A report just released by the United Nations, on Nigeria’s Common Country Analysis, CCA, has revealed a deeply divided society on the basis of the plurality of ethnic, religious and regional identities that define the country’s political existence.
The report also painted a gloomy picture, with most of the development and
social indices in the country registering at levels unacceptable. The report,
which was read during a consultative meeting on the formulation of the UN
Development Assistance Framework IV (UNDAF IV) for the South East geo-political
zone in Awka observed that for decades, different segments of Nigeria’s
population had, at different times, expressed feelings of marginalization, of
being short –changed, dominated, oppressed, threatened, or even targeted for
elimination. The report read in part: “Nigeria, with a population of over 75
million, is the most populous nation in Africa and the seventh most populous in
the world. Her population will be approximately 200 million by 2019 and over
400 million by 2050, becoming one of the top five populous countries in the
world. “Nigeria is one of the poorest and most unequal countries in the world,
with over 80 million or 64% of her population living below poverty line.
The
situation has not changed over the decades, but is increasing. Poverty and
hunger have remained high in rural areas, remote communities and among female
–headed households and these cut across the six geo-political zones, with
prevalence ranging from approximately 46.9 percent in the South West to 74.3
percent in North West and North East. “In Nigeria, 37% of children under five
years old were stunted, 18 percent wasted, 29% underweight and overall, only
10% of children aged 6-23 months are fed appropriately based on recommended
infant and young children feeding practices. “Youth unemployment which is 42%
in 2016 is very high, creating poverty, helplessness, despair and easy target
for crime and terrorism. Over 10 million children of school age are out of
schools with no knowledge and skills. “Nigeria’s economy is currently in a
recession and it is estimated that government revenues have fallen by as much
as 33 percent, which has further resulted in the contraction of the Gross
Domestic Product, GDP, by 0.36 percent in the first three months of 2016. “The
vulnerable macroeconomic environment in Nigeria is affecting investors’
confidence in the domestic economy.”
