Federal Republic Of Nigeria Essay

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Nigeria or the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a federal constitutional republic comprising of 36 states. The capital is Abuja and the states are further divided into 774 Local government Areas. It has a population of 168.8 million (World Bank). It is the most populous country in Africa which is comprised of over 250 ethnic groups with 50% of them being Muslims and rest other minorities. The living standards are very poor and there is not a proper health care system in Nigeria. The GDP of Nigeria is $448.1 Billion ad per capita income is $2720 (World Bank). More than 75% people in Nigeria live in extreme poverty while small elite group of corrupt government officials profit greatly and live a lavish lifestyle better than many of the European countries.
Nigeria was under British Rule from 1900-1960 till the time it got its independence. Before the colonist they use to live in their own areas with their own cultures and leaders but after the Britishers arrived, they starting ruling over them using the Divide and Rule policy (CITATION). That policy was the beginning of the religious and ethnic problems in Nigeria which we currently see. Nigeria was organized as a loose …show more content…

In the 1970s there was an oil boom which helped Nigeria identify its importance and the role it could play if they control and use their oil reserves effectively. After the elections, Nigeria was seen as an African country with democracy and potential to succeed and do well economically in the future. But that perspective about Nigeria was short lived as the military took over again in 1984 and seized the control of the country’s oil resources (CITATION). For the next 15 years Nigeria was under military rule and several cases of corruption and bad governance were seen because there was no one who could question the military leader at that

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