CITIES
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Latitude, Internat'l Time
Population Longitude Phone Code Zone
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Lagos 1,307,000 6.27N, 3.28E 234-1 GMT+1
Ibadan 1,232,000 7.23N, 3.56E 234-22 GMT+1
Ogbomosho 628,000 8.05N, 4.11E 234-38 GMT+1
Kano 580,000 12.00N, 8.31E 234-64 GMT+1
Oshogbo 411,000 7.50N, 4.35E 234-35 GMT+1
Ilorin 410,000 8.32N, 4.34E 234-31 GMT+1
Abeokuta 368,000 7.10N, 3.26E 234-39 GMT+1
Port Harcourt 352,000 4.43N, 7.10E 234-84 GMT+1
Zaria 326,000 11.01N, 7.44E 234-69 GMT+1
Ilesha 326,000 7.39N, 4.38E 234- GMT+1
Onitsha 320,000 6.10N, 6.47E 234-46 GMT+1
Kaduna 295,000 10.33N, 7.27E 234- GMT+1
Enugu 272,000 6.27N, 7.27E 234- GMT+1
Aba 257,000 5.06N, 7.21E 234- GMT+1
Benin City 198,000 6.19N, 5.41E 234- GMT+1
Sokoto 176,000 13.04N, 5.16E 234- GMT+1
Calabar 150,000 4.57N, 8.19E 234- GMT+1
Owerri 35,000 5.29N, 7.02E 234- GMT+1
ABUJA 14,000 9.10N, 7.06E 234- GMT+1
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Area:
total area: 923,770 sq km
land area: 910,770 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of California
Land boundaries: total 4,047 km, Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad
87 km, Niger 1,497 km
Coastline: 853 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 30 nm
International disputes: demarcation of international boundaries in
Lake Chad, the lack of which led to border incidents in the past, is
completed and awaits ratification by Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and
Nigeria; dispute with Cameroon over land and maritime boundaries in
the vicinity of the Bakasi Peninsula has been referred to the
International Court of Justice
Climate: varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in
north
Terrain: southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus;
mountains in southeast, plains in north
Natural resources: petroleum, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal,
limestone, lead, zinc, natural gas
Land use:
arable land: 31%
permanent crops: 3%
meadows and pastures: 23%
forest and woodland: 15%
other: 28%
Irrigated land: 8,650 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: soil degradation; rapid deforestation;
desertification; recent droughts in north severely affecting marginal
agricultural activities
natural hazards: periodic droughts
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection
@Nigeria:People
Population: 101,232,251 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 45% (female 22,643,026; male 22,850,322)
15-64 years: 52% (female 25,842,286; male 26,978,906)
65 years and over: 3% (female 1,438,392; male 1,479,319) (July 1995
est.)
Population growth rate: 3.16% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 43.26 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 12.01 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 72.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 55.98 years
male: 54.69 years
female: 57.3 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 6.31 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian
Ethnic divisions:
north: Hausa and Fulani
southwest: Yoruba
southeast: Ibos non-Africans 27,000
note: Hausa and Fulani, Yoruba, and Ibos together make up 65% of
population
Religions: Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10%
Languages: English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, Fulani
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population: 51%
male: 62%
female: 40%
Labor force: 42.844 million
by occupation: agriculture 54%, industry, commerce, and services 19%,
government 15%
@Nigeria:Government
Names:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria
Digraph: NI
Type: military government since 31 December 1983; plans to institute a
constitutional conference to prepare for a new transition to civilian
rule after plans for a transition in 1993 were negated by General
BABANGIDA
Capital: Abuja
note: on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially moved from Lagos
to Abuja; many government offices remain in Lagos pending completion
of facilities in Abuja
Administrative divisions: 30 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Abuja
Capital Territory*, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Benue, Borno,
Cross River, Delta, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina,
Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau,
Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe
Independence: 1 October 1960 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 October (1960)
Constitution: 1979 constitution still in force; plan for 1989
constitution to take effect in 1993 was not implemented
Legal system: based on English common law, Islamic law, and tribal law
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government: Chairman of the Provisional
Ruling Council and Commander in Chief of Armed Forces and Defense
Minister Gen. Sani ABACHA (since 17 November 1993); Vice-Chairman of
the Provisional Ruling Council Oladipo DIYA (since 17 November 1993)
cabinet: Federal Executive Council
Legislative branch: bicameral National Assembly
Senate: suspended after coup of 17 November 1993
House of Representatives: suspended after coup of 17 November 1993
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, Federal Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
note: two political party system suspended after the coup of 17
November 1993
Member of: ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24,
G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO,
IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU,
OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMIR, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIKOM, UNPROFOR, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Zubair Mahmud KAZAURE
chancery: 1333 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400
consulate(s) general: New York
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Walter C. CARRINGTON
embassy: 2 Eleke Crescent, Lagos
mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos
telephone: [234] (1) 261-0097
FAX: [234] (1) 261-0257
branch office: Abuja
consulate(s) general: Kaduna
Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and
green
Economy
Overview: The oil-rich Nigerian economy continues to be hobbled by
political instability and poor macroeconomic management. Nigeria's
unpopular military rulers show no sign of wanting to restore
democratic civilian rule in the near future and appear divided on how
to redress fundamental economic imbalances that cause troublesome
inflation and the steady depreciation of the naira. The government's
domestic and international arrears continue to limit economic growth -
even in the oil sector - and prevent an agreement with the IMF and
bilateral creditors on debt relief. The inefficient (largely
subsistence) agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid
population growth, and Nigeria, once a large net exporter of food, now
must import food.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $122.6 billion (1994
est.)
