I have come to the realization that a lot of people know so little of their home country Nigeria, so today I have put together some salient ‘need to know points’ so this is an opportunity to reaffirm what you know and increase your knowledge of what was called ‘General knowledge’ when we were in school!
· Total landmass - approximately 923,768 square kilometres (356,669 sq. miles),
· Location - West Africa, 10° North and 8° East, bound by Niger in the north, Chad in the northeast, Cameroon in the east, Republic of Benin in the west, and the Atlantic Ocean in the south.
· Climate - Tropical, arid in north mean maximum temperatures of 30°C - 32°C (south) and 33°C - 35°C (north).
· Sub regions - The country is divided into 36 states and a Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
· Population - Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa with a population of over 120 million and estimated at about 132 million in 2006. (just looking at Lagos I am not surprised).
· And it is growing at a rate of 2.4%!
· Lagos State accounts for about 15 million people (see?... I told you!... Eko for show! Eko o ni baje!)
· Other rapidly growing cities in Nigeria are Port Harcourt, Kano, Kaduna, Aba, Onitsha and Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
· Urbanisation - 57% of Nigeria’s population resides in the rural areas (fancy that!)
· Poverty - 60% of Nigerians live under the poverty line (that’s less than $1 a day! what percentage are all the rich folks in VGC, Ikoyi, Femi Okunnu Estate, Lekki and Ikeja GRA…. And all the hummer and IVTEC driving peeps?)
· Unemployment – 5.8% of Nigerians are unemployed (I bet its way more than that… I bet someone got the decimal points wrong and its 58 or something… just kidding!)
· Labour force – 48.99million people make up the Nigerian labour force (see what I said about the unemployment figures, will 40 million people be toiling away and the economy still be this crazy?...I think so!)
· Ethnic Groups - There are over 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%
· Literacy - 68% of Nigerians are literate (not bad Not bad!)
· Median Age - 55% of Nigerians are between the ages of 15 & 64 (no wonder our system is so totally juvenile!)
· Life Expectancy – this is 47.66% for women and 46.52 for the men! (so ladies be nice to the fellas they are likely to die before you do!)
· HIV/AIDS Prevalence - 3.4million people are living with HIV/AIDS (whao! You just can’t go spreading the love you know, one has to spread it carefully! real carefully! :-))
· Prevalent Diseases – Malaria, Typhoid Fever, Hepatitis A, bacterial & protozoan diarrhea and meningococcal meningitis (whao! You can’t even go spreading the hug sef… with meningococcal meningitis and hepatitis A floating around - even their names sound deadly!)
· The legal system - based on English common law, Islamic law (in 12 northern states), and traditional law
· The legislative system – the National Assembly is bicameral and consists of Senate -109 seats (3 from each state plus 1 from Abuja) and House of Representatives - 360 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms.
There will be more information for you to digest soon!
My sources are: The Economic Intelligence Unit Report on Nigeria 2006 CIA World Fact Book
Still alive and kicking
1 year ago
3 comments:
Hi Tyger, your nickname or petname depicts Leo, but your zodiac says Taurus. So i guess its a Petname.
You gave an update, which can be seen on the EFCC website (If one cares to check), with your comments on Naija. I was expecting to see comments on why you really love Naija.
For me, Naija is a unique society, filled with unique people, who are very dynamic in all ramifications. I have been to different countries, cultures and climates and believe you me, Naija can not be immitated (Like the fakes from China). I would talk about some aspects to be brief, as Naija jist plenti well, well !!
Using our educational system, its rife with all kinds of scams that you can actually get a Bsc, Msc and MBA, without visiting the 4 walls of a university. Please dont assume that I am speaking of online education or distance learning, I'm speaking of what we call "Sorting"!. I.e sorting out school administrators, Professors etc. This has gone on for so long, that we are now getting the brunt of our poor educational system, when we apply for international placements in international schools. Funny thing about this though, When we eventually get to the new school, we always excel.
Across the American, British and Canadian Continent, Universities, Hospitals, Manufacturing, Oil & Gas, Telecommunications, Entertainment, Tourism industries etc, all have Nigerians in leadership positions. This gives you an idea on the dynamism of the Nigerian race (Please dont confuse as the Blackman race, but Nigerian Race).
In crime, we are outstanding, in fraud, we are leaders (Talk to the South African Government, Nigerians are terrorising the Country in both the illicit drug and armed robbery business). kidnapping, We are outstanding. learn from the Niger delta militants, that have successfully negotiated with countries for the release of its citizens and got paid, without the Federal Govt lifting a finger. They even advertise thier exploits in the national newspapers.
Our police? The best in the world. its only in Naija that a Policeman can have 2 wives and 10 children and send all 10 children to school, up to the University level, whilst earning N7,000 a month. 7K Naira I say!! This is about $53 USD per month. Can you beat that? They work 24hours a day, come rain or sunshine and they are able to shoot thier 30year old civil war regulated rifles and yet keep the crime rate in Nigeria down! We should give them an award for bravery.
