Sub-saharan country nigeria. Social Sciences. Term Paper

Nigeria
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Nigeria
Nigeria is an African country located at the south-east of West Africa and has its coast in the Gulf of Guinea and the Bight of Benin (Central Intelligence Agency, 2018). Nigeria has diverse geography because of its humid to arid equatorial climate. The country’s main feature is its population. By 2017, Nigeria had a population of approximately 190 million people (World Bank, 2018). This population size represents an annual growth of 2.6 percent per annum, up from the 1990s during which, the country’s total population was close to 95 million people (World Bank, 2018). The large population size also makes it the seventh most populated nation globally. The country’s large population can be attributed to poor policies, and as stipulated by the United Nations, by 2050, Nigeria will be ranked third on the list of most populated nations. The nation has different ethnolinguistic groups, some of which include the Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, and Fula. Nigeria also has plenty of natural resources, specifically natural gas and petroleum, which greatly contribute to the country’s GDP. The country also has a total arthe ea of 923, 768 square kilometers, which is slightly greater than twice the size of the state of California, and four times the size of the UK (Central Intelligence Agency, 2018).
Nigeria experienced a growth in GDP of 0.8 percent because of the continued growth in agriculture and expansion in oil output (World Bank, 2018). Compared to 2010, the country has experienced a significant drop in annual GDP growth from 7.8 percent per annum. The decrease in GDP can be linked to the high rates of unemployment and an increase in underemployment. The private sector has also experienced low credits while non-agricultural, and non-oil sectors have weakened as the country continues to focus more on the oil sector. Nigeria’s economy is highly dependent on the country’s exports. The main exports include crude petroleum ($27.1 billion), petroleum gas ($5.36 billion), cocoa beans ($741 million), Gold ($711 million) and refined petroleum ($582 million) (World Bank, 2018). A majority of the exports are shipped to India, Spain, South Africa, and the United States. On the other hand, the country imports most of its goods from China, Belgium, India, the United States, and the Netherlands. In 2016, the country exported products worth $36.9 billion and imported goods worth $35.1 billion, which represented 9 percent and 12 percent of the country’s GDP respectively (World Bank, 2018). The $1.81 billion difference in exports and imports represents a positive trade balance.
The country is, however, expected to experience a growth in GDP of 2 percent by the end of 2018, because of the high global oil prices, greater foreign exchange rate allocation, and reduced inflationary pressures. However, the 2 percent increase is low compared to the average sub-Saharan growth of 3.1 percent by the end of 2018 (World Bank, 2018). This expected growth will be higher than that experienced in the previous year. Nonetheless, political uncertainty can undermine growth prospects, especially during the 2019 elections. The life expectancy at birth in the country also rose from 51 years in 2010 to 53 years in 2016 (World Bank, 2018). The rise can be linked to the increase in healthcare improvements in the country. The infant mortality rate in Nigeria fell to 100 deaths per 1000 live births in 2016, compared to 130 deaths per 1000 live births in 2010 (World Bank, 2018). Nonetheless, the infant mortality rate in the country is high compared to other nations as Nigeria is ranked third in the list of countries with the highest number of newborn deaths. In general, the infant mortality rate in sub-Saharan Africa is lower than that of Nigeria at 29.4 per 1000 live births (World Bank, 2018). More so, the average life expectancy in the entire sub-Saharan Africa is higher at 60.7 years compared to that of Nigeria, mainly because of the improved nutrition and access to clean drinking water. Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia are the two regions where a majority of infant deaths are recorded. In sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria tops the list of highest number of newborn deaths with an average of 9 percent of the total infant deaths experienced globally. Other African countries include the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ethiopia, which represent 4 percent and 3 percent respectively. The high infant mortality rates and the low life expectancy is because of the country’s neglect for the healthcare system. Majority of poor Nigerians lack access to basic healthcare which limits them from receiving treatment for avoidable illnesses thus leading to more deaths. With regards to GDP, Nigeria has the largest economy compared to other sub-Saharan countries. South Africa comes second after topping the list for several decades. In 2017, Nigeria’s GDP was $375 billion, while that of South Africa was $349 billion (World Bank, 2018). The high GDP is as a result of contributions from both the oil sector and the non-oil sector which contributed 8.68% and 91.32% respectively. The oil sector has shown potential