Location: Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon

Geographic coordinates: 10 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 923,770 sq km
land: 910,770 sq km
water : 13,000 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly more than twice the size of California

Land boundaries:
total: 4,047 km
border countries: Benin 773 km, Cameroon 1,690 km, Chad 87 km, Niger 1,497 km

Coastline: 853 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone : 200 nm
territorial sea: 30 nm

Climate: varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north

Terrain: southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, plains in north

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point : Chappal Waddi 2,419 m

Natural resources: petroleum, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc, natural gas

Land use:
arable land: 33%
permanent crops: 3%
permanent pastures: 44%
forests and woodland: 12%
other : 8% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 2,330 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: periodic droughts

Environment - current issues: soil degradation; rapid deforestation; desertification; recent droughts in north severely affecting marginal agricultural activities

Environment - international agreements:
party to : Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Desertification

Population: 129,934,911 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.6% (male 28,503,211; female 28,156,976)
15-64 years:53.6% (male 35,418,119; female 34,179,802)
65 years and over :2.8% (male 1,832,682; female 1,844,121) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 2.8% (male 1,832,682; female 1,844,121) (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 39.22 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.33 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years : 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.99 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 72.49 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 50.59 years
male: 50.58 years
female : 50.6 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 5.49 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Nigerian(s)
adjective: Nigerian

Ethnic groups: Nigeria, which is Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the following are the most populous and politically influential: Hausa and Fulani 29%, Yoruba 21%, Igbo (Ibo) 18%, Ijaw 10%, Kanuri 4%, Ibibio 3.5%, Tiv 2.5%

Religions:Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10%

Languages: English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Ibo, Fulani

Literacy:
definition : age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 57.1%
male: 67.3%
female: 47.3% (1995 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form : Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria

Data code: NI

Government type:republic transitioning from military to civilian rule

National capital: Abuja
note : on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially moved from Lagos to Abuja; many government offices remain in Lagos pending completion of facilities in Abuja

Administrative divisions:36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Abuja Federal Capital Territory*, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara

Independence: 1 October 1960 (from UK)

National holiday: Independence Day, 1 October (1960)

Constitution: 1979 constitution still partially in force; plan for 1989 constitution to take effect in 1993 was not implemented

Legal system: based on English common law, Islamic law, and tribal law

Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Federal Executive Council
elections:president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms
election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 62.8%, Olu FALAE (APP-AD) 37.2%

Legislative branch:bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats, three from each state and one from the Federal Capital Territory; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (360 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003); House of Representatives - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 23%, AD 19%; seats by party - PDP 67, APP 23, AD 19; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 30%, AD 12%; seats by party - PDP 221, APP 70, AD 69

Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee)

Political parties and leaders: All People's Party or APP [leader NA]; Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Audu OGBEH]

International organization participation: ACP, AfDB, C (suspended), CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAVEM III, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNPREDEP, UNTAES, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jibril AMINU
chancery: 1333 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Howard Franklin JETER
embassy: 2 Eleke Crescent, Lagos
mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos
telephone : [234] (1) 261-0097
FAX: [234] (1) 261-0257

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green

Economy - overview: The oil-rich Nigerian economy, long hobbled by political instability, corruption, and poor macroeconomic management, is undergoing substantial economic reform under the new civilian administration. Nigeria's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from overdependence on the capital-intensive oil sector, which provides 20% of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings, and about 65% of budgetary revenues. The largely subsistence agricultural sector has failed to keep up with rapid population growth, and Nigeria, once a large net exporter of food, now must import food. Following the signing of an IMF stand-by agreement in August 2000, Nigeria received a debt-restructuring deal from the Paris Club and a $1 billion credit from the IMF, both contingent on economic reforms. The agreement was allowed to expire by the IMF in November 2001, however, and Nigeria appears unlikely to receive substantial multilateral assistance in 2002. Nonetheless, increases in foreign oil investment and oil production should push growth over 4% in 2002.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $105.9 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 3.5% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $840 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture : 39%
industry:33%
services: 28% (2000 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 14.9% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
total: 66 million (1999 est.)
by occupation:agriculture 70%, industry 10%, services 20% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 28% (1992 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $3.4 billion
expenditures:$3.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries: crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel

