Nigeria country profile

Physical Geography
Official Name: Federal Republic of Nigeria
Climate: varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north
Map
Absolute Location: 10 00 N, 8 00 E
Relative location: Western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between Benin and Cameroon
Political Geography
Type of government: federal republic
Capital: Abuja
Size of armed forces International Organization participation: ACP, AfDB, AU, C, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Cultural Geography
Official language: English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani
Population: 149,229,090
Population growth rate: 1.999% (2009 est.)
Major cities:
Infant mortality rate and average life expectancy: total population: 46.94 year, country comparison to the world: 216, male: 46.16 yea, female: 47.76 years (2009 est.)
Economic Geography
GNP (Gross National Product): $293 billion
GDP (Gross Domestic Product): $353.2 billion
Percent of arable land used for agriculture: 33%
Natural resources: Oil and natural gas, tin, columbite, iron ore, coal, limestone, lead, zinc.
Major agricultural and industrial products: cocoa, palm oil, yams, cassava, sorghum, millet, corn, rice, livestock, groundnuts, cotton.
Major exports and imports: textiles, cement, food products, footwear, metal products, lumber, beer, detergents, car assembly
Currency: 1.00 NGN=0.212774
Historical events:
1472 - Portuguese navigators reach Nigerian coast.
1861-1914 - Britain consolidates its hold over what it calls the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria, governs by "indirect rule" through local leaders.
1967 - Three eastern states secede as the Republic of Biafra, sparking bloody civil war.
1970 - Biafran leaders surrender, former Biafran regions reintegrated into country.
1983 January - The government expels more than one million foreigners, mostly Ghanaians, saying they had overstayed their visas and were taking jobs from Nigerians. The move is condemned abroad but proves popular in Nigeria.
1983 December - Major-General Muhammad Buhari seizes power in bloodless coup.
1999 - Parliamentary and presidential elections. Olusegun Obasanjo sworn in as president.
2003 July - Nationwide general strike called off after nine days after government agrees to lower recently-increased fuel prices.
2004 May - State of emergency is declared in the central Plateau State after more than 200 Muslims are killed in Yelwa in attacks by Christian militia; revenge attacks are launched by Muslim youths in Kano.
2004 August-September - Deadly clashes between gangs in oil city of Port Harcourt prompts strong crackdown by troops. Rights group Amnesty International cites death toll of 500, authorities say about 20 died.