Background & Likelihood of Conflict: Nigeria

General Information:

Nigeria is located in western Africa. It borders the Gulf of Guinea and is approximately double the size of California, maybe a little larger. It is bordered to the west by Benin, to the north by Niger, to the east by Cameroon, and shares a very small boarder with Chad to the northeast. The Nigerian flag is split evenly into three large vertical green and white stripes. The green is meant to symbolize the forests and the natural wealth of the country, while the white is meant to stand for peace and unity. (1)

While southern Nigeria is a very hot and wet equatorial climate, the middle is a tropical climate, and the northern Nigeria is an arid climate that consists of the Guinea savanna. It tends to be very dry but receives rain in a sporadic fashion, where some areas might receive a lot of rain throughout the season and other areas may receive none. As you travel farther north throughout northern Nigeria, the rainy seasons get progressively shorter. The Guinea savanna is different from the Sudan savanna because it has more trees than the Sudan savanna. (2) The different climates around the country are due to the differing rainfall received by each. As a general rule, Nigerian rainfall decreases as you move north and west. The southeast region, near the coast, receives the most rainfall. Due to these factors, Nigeria has most of its forests throughout the savanna but there are tropical rainforests in the south.(2)

Nigeria was Africa’s most populous nation, with an estimated 149,229,090 people as of July 2010. The median age for both males and females was estimated at approximately 19 years of age in 2010, as well as a life expectancy of approximately 47 years of age. The country contains over 250 ethnic groups, but the Hausa and Fulani, Yoruba, and Igbo are the top three (respectively) when it comes to population and political influence. (1) English is the official language, but other languages include: Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, and...