growth compared to 2016 during which it contributed 8.35% of GDP. Judging by the moves by the Nigerian government to reform the oil industry, the oil sector is bound to increase its contribution to the nations GDP in the future. Compared to other sub-Saharan countries, Nigeria has a larger population. The large number contributes to higher poverty levels as the abundant resources do not equally benefit the citizens. In addition to the high population, Nigeria has a high rate of income inequality which has led to high poverty levels in the country (World Bank, 2018). Compared to 2003, the inequality trends had steadily increased with a GNI index of 40% to 43% in 2009. The income inequality has been brought about by corruption, selfishness, and greed of the politicians and wealthy individuals in the country. The country has also failed to manage its resources properly, and as a result, more individuals remain unemployed. Because of this, approximately 4 out of 10 people in Nigeria experience a movement into and out of poverty. As of 2016, approximately 21.5 percent of the country’s youths were unemployed. Data from 2009-2010 show that 53.5% of the country’s population live below the international poverty line of $1.90 per person per day (World Bank, 2018). The percentage is higher compared to that of the entire sub-Saharan Africa in which 42.3 percent of the entire population lives in the poverty headcount ratio of $1.90 a day (World Bank, 2018). Poverty levels are expected to increase in the country because of the uncertainty in oil prices as well as the regional disparities which have led to damage to infrastructure, low agricultural production, and food insecurity.
History-Before Independence
During the late 15th century, the Portuguese navigators took a significant part in slave trading in West and Central Africa (Metz, 1991). Slaves were primarily acquired through direct raids and forced to work on plantations. Afterward, the demand for slaves across the South and the North American States led to an increase in the slave trade across Africa. In Nigeria, Europeans initially acquired slaves by raiding coastal communities, but as the demand increased, they bribed local rulers, military aristocracy and traders to capture the slaves in exchange for horses, rum, industrial products and clothes (Metz, 1991). The increased slave trade in Nigeria expanded to a global market. By the early nineteenth century, more than 3.5 million slaves were shipped from Nigeria to South and North America (Metz, 1991). By involving the local agents to provide the slaves, Europeans, mainly Portuguese, Spanish and French, degraded the religious, social, and political structures that existed among the communities, thus destroying the trading patterns that existed. Most markets were turned into slave trading stations, and the local communities waged war against each other as they competed to provide a steady number of slaves. The communities that took part in the slave trade benefited greatly since their small villages quickly develop into towns (Metz, 1991). The wealth gained by the individuals in such communities was also used to gain political and social recognition.
After the British colonized Nigeria, they abolished the slave trade. However, the country had grown into an economic hub with long-standing contracts with European nations. The contracts gave way to the polarization that the country was going to experience in the years to come. The abolition of the slave trade was meant to encourage agriculture, which would benefit British industries. Additionally, the British greatly discouraged the production of food crops and instead, forced the local communities to grow cash crops which were meant to be transported to the British industries. The communities were forced to grow cocoa, cotton, and groundnuts which were exported to British industries, and neglected the growth of food crops which were meant to sustain the local people. Britain brought developments in the country by building a railway network and constructing roads to transport goods meant for trade. The routes allowed for the export of palm oil, and palm kernels which were mainly used in Europe to make lubricants for machinery and soap (Metz, 1991). The export of palm oil grew exponentially to one million euros a year by the end of 1840 (Metz, 1991). The high demand for cash crops, however, led to a shift in the demand for slaves to the local societies.
History-Since Independence
The 1930’s presented a new elite of professionals who pushed for independence. The groups formed movements that rose against the policies implemented by the colonial government and demanded new economic opportunities. Several debates and political parties emerged from 1949 over the issue of decolonization and independence. The movement led to the adoption of a new constitution in 1954, which also enabled the Nigerians People’s Congress (NPC) to attain 79 seats from the Northern part of Nigeria (Metz, 1991). Since NPC had the majority seats, it was invited by the colonial government to form a government. Led by the party’s Prime Minister Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, NPC formed a coalition government that aimed at preparing Nigeria for the withdrawal of the British colonialists (Metz, 1991). The government a...