Nigeria was the seventh most populous nation in the world in 2020, with 206.1 million people. Projected to reach a population of 401.3 million by 2050, Nigeria will rank third after India (1st) and China (2nd). According to Institut national d'études démographiques' projections, Nigeria, Ethiopia, DR Congo, Egypt, Tanzania, and Kenya will be among the world’s top 20 most populous countries by 2050.
Between 2018 and 2021, adult literacy rates across African nations exhibited significant disparities. Seychelles and South Africa led with literacy rates of 96% and 95%, respectively, indicating a high proportion of literate adults. Conversely, Chad had the lowest literacy rate during this period.
These statistics underscore the uneven progress in educational attainment across Africa, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to improve literacy in lower-performing nations.
Food prices have continued to increase as Nigeria's headline inflation hit 34.19% in June 2024, one of the highest globally.
Rising fuel costs are impacting transportation prices of goods and services, straining household budgets and contributing to inflation. The average cost of petrol in Nigeria has increased by 25% since July 2023. Diesel prices have seen an even sharper increase of 85%, rising from a national average of ₦794 in July 2023 to ₦1,462 in June 2024.
Nigeria's Federal Government and organised labour have recently agreed on a new minimum wage of ₦70,000, with a commitment to review the national minimum wage law every three years. In the 43 years since 1981, Nigeria's national minimum wage has only increased five times, averaging 8-9 years between each increase.
Regular reviews could help ensure that wage increases are gradual and predictable, thereby reducing economic shocks, maintaining pace with inflation, and purchasing power for workers.
Nigeria's per capita electricity production has fluctuated in the past two decades. In this time, production has remained within the range of 120 kWh to 194 kWh.
Here is a visual representation of the country's per capita electricity production since 2000.
On average, the agricultural sector contributed 24.87% to Nigeria's GDP over the past decade. However, the sector's contribution has been declining since 2020, dropping from 26.21% to 25.18% in 2023.
The sector’s contribution grew between 2014 and 2020, rising from 22.9% to 26.21%. The sector has been plagued with challenges over the past decade, with a couple of them becoming more intense in the past few years
South Africa and Egypt generated 239 terawatt-hours (TWh) and 201 TWh of electricity, respectively, in 2022, accounting for a combined 50% of Africa's 881 TWh. These countries, along with Algeria, Morocco, and Nigeria, accounted for 68% of the continent's total.
Despite being one of Africa's largest economies and having the continent's largest population, Nigeria's electricity generation has historically been lower than its potential.
About 28,844 TWh of electricity was generated globally in 2022. Driven by industrial growth and large populations in countries like China and India, Asian countries collectively accounted for 56%. North America and Europe followed, with 5,432 TWh and 4,731 TWh, respectively.
Africa generated less than 900 TWh, with key contributions from South Africa and Egypt. Oceania, primarily led by Australia, produced 330 TWh.
In 2022, Egypt, South Africa, Nigeria, Algeria, and Morocco collectively consumed an average of 2.712 million barrels of oil per day (Mb/d), 61% of the continent's daily oil consumption (4.478 Mb/d). African countries consumed 4.7% of the global usage (99.8 Mb/d).
Egypt used the most (850.5 thousand barrels per day (Kb/d)), followed by South Africa (601.2 Kb/d) and Nigeria (514.5 Kb/d).
The newly created Ministry of Livestock Development will push Nigeria's ministerial count to 50. President Tinubu's federal executive cabinet is the largest since Nigeria's return to democracy in 1999.
Within the first 12 years of the Fourth Republic, the largest cabinet had 30 ministers. President Jonathan was the first to have more than 30 ministers, with subsequent terms having more ministers.
Internet subscribers in Nigeria increased by 4.3% from 157.6m in March 2023 to 164.4m as of March 2024, an addition of 6.817m new subscribers. Lagos State has the largest share of active internet subscribers in Nigeria, but Nasarawa gained the most new subscribers in one year.
assarawa (604k) got the most new subscribers between Q1 2023 and Q1 2024, followed by Niger (456k) and Kano (387k). Benue (368k) and Kwara (315k) also saw impressive subscriber growth. Bauchi, Taraba, Katsina, Adamawa, and Kogi completed the top ten.
Nigeria's railway goods/cargo transport is experiencing a boost, with goods transported increasing from 9.1k tonnes in Q1 2021 to 160.7k tonnes in Q1 2024, representing 1,671% growth. Revenue has surged by 3,114% from ₦19m to ₦607m in the same period. Revenue has increased in eight consecutive quarters since Q2 2022.
