The Federal Republic of Nigeria, commonly referred to as Nigeria and naija/9ja by the locals, is a federal constitutional republic in West Africa that borders the Republic of Benin to the west, Chad and Cameroon to the east, and Niger Republic to the north. Her coast in the south lies on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. It comprises 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, where the capital, Abuja is located. Nigeria is officially a democratic secular country. Modern-day Nigeria originated from British colonial rule beginning in the 19th century, and the merging of the Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate in 1914. The British set up administrative and legal structures whilst practising indirect rule through traditional chiefdoms. Nigeria formally became an independent federation in 1960. Her people plunged into a civil war from 1967 to 1970. Ever since, there has been an alternation between democratic civilian governments and military dictatorships, until it achieved a stable democracy in 1999.
The People and Culture of Nigeria
With approximately 184 million inhabitants, Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and the seventh most populous country in the world. She is often referred to as the "Giant of Africa", owing to her large population and economy. She has one of the largest youth population in the world. The country is viewed as a multinational state, as it is inhabited by over 500 ethnic groups, of which the three largest are the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba, accounting for more than 70% of the population. She also has some other ethnic groups like Edo, Ijaw, Kanuri, Ibibio, Ebira, Nupe etc making up 25-30% and other minorities occupy the remaining 5% spot. The middle belt of Nigeria is has a diversity of ethnic groups, including the Pyem, Goemai, and Kofyar. These ethnic groups speak over 500 different languages of which nine (9) are now extinct, and are identified with wide variety of cultures. The official language is English (which was chosen to facilitate the cultural and linguistic unity of the country, owing to the influence of British colonisation that ended in 1960) which is used for education, business transactions and for official purposes.Even though most ethnic groups prefer to communicate in their own languages, Hausa is the most widely spoken of the 3 main languages spoken in Nigeria itself (Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba) but unlike the Yorubas and Igbos, the Hausas tend not to travel far outside Nigeria itself. Nigerian Pidgin English, simply known as 'Pidgin' or 'Broken' (Broken English), is also a popular lingua franca, though with varying regional influences on dialect and slang, is widely spoken within the Niger Delta Regions, predominately in Warri, Port Harcourt, and Benin City.
Nigeria is divided roughly in half between Christians, who live mostly in the southern part of the country, and Muslims in the northern part. A minority of the population practise religions indigenous to Nigeria, such as those native to Igbo and Yoruba people.
There are small minorities of British, American, East Indian, Chinese (est. 50,000), white Zimbabwean, Japanese, Greek, Syrian and Lebanese immigrants in Nigeria. Immigrants also include those from other West African or East African nations. These minorities mostly reside in major cities such as Lagos and Abuja, or in the Niger Delta as employees for the major oil companies. A number of Cubans settled in Nigeria as political refugees following the Cuban Revolution.
The Nigerian Economy
Nigeria is classified as a mixed economy emerging market, which, according to the World Bank has already reached lower middle income status with its abundant supply of natural resources, well-developed financial, legal, communications, transport sectors and the second largest stock exchange in Africa (the Nigerian Stock Exchange). Nigeria was ranked the world's 20th largest economy, worth more than $500 billion and $1 trillion in terms of nominal GDP and purchasing power parity respectively in the year 2015. It overtook South Africa to become Africa's largest economy in 2014. Also, the debt-to-GDP ratio is only 11 percent, which is 8 percent below the 2012 ratio. It has been identified as a regional power on the African continent, a middle power in international affairs, and has also been identified as an emerging global power. Nigeria is a member of the MINT group of countries, which are widely seen as the globe's next "BRIC-like" economies. It is also listed among the "Next Eleven" economies set to become among the biggest in the world. Nigeria is a founding member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the African Union, OPEC, and the United Nations amongst other international organisations.Cuisine
Nigerian cuisine just like the other West African cuisines use spices and herbs with groundnut oil or palm oil in creating deeply flavoured sauces and soups often times made very hot with chili peppers. Nigerian feasts are colourful and lavish. Aromatic market and roadside snacks cooked on barbecues or fried in oil are plentiful and varied. Her cuisine consists of dishes or food items from the hundreds of ethnic groups that comprise Nigeria. She’s got a lot of delicacies; rice-based, bean-based, yam-based, cassava-based etc. Meat, fish, crayfish, prawn etc. are used in preparing stews and soups.
Destinations in Nigeria
Nigeria is an untapped tourist paradise with long stretches of exotic beaches, lush mountains, well preserved tradition and culture and enchanting tourist attractions.Nigeria leaves every visitor breathing hard with suspense and excitement with her enchanting destinations; from the spiritual shrines to the ancient cities of the north, from the river deltas to the Yoruba kingdoms, the Ibo’s stunning environments and among many simply pure sceneries. Here are some places you could visit when you come to Nigeria for your vacation:
1. Obudu Cattle Ranch, Cross-River State
2. Ibeno Beach, Akwa-Ibom State
3. Ngwo Pine Forest, Enugu State.
4. Arochukwu Long Juju Slave Route, Abia
State.
5. The Royal Palace of the Oba of Benin,
Edo State.
6. Okomu National Park, Edo State
7. Osun-Osogbo Grove, Osun State
8. Coconut Beach, Lagos State.
9. Sukur Cultural Landscape, Adamawa State
10. The Ancient Nok Settlement, Kaduna
State.
Nigeria has colourful carnivals
which holds yearly; the Calabar Carnival which holds December every year, Eyo Festival,
Argungu Fishing Festival, Lagos Carnival, Osun-Osogbo Festival.
