An overview
The Federal Republic of Nigeria sits in West Africa along the Gulf of Guinea,
bordered by Niger to the north, Chad and Cameroon to the east, Benin to the
west, and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. Its land area of roughly
923,768 km² stretches from coastal mangroves and
rainforests in the south through a vast central savannah to the semi-arid
Sahel of the far north — a geography that has shaped the country's farming,
trade, and cultural diversity for centuries.
Modern Nigeria was formed in 1914 through the amalgamation of the Northern
and Southern Protectorates by the British colonial administration, and gained
independence on 1 October 1960. It became a
republic in 1963 and, after decades of civilian and military rule, returned
to enduring democratic governance in 1999. Today Nigeria operates a
presidential federal system with three tiers of government — federal, state,
and local — each anchored by an executive, a legislature, and an independent
judiciary.
English is the official language of government, education, and commerce,
while Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo are the most widely spoken indigenous
languages alongside hundreds of others. The currency is the
Nigerian naira (₦), the country uses West Africa Time
(UTC+1) year-round, and its international dialling code is +234.
Geography & geo-political zones
For administrative and political balance, Nigeria's 36 states and the FCT
are grouped into six geo-political zones. These zones — though informal —
play an important role in elections, federal appointments, and the
country's social fabric.
- North West — Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara
- North East — Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, Yobe
- North Central — Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Plateau, FCT
- South West — Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo
- South East — Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo
- South South — Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Rivers
People & culture
Nigeria's population is one of the youngest in the world, with a median age
of around 18. Three large ethnic groups — the Hausa-Fulani
of the north, the Yoruba of the south-west, and the
Igbo of the south-east — sit alongside hundreds of smaller
nations including the Ijaw, Kanuri, Tiv, Ibibio, Efik, Nupe, Edo, and many
more. Islam and Christianity are the two largest faiths, practised
alongside enduring indigenous traditions.
The country's cultural output reaches the world through
Nollywood, the second-largest film industry on Earth by
annual output, and through Afrobeats — a genre, pioneered locally, that has
become a defining sound of contemporary global pop. Festivals like the
Eyo of Lagos, Argungu fishing festival of Kebbi, Durbar of the northern
emirates, and the Calabar Carnival showcase a heritage that is at once
deeply rooted and continuously reinvented.
Economy
Nigeria has Africa's largest economy by GDP. Crude oil and natural gas
from the Niger Delta have long anchored government revenue and exports,
but agriculture — cassava, yams, sorghum, cocoa, and a growing rice
sector — remains the country's largest source of employment. Lagos has
emerged as a continental hub for fintech and start-ups, with companies
such as Flutterwave, Paystack, and Andela helping to put Nigeria at the
centre of African technology.
