The Naira, denoted by NGN, is the official currency used in Nigeria. The Naira is divided into 100 Kobo. Notes are in denominations of N500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5; coins are in denominations of N1 kobo 50, 25, 10 and 1.
Travel Notes
Import of local currency is limited to N20 in notes and must be
declared on arrival; export of local currency is restricted to N20
in notes.
Import of foreign currency is unlimited, but it must be declared
on arrival; export is limited to the amount declared.
Penalties for black market transactions are severe.
Sovereign Ratings for Nigeria
Nigeria is not rated.
What does it look like?
Political Structure
The government of Nigeria is a republic comprised of executive, legislative and judicial branches.
The executive branch is made up of the President (who serves as both chief of state and head of government) and the Cabinet, also known as the Federal Executive Council. The president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms.
The legislative branch is a bicameral National Assembly, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Senate has 109 seats, three from each state and one from the Federal Capital Territory; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The House of Representatives has 260 seats, and members are also elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms.
The judicial branch is made up by the Supreme Court, whose judges are appointed by the Provisional Ruling Council. Additionally, the branch contains the Federal Court of Appeal; judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee.
Prominent Figures
President: Umaru Yar'Adua
Vice President: Goodluck Jonathan
Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria: Charles Soludo
Ambassador to the US: George Obiozor
Key Economic Factors
Economic Overview: Nigeria is an extremely oil-rich country, largely characterized by political instability, corruption, inadequate infrastructure, and poor macroeconomic