Economiy & People

Economy
GDP (2008): $183 billion (agriculture 33%; industry 39%; services 28%).
Real GDP growth rate (2009): 4.4%. Oil growth: -18%. Non-oil growth: 3%.
Per capita GDP (2009): $1,418.
Inflation (2009): 11.5%.
Natural resources: Oil and natural gas (37% of 2006 GDP), tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc.
Agriculture: Products--cocoa, palm oil, yams, cassava, sorghum, millet, corn, rice, livestock, groundnuts, cotton.
Industry: Types--textiles, cement, food products, footwear, metal products, lumber, beer, detergents, car assembly.
Trade (2007): Exports--$65.5 billion: fuels and mining products (97%); agricultural products (cocoa, rubber, oil, nuts) (2.2%); manufactures (0.8%). Partners--United States (38.3%); European Union (21.8%); India (9.9%); Brazil (6.8%); Japan (4%). Imports--$29.5 billion: machinery; chemicals; transport equipment; manufactured goods (72.3%); agricultural products (23.7%), fuels and mining products (4%). Partners--European Union (33.2%); United States (15.6%); China 7.2%; Korea (2.8%); U.A.E. (2.6%); others (15%).
Foreign direct investment (FDI, 2008): 29.5% of GDP.
Official development assistance (2006): $11.434 billion.
Currency: Naira (150 Naira = U.S. $1 as of March 23, 2010).

PEOPLE
The most populous country in Africa, Nigeria accounts for over half of West Africa's population. Although less than 25% of Nigerians are urban dwellers, at least 24 cities have populations of more than 100,000. The variety of customs, languages, and traditions among Nigeria's 250 ethnic groups gives the country a rich diversity. The dominant ethnic group in the northern two-thirds of the country is the Hausa-Fulani, most of whom are Muslim. Other major ethnic groups of the north are the Nupe, Tiv, and Kanuri. The Yoruba people are predominant in the southwest.

About half of the Yorubas are Christian and half Muslim. The predominantly Catholic Igbo are the largest ethnic group in the southeast, with the Efik, Ibibio, and Ijaw comprising a substantial segment of the population in that area. Persons of different language backgrounds most commonly communicate in English, although knowledge of two or more Nigerian languages is widespread. Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Fulani, and Kanuri are the most widely used Nigerian languages.

The Second Republic

A constituent assembly was elected in 1977 to draft a new constitution, which was published September 21, 1978, when the ban on political activity, in effect since the advent of military rule, was lifted. Political parties were formed, and candidates were nominated for president and vice president, the two houses of the National Assembly, governorships, and state houses of assembly. In 1979, five political parties competed in a series of elections in which a northerner, Alhaji Shehu Shagari of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), was elected president. All five parties won representation in the National Assembly.

In August 1983, Shagari and the NPN were returned to power in a landslide victory, with a majority of seats in the National Assembly and control of 12 state governments. But the elections were marred by violence, and allegations of widespread vote rigging and electoral malfeasance led to legal battles over the results.

On December 31, 1983, the military overthrew the Second Republic. Maj. Gen. Muhammadu Buhari emerged as the leader of the Supreme Military Council (SMC), the country's new ruling body. He charged the civilian government with economic mismanagement, widespread corruption, election fraud, and a general lack of concern for the problems of Nigerians. He also pledged to restore prosperity to Nigeria and to return the government to civilian rule but was stymied in his attempt to deal with Nigeria's severe economic problems. Despite relative popularity for its no-nonsense approach in tackling corruption, the Buhari government was peacefully overthrown by the SMC's third-ranking member, Army Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, in August 1985.

Babangida moved to restore freedom of the press and to release political detainees being held without charge. As part of a 15-month economic emergency, he announced stringent pay cuts for the military, police, and civil servants and enacted similar cuts for the private sector. Imports of rice, corn, and wheat were banned. Babangida orchestrated a national debate on proposed economic reform and recovery measures, which reportedly convinced him of intense opposition to an economic recovery package dependent on an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan.