Nigeria

Despite having one of the world's largest petroleum reserves and a wealth of natural resources—or perhaps because of it—the Federal Republic of Nigeria is plagued by dire poverty, poor governance, and environmental crises. Although the country adopted a new constitution in 1999 as part of a peaceful transition to civil government after almost 16 years of military government, the flow of resources out of the country continues unabated, while corruption and mismanagement plague the state. Attempts to rebuild damaged infrastructures and provide political stability have been threatened by ongoing tensions, as portions of the largely disenfranchised population turn to radicalized religious and political action. This volatile situation was much in evidence in 2006 when repercussions from a Danish caricature of the Prophet Muhammad led to the deaths of 100 Nigerians as Christians and Muslims attacked one another. Militants in the Niger River delta, protesting the massive poverty amidst resource wealth, have attacked pipelines and kidnapped workers.

Nigeria's natural resources include natural gas, petroleum, tin, iron ore, coal, limestone, niobium, lead, and zinc. Industry remains focused on oil, which accounts for 20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, 95 percent of foreign exchange earnings, and around 65 percent of government revenues. Nigeria's other valuable resource is arable land (33.02 percent) and 70 percent of the workforce is engaged in mostly subsistence agriculture, which provides only 26.7 percent of the Gross Domestic Project. Nigeria's population has outstripped agricultural production, however, and much of the food supply is imported.

Major economic reforms were instituted in 2003 that nationalized four oil refineries and implemented International Monetary Fund reconstruction and growth measures. In 2005, initial debt relief from the Paris Club paved the way for billions more. At present, however, Nigeria remains a poor country with a per capita income of only $1,000, which places the country 211th of 232 countries in world incomes. Sixty percent of Nigerians live in poverty. Nigeria is ranked 50.6 on the Gini Index of Inequality, with the richest 10 percent holding 40.8 percent of wealth, and the bottom 10 percent sharing 1.6 percent of resources. The United Nations Development Programme's Human Development Reports rank Nigeria 158th in the world in overall quality of life issues. This is despite the fact that oil exports have earned revenues in excess of $340 billion over the last four decades; roughly nine percent of U.S. oil imports originate in Nigeria.

Bordering the Gulf of Guinea and the Bight of Benin in the Atlantic Ocean, Nigeria has a coastline of 853 kilometers and 13,000 square kilometers of inland water resources. A good deal of this water comes from the Niger River, which flows southward through tropical rain forests and swamps on its way to the Gulf of Guinea. Nigeria shares land borders with Benin, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger.

The southern lowlands give way to hills and plateaus in central Nigeria and to mountains in the southeast and plains in the north. Elevations range from sea level to 2,419 meters at Chappal Waddi. The climate of Nigeria is varied. Southern Nigeria is equatorial, and the north is arid, while central Nigeria is tropical. Nigeria is prone to periodic droughts and flooding.

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