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| Introduction | Nigeria |
| Background: | Following nearly 16 years of military rule, a new constitution was adopted in 1999, and a peaceful transition to civilian government was completed. The president faces the daunting task of rebuilding a petroleum-based economy, whose revenues have been squandered through corruption and mismanagement, and institutionalizing democracy. In addition, the OBASANJO administration must defuse longstanding ethnic and religious tensions, if it is to build a sound foundation for economic growth and political stability. Despite some irregularities, the April 2003 elections marked the first civilian transfer of power in Nigeria's history. |
| People | Nigeria |
| Population: | 137,253,133 note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2004 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 43.4% (male 29,985,427; female 29,637,684) 15-64 years: 53.7% (male 37,502,756; female 36,205,442) 65 years and over: 2.9% (male 1,944,260; female 1,977,564) (2004 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 18.1 years male: 18.2 years female: 17.9 years (2004 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 2.45% (2004 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 38.24 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Death rate: | 13.99 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 70.49 deaths/1,000 live births female: 67.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) male: 73.55 deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 50.49 years male: 50.35 years female: 50.63 years (2004 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 5.32 children born/woman (2004 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | 5.4% (2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 3.6 million (2003 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | 310,000 (2003 est.) |
| Major infectious diseases: | typhoid fever, malaria, Lassa fever overall degree of risk: very high (2004) |
| Nationality: | noun: Nigerian(s) adjective: Nigerian |
| Ethnic groups: | Nigeria, which is Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5% |
| Religions: | Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10% |
| Languages: | English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 68% male: 75.7% female: 60.6% (2003 est.) |
| Government | Nigeria |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria conventional short form: Nigeria |
| Government type: | republic transitioning from military to civilian rule |
| Capital: | Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices have now made the move to Abuja |
| Administrative divisions: | 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Federal Capital Territory*, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara |
| Independence: | 1 October 1960 (from UK) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960) |
| Constitution: | new constitution adopted May 1999 |
| Legal system: | based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (only in some northern states), and traditional law |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms; election last held 19 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 61.9%, Muhammadu BUHARI (ANPP) 31.2%, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu OJUKWU (APGA) 3.3%, other 3.6% |
| Legislative branch: | bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (107 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (346 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007); House of Representatives - last held 12 April 2003 (next to be held NA 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 53.6%, ANPP 27.9%, AD 9.7%; seats by party - PDP 73, ANPP 28, AD 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 54.5%, ANPP 27.4%, AD 9.3%, other 8.8%; seats by party - PDP 213, ANPP 95, AD 31, other 7; note - two constituencies are not reported |
| Judicial branch: | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee) |
| Political parties and leaders: | Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; All Nigeria Peoples' Party or ANPP [Don ETIEBET]; All Progressives Grand Alliance or APGA [Chekwas OKORIE]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Aliyu Habu FARI]; Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Audu OGBEH]; Peoples Redemption Party or PRP [Abdulkadir Balarabe MUSA]; Peoples Salvation Party or PSP [Lawal MAITURARE]; United Nigeria Peoples Party or UNPP [Saleh JAMBO] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | Nigerian Labor Congress or NLC [Adams OSHIOMOLE] |
| International organization participation: | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Jibril Muhammad AMINU consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385 telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400 chancery: 3519 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Howard Franklin JETER embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205 FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353 |
| Flag description: | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green |
| Communications | Nigeria |
| Telephones - main lines in use: | 853,100 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular: | 3,149,500 (2003) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: an inadequate system, further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made domestic: intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19 earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular facilities and the Internet are available international: country code - 234; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
| Radio broadcast stations: | AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001) |
| Radios: | 23.5 million (1997) |
| Television broadcast stations: | 3 (the government controls 2 of the broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002) |
| Televisions: | 6.9 million (1997) |
| Internet country code: | .ng |
| Internet hosts: | 1,142 (2004) |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs): | 11 (2000) |
| Internet users: | 750,000 (2003) |
| Transportation | Nigeria |
| Railways: | total: 3,557 km narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge (2003) |
| Highways: | total: 194,394 km paved: 60,068 km (including 1,194 km of expressways) unpaved: 134,326 km (1999 est.) |
| Waterways: | 8,600 km (Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks) (2004) |
| Pipelines: | condensate 105 km; gas 1,896 km; oil 3,638 km; refined products 3,626 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: | Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt, Sapele, Warri |
| Merchant marine: | total: 45 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 327,808 GRT/608,076 DWT by type: cargo 7, chemical tanker 5, petroleum tanker 30, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1 registered in other countries: 26 (2003 est.) foreign-owned: Norway 2, Pakistan 1, Togo 1, United States 1 |
| Airports: | 70 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with paved runways: | total: 36 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 6 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 |
| Airports - with unpaved runways: | total: 34 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 18 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: | 1 (2003 est.) |
| Military | Nigeria |
| Military branches: | Army, Navy, Air Force |
| Military manpower - military age and obligation: | 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001) |
| Military manpower - availability: | males age 15-49: 32,665,407 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - fit for military service: | males age 15-49: 18,763,229 (2004 est.) |
| Military manpower - reaching military age annually: | males: 1,452,231 (2004 est.) |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure: | $469.8 million (2003) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP: | 0.9% (2003) |
| Transnational Issues | Nigeria |
| Disputes - international: | ICJ ruled in 2002 on the entire Cameroon-Nigeria land and maritime boundary but the parties formed a Joint Border Commission to resolve differences bilaterally and have commenced with demarcation in less-contested sections of the boundary, starting in Lake Chad in the north; Nigeria initially rejected cession of the Bakasi Peninsula; the ICJ ruled on an equidistance settlement of Cameroon-Equatorial Guinea-Nigeria maritime boundary in the Gulf of Guinea, but imprecisely defined coordinates in the ICJ decision, the unresolved Bakasi allocation, and a sovereignty dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon over an island at the mouth of the Ntem River all contribute to the delay in implementation; several villages along the Okpara River are in dispute with Benin; Lake Chad Commission continues to urge signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, which remains the site of armed clashes among local populations and militias |
| Refugees and internally displaced persons: | IDPs: 250,000 (communal violence between Christians and Muslims since President Obasanjo's election in 1999) (2004) |
| Illicit drugs: | a transit point for heroin and cocaine intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets; safehaven for Nigerian narcotraffickers operating worldwide; major money-laundering center; massive corruption and criminal activity, remains on Financial Action Task Force Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories List for continued failure to address deficiencies in money-laundering control regime |
| This page was last updated on 16 December, 2004 |
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