Yesterday, we heard of the bloodshed at Virgina Tech University. 33 dead! can that happen in Nigeria? NO! we discussed this at work, as we saw it unfold, and i told my colleagues that if that was a Nigerian University, It wouldnt have been that bad. maybe 2 or 3 dead at the max. We are so used to the fear of stray bullets that once we hear the sound of a gunshot, we run to the nearest hole. Most people that died, were those who thought they were watching an action movie and moved closer for a better view. Did you hear of any Naija man die at the World Trade Center bombings? Did you see the documentary on the bombings? The "Oyinbo's" moved towards the buildings to get a closer view, whilst the "Blackman" took to his/her heels. It is inherently bottled in our DNA to flee danger.
Naija is the only place where i drive the streets and see "Purewater" nylons and trash all over the place. It was the 1 way of knowing i was back home after being away for months.
Naija is where you can drive "Oneway" on Ikorudu road, 3rd mainaland and anywhere, and nobody would ask if you needed psychiatric evaluation.
Naija, where you can tell a policeman that he is mad and that you would get him fired for his effontary for asking you for your "Particulars" and he tells you that he is sorry, begging you to forgive him. Try that with the British Met Police or Texan redneck Corps? Naija, where you can drive without a drivers license (Ask our chinese and indian visitors? Who gave them a Nigerian drivers license) Where is FRSC and what are they doing about this?
Naija where my friend, who is half Danish/Half Lebanese, has a Nigerian passport! He isnt even married to a Nigerian, wasnt born here or affiliated to anything Nigerian! Na wa for Nigerian Immigration Unit!
Its only here we can evade taxes, live very well above our means, without anyone raising eyebrows. Live in a 1 bedroom "face-me-i-face-u apartment and drive a 2007 Infinity QX56 plus a 2007 BMW 750il. Where is FIRS?
Can we talk about NEPA, Water Corporation, LATSMA, Area Boys, EFCC, Federal and State Roads, Airline industry?
That na Plenti, Plenti jist!
Can we talk about the last elections, the next one, INEC, Judiciary, Senate, OBJ and Atiku?
Still plenti Jist!
Can we talk about the night life (Sanusi fafunwa, Opebi, Allen, Surulere), The clubs (Ynot, Cubes, The Longe, Saipan, Thistle, Londoner Bacchus, 11.45, Planet 44, Bungalow etc), Joints (Iya Peju Pepersoup Yaba, Yakoyo Agege, Stadium, Maureens kitchen, Abe igi Obalende, Whitehouse, Iya Modina, Bank-Olemo Designer Rice, Obalende Suya etc), Hang-outs (Sweet Sensation, Mr Biggs, Tantalizers, St Elmos, Bacelos, Tastee Fried Chicken, Chicken Republic, etc), Beaches (Eleko, Takwa Bay, Lekki, Alpha, La Campaigne Tropicana, Eko Tourist, Badagry Beach, etc), Resorts (Obudu Cattle Ranch, Ikogosi Warm Springs, Abraka Turf Club, Abraka Holiday Resort, Olumo Rock, Yankari Game Reserves, Bauchi Reserve Park, Osun River Shrine, etc) , Arts and craft (Eyo Festival, Sokoto Durbar etc, Traditions (Oro Festival), Malls, Cinemas (Across the Nation, Lagos X 3, Abuja, Tinapa) and numerous everyday Lagbo-lagbo and Owambe parties, Comedy central Canivals, Nollywood + its stars, gossip + much more?
Jist go tire u!
All these and many, many more points, makes Naija such an interesting and endearing place to live and work in. There are a lot more points of discussion not noted in this blog, but available. The bottom line is that, no matter where you go to, or how long or short you have been away from the shores of Naija, you would always miss home. I love my contry, i no go lie.
So Tyger, maybe, you should write more about your experiencies in Nigeria. This way, we would all know how much you love your country.
I LOVE NAIJA OOOO !!! I NO LIE!
right on point badvibes... omo you yan oh... nice one
Dear Badvibes,
Thanks for your long but interesting version of ‘I love Naija” it’s a whole blog on its own so if you have a blog do put it on it.
However, my blog ‘I love Naija’ was not meant to be about my personal experiences in Naija or strictly my personal opinions on been a Nigeria, but rather a quirky way of passing hard facts across; if its available on EFCC that’s fine too, I didn’t put it on my blog cos I thought it was unavailable but because I think it’s a good way of getting the facts across to people who do not know or have forgotten … not for the purpose of quoting it in an official document… strictly for general knowledge.
Talking of the name ‘Tyger’…. I’m used to people thinking it should have something to do with my birthsign…. However it doesn’t…. I’m not so into birthsigns as to have a nickname as a result of one… rather Tyger is a nickname I’ve had for ‘forever’ simply because a lot of my friends… my peeps claim to have noticed similar traits between me and that particular specie not bad sign…..
Thanks for your insightful contributions though…. I’m flattered you took out the time to make that long comment J I’m absolutely encouraged!
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