Nigeria

Hi everyone,

So, this is my first blog. I started my journey in Nigeria, more particularly in Lagos. Because of my studies, Marketing, I’m very interested in business in general. So I thought it might be nice to stay in the biggest business centre of Nigeria for a while. What I have learned from my 1 week stay in Nigeria is that it has an amazing and impressive economy. So, this is something I should really tell you more about.

First of all, the currency here is the naira (sign: ₦; code: NGN) and it is subdivided into 100 kobo. You have 3 sorts of coins: 50 kobo, 1 & 2 naira. You have also banknotes: 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 & 1000 naira. At this moment 1 € = 210 Naira and 1USD = 154 Naira. Once you got that, it’s time for some shopping!

Another thing you should know about Nigeria’s economy is that Nigeria is ranked the 44^th worldwide and 3^rd in Africa in factory output. That is something I would never had expected! An example: in 2000, oil and gas exports accounted for more than 98% of export earnings and 83% of federal government revenue. Well, that can count! The largest trading partner of Nigeria is the United Kingdom, followed by the United States.

At last, I will tell you something about transport in Nigeria. The main thing about transport in Nigeria is that it’s owned by the government. And of course, that is a major constraint to economic development. There are 3 big ports you must see when you visit Nigeria: Lagos, Port Harcourt and Calabar. These ports are really impressive! When I visited the Lagos port, I met someone who told me that the docking fees for freighters are among the highest in the world! Besides the ports, Nigeria has another important source of transportation: airports. There are several airports in Nigeria, but only 4 of them currently receive international flights: Lagos, Kano, Port Harcourt and Abuja. What’s remarkable here is that Nigeria Airways, the airport owned by the government, is not in the list of the airports who receive international flights!

I was really blown away when I read this on a webpage. Before my trip to Nigeria, I thought Nigeria was poor, far away from reality, … But after being here, that image has changed totally! Nigeria is ranked the 44^th (worldwide!) in factory output. It has 3 big ports and several airports. So unlike what I thought, Nigeria is not at all cut off from the outside world, the real world.

If you want to know more about the impressive economy of Nigeria, here is the source I used: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Nigeria

I hope you enjoyed my explanation. Tomorrow I leave Nigeria behind and go to the next stop of our travel: Tunisia. See you then for another interesting blog!

Bye,

Libera Noerens