Nigeria has a quarter of Africa’s extreme poor, with 100 million of a population of 158 million living on less than £1 a day. Every day 136 women die due to complications during pregnancy. Over 2300 children under five die every day from malnutrition or preventable diseases, and 10.5 million children do not go to school, the most of any country in the world. Despite producing oil, Nigeria’s total economy is one thirteenth of the size of the UK’s. Unless progress is made in Nigeria, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be met in Africa. Nigeria’s poverty is stark. Despite producing oil, Nigeria is not a rich country. Its total economy is one twentieth the size of the UK’s economy, with many more people. The country is Africa’s most populous, with an estimated 158 million people, and has a quarter of the continent’s extreme poor. More than 100 million Nigerians (64%) live on less than £1 a day. The country has the most poor men and women after India and China. Nigeria now has 10% of the world’s children out of school, 10% of the world’s child and maternal deaths, and 25% of global malarial cases. Many girls and women are excluded from opportunities: 60% of 6-17 year old girls in northern Nigeria are not in school. As highlighted in the 2010 UK Bilateral Aid Review, unless progress is made in Nigeria, Africa will fail to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Nigeria’s economic potential is considerable because of the size of its domestic market, its geographical position and its human and natural resources. Oil price rises impact positively on government revenue, but more must be done to improve the use of oil revenues. The non-oil sectors of the economy have been growing fast in recent years (over 10% a year), but wealth creation is skewed to the already well-off. Constraints to more inclusive growth include poor infrastructure such as power and roads, and access to financial services for small and medium businesses, and poor people. Over 80% of Nigerian businesses identify the lack of electricity as their biggest constraint, with national power supply equivalent to that used by the UK city of Birmingham. 63% of Nigerians do not have access to financial services. Job creation is hampered by high import and export barriers, inefficient markets and the business environment, with Nigeria ranked 137 out of 184 in the global 2011 Doing Business Report. Agriculture is the main livelihood for poor people, but productivity is very low. Nigeria is a major food importer which makes poor people vulnerable to rising global food prices. Poor governance, including the misuse of oil wealth and corruption, has held back Nigeria’s development. Ethnic competition, extreme inequalities and regional tensions have also created grievances. Oil wealth has fuelled patronage and undermined the accountability of elites to citizens. During military rule very little of this wealth was used responsibly or reached ordinary people. Public institutions went into decline. Mismanagement of the economy discouraged investment and private sector growth. Better governance and stability are central to Nigeria’s progress. Since the return of democracy in 1999 progress has been made and the 2011 elections were seen as Nigeria’s best to date. However, over the last two years, increasing insecurity in northern Nigeria has resulted in thousands of deaths and greater economic, political and religious divisions. Underlying causes include youth unemployment, poor governance and political exclusion. The Federal Government of Nigeria’s Vision 20: 2020 outlines the strategies needed for growth. The Presidency’s Countdown Strategy 2010 to 2015: Achieving the MDGs outlines the gaps, policies and investments needed to reduce poverty. In 2006 a Paris Club Debt Deal, in which Nigeria repaid $12 billion, led to donors writing off $18 billion. Total official development assistance (ODA) to Nigeria was a little over $1 billion in 2008 (excluding debt relief). This is small compared to other African countries (less than 1% of Gross National Income (GNI)). DFID works within a joint Country Partnership Strategy for Nigeria (2010-13) with the African Development Bank (AfDB), USAID and the World Bank, but also co-ordinates with the European Union (EU) and United Nations (UN) agencies. Despite the small scale of ODA, it can contribute significantly to better government policies, institutions, and programmes, and have direct impacts on poor people.
Posted on: Sat, 10 Aug 2013 10:52:27 +0000
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