National product real growth rate: -0.8% (1994 est.)
National product per capita: $1,250 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 53% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate: 28% (1992 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $9 billion
expenditures: $10.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1992 est.)
Exports: $11.9 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities: oil 95%, cocoa, rubber
partners: US 54%, EC 23%
Imports: $8.3 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
commodities: machinery and equipment, manufactured goods, food and
animals
partners: EC 64%, US 10%, Japan 7%
External debt: $29.5 billion (1992)
Industrial production: growth rate 7.7% (1991); accounts for 43% of
GDP, including petroleum
Electricity:
capacity: 4,570,000 kW
production: 11.3 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 109 kWh (1993)
Industries: crude oil and mining - coal, tin, columbite; primary
processing industries - palm oil, peanut, cotton, rubber, wood, hides
and skins; manufacturing industries - textiles, cement, building
materials, food products, footwear, chemical, printing, ceramics,
steel
Agriculture: accounts for 35% of GDP and half of labor force; cash
crops - cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, rubber; food crops - corn, rice,
sorghum, millet, cassava, yams; livestock - cattle, sheep, goats,
pigs; fishing and forestry resources extensively exploited
Illicit drugs: passenger and cargo air hub for West Africa;
facilitates movement of heroin en route from Southeast and Southwest
Asia to Western Europe and North America; increasingly a transit route
for cocaine from South America intended for West European, East Asian,
and North American markets
Economic aid:
recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $705 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
(1970-89), $3 billion; Communist countries (1970-89), $2.2 billion
Currency: 1 naira (N) = 100 kobo
Exchange rates: naira (N) per US$1 - 21.996 (January 1995), 21.996
(1994), 22.065 (1993), 17.298 (1992), 9.909 (1991), 8.038 (1990)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Nigeria:Transportation
Railroads:
total: 3,567 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge
standard gauge: 62 km 1.435-m gauge
Highways:
total: 107,990 km
paved: mostly bituminous-surface treatment 30,019 km
unpaved: gravel, crushed stone, improved earth 25,411 km; unimproved
earth 52,560 km
Inland waterways: 8,575 km consisting of Niger and Benue Rivers and
smaller rivers and creeks
Pipelines: crude oil 2,042 km; petroleum products 3,000 km; natural
gas 500 km
Ports: Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt, Sapele, Warri
Merchant marine:
total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 404,064 GRT/661,850 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 14, chemical tanker 3, liquefied gas
tanker 1, oil tanker 12, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1
Airports:
total: 80
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 6
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 10
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 7
with paved runways under 914 m: 25
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 21
@Nigeria:Communications
Telephone system: NA telephones; above-average system limited by poor
maintenance; major expansion in progress
local: NA
intercity: microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and 20 domestic
satellite earth stations carry intercity traffic
international: 3 INTELSAT earth stations (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1
Indian Ocean) and 1 coaxial submarine cable carry international
traffic
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 35, FM 17, shortwave 0
radios: NA
Television:
broadcast stations: 28
televisions: NA
@Nigeria:Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary Police Force
Manpower availability: males age 15-49 23,167,009; males fit for
military service 13,246,223; males reach military age (18) annually
1,024,059 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $172 million, about
1% of GDP (1992)
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