Industrial production growth rate: -0.3% (2001 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 5.88 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 15.9 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 14.768 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber ; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs; fishing and forest resources extensively exploited

Exports:
total value : $20.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
commodities: petroleum and petroleum products 95%, cocoa, rubber
partners : US 46%, Spain 11%, India 6%, France 5%, Brazil (2000)

Imports:
total value: $13.7 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)
commodities: machinery, transportation equipment, manufactured goods, chemicals, food and animals
partners : UK 11%, US 9%, France 9%, Germany 7%, China (2000)

Debt - external: $32 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $250 million (1998)

Currency: 1 naira(NGN) = 100 kobo

Exchange rates: nairas per US dollar - 115 (January 2002), 101.697 (2000), 92.338 (1999), 21.886 (1998), 21.886 (1997)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 500,000 (2000)

Telephone system:an inadequate system, further limited by poor maintenance; major expansion is required and a start has been made
domestic:intercity traffic is carried by coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, a domestic communications satellite system with 19 earth stations, and a coastal submarine cable; mobile cellular facilities and the Internet are available
international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean); coaxial submarine cable SAFE (South African Far East)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 83, FM 36, shortwave 11 (2001)

Radios:23.5 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 3 (the government controls 2 broadcasting stations and 15 repeater stations) (2002)

Televisions: 6.9 million (1997)

Railways:
total: 3,557 km
narrow gauge: 3,505 km 1.067-m gauge
standard gauge: 52 km 1.435-m gauge
note:years of neglect of both the rolling stock and the right-of-way have seriously reduced the capacity and utility of the system; a project to restore Nigeria's railways is now underway (2001)

Highways:
total:193,200 km
paved: 59,892 km (including 1,194 km of expressways)
unpaved: 133,308 km
note : many of the roads reported as paved may be graveled; because of poor maintenance and years of heavy freight traffic - in part the result of the failure of the railroad system - much of the road system is barely usable (2001)

Waterways: 8,575 km consisting of the Niger and Benue rivers and smaller rivers and creeks

Pipelines: crude oil 2,042 km; petroleum products 3,000 km; natural gas 500 km

Ports and harbors: Calabar, Lagos, Onne, Port Harcourt, Sapele, Warri

Merchant marine:
total : 43 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 331,094 GRT/614,171 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 7, chemical tanker 4, petroleum tanker 29, roll on/roll off 1, specialized tanker 1

Airports: 70 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 35
over 3,047 m: 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m : 2 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 35
1,524 to 2,437 m:14
914 to 1,523 m : 12
under 914 m :18 (2001)

Heliports: 1 (2001)

Military branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, paramilitary Police Force

Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 30,808,598 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males: 17,698,911 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males : 1,375,112 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $374.9 million (FY01)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1% (FY01)

Disputes - international: Nigeria disputes several villages with Benin along the Okpara River, and only 35 km of their common boundary are demarcated; the Benin-Niger-Nigeria tripoint remains undemarcated; Lake Chad Basin Commission urges signatories Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria to ratify delimitation treaty over lake region, the site of continuing armed clashes; oral arguments on the land and maritime boundary disputes between Cameroon and Nigeria were presented to the ICJ; disputes center around Bakasi Peninsula, where armed clashes continue, Bouram Island on Lake Chad, and the maritime boundary and economic zone dispute in the Gulf of Guinea, which also involves Equatorial Guinea; Nigeria requests and Chad rejects redemarcation of boundary, which lacks clear demarcation in sections and has caused several cross-border incidents

Illicit drugs: facilitates movement of heroin en route from Southeast and Southwest Asia to Western Europe and North America; increasingly a transit route for cocaine from South America intended for European, East Asian, and North American markets