Social Development in Nigeria

Nigeria is a multi-ethnic, multi-faith, and multicultural country. This means that many ethnicities from different cultures practice different religions and beliefs all within one country. This can be the source of a culturally rich society where many people can share ideas and information. However, it's also a source of conflict and separation. By exploring the history and social development progress in Nigeria, we'll be able to better understand Nigeria's social changes.

Major Social Developments in Nigeria

To begin, important to understand what development is. Development is a country's progress in economic and social sectors (e.g., living standards, quality of life). There are different measures that focus on a country's economic and social progress. For instance, some essential social measures are the Human Development Index (HDI), which is a combined measure of life expectancy, Gross National Income (GNI), and the education index. The higher the HDI is, the more socially developed a country is. Before understanding major social development in Nigeria, it's critical to understand the history and social demographics.

Causes of Social Development in Nigeria

There are several important historical and social events which play into the causes of social development in Nigeria. Nigeria's colonial and social history, in particular, its colonial history and civil war can explain much of the current social developments Nigeria is facing until now.

Colonial History and Civil War

Nigeria's borders were created from the UK's colonisation. From 1884 to 1960, Nigeria was predominantly controlled and exploited for resources by the UK. From the beginning, the UK was able to establish more rule and influence in the south, where Christianity spread. In the north, traditional rulers kept control and Islam remained the dominant religion. Due to the high diversity in ethnicities and cultures, the UK implemented a way of ruling that divided Nigerian groups away from each other. Hence, there are strong divisions within Nigeria, and even more so between the north and south.

Fig. 1 - Soldiers in the Nigerian Civil War

After independence in the 1960s, there were attempts to unite the country despite social and religious divisions. Three major provinces were apparent: the Hausa and Fulani in the north, the Yoruba in the southwest, and the Igbo in the southeast. Different military coups broke out to take control. In 1967, the Igbo declared independence as the Republic of Biafra. The Nigerian Civil War (or Nigerian-Biafran War) therefore began. Most of Nigeria blocked resources like food and supplies to Biafra, triggering a massive humanitarian crisis. In the end, Biafra surrendered in 1970 and became part of Nigeria once again. More than a million people died either from battle or starvation.

Present Political, Social, and Cultural Profile

Since 1999, Nigeria has had a stable government. It's part of several major political organisations and relationships. For instance, Nigeria is part of the British Commonwealth and recognises Queen Elizabeth II as the head. It's part of OPEC (the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries), an organisation of 13 countries that sets oil prices and maintains oil supply for the world. It's also a part of the United Nations (UN) and the African Union, with major peacekeeping roles. Despite these successes, there are still claims of major political corruption. There is little transparency and accountability at the political scale, leading to high levels of bribery and nepotism. Due to the misuse of tax money, other projects which can help the public aren't funded.

Currently, there are four dominant ethnic groups in Nigeria: Hausa (around 30%), Fulani (around 30%), Yoruba (around 20%), and the Igbo (around 18%). They are more or less divided across Nigeria based on location. Over 50% are Muslim (mainly in the north), around 45% are Christian (mainly in the South), and the remaining are different indigenous religions. Due to these historical divisions, tribalism is still a major issue for social progress in Nigeria.

Fig. 2 - Regions in Nigeria (2021)

Despite these differences, Nigeria benefits from a thriving artistic and cultural music, film, and literature industry. Its version of 'Hollywood,' termed 'Nollywood' is one of the largest film industries in the world. Football is also an important sport for the country, and there are also several famous football players playing in Premier Clubs in the UK. Some examples are Emmanuel Dennis, Joe Aribo, and Calvin Bassey.

Social Development Problems in Nigeria

Nigeria's Human Development Index (HDI) value is at 0.539 and ranked at #161 of 189 countries in the world. This puts them in the low human development category. Nigeria's life expectancy is 54 years (compared to a global average of 73). However, in the last two decades, Nigeria's life expectancy increased by almost 10 years and years of schooling increased by over 1 year. Still, major social development problems in Nigeria are poverty, inequality, corruption, education, and terrorism. These problems form barriers to social development progress.

Poverty

60% of residents in Nigeria live in poverty, lacking access to sufficient resources such as healthcare, schooling, and income. With more of the population in poverty, the lower standard of living there is. This is also due to high unemployment, with over 25% of Nigerians without a job. The government is struggling to create new jobs and investments, leading to higher inequality within the country.

Inequality

Inequality is the gap in living standards between rich and poor. Nigeria's inequality is measured by the Gini Coefficient, the distribution of income across a country. Nigeria's Gini coefficient is 35.1, ranking it as moderately unequal. This means there's a strong gap between the rich and poor but not the worst in the world. Although Nigeria has a strong oil-producing economy, most of the money is kept within companies. This means there is a lack of funding for infrastructure such as housing and schools which would help Nigerians in poverty.

Corruption

Much of the issues of poverty and inequality also have to do with high corruption in the country. Corruption can take valuable resources and time away from social development progress. Transparency International, a non-profit organisation that studies global corruption, labelled Nigeria as one of Africa's most corrupt countries in 2016. Although this figure has improved, Nigeria still struggles with corruption.

Education

Nigeria's literacy rate, a percentage of the population that can read and write, is low (around 65%). Compared to the UK's literacy rate of 99%, the difference is significant. This is due to a lack of educational facilities, textbooks, and teachers in the country. This is a negative indicator for Nigeria as it prevents people from being able to take up higher employment and higher incomes.

Further, almost half of all girls in Nigeria do not have an opportunity to get an education. This is due to gender biases and cultural differences, where women's education is not as highly valued. This can further widen gender inequality as boys have more access to schooling and employment opportunities later on.

Terrorism

The Boko Haram terrorist group in Nigeria is strictly against western culture, including voting, dressing in western clothes, and secular education. Their means of fighting against these cultural differences is by kidnapping, attacking, and killing people, communities, and different religious groups. Unfortunately, 35,000 people have died since 2011 from their attacks.

Social Development Goals in Nigeria

As Nigeria's population only continues to expand, the social development problems could worsen. It's predicted that by 2050, the youth population alone could be 830 million and Nigeria is set to be one of the top 5 most populous countries in the world. In order to address social development problems, a clear set of social development goals in Nigeria is crucial. Nigeria has formed its goals along with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), a set of goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015 to end poverty, protect the environment, and ensure peace by 2030. These goals are meant as a guide for countries to follow to make more significant changes in their countries.

Social Development Policy in Nigeria

In 2017, Nigeria passed a major plan to address the SDG goals. The Economic and Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) includes different actions that address economic, social, and environmental development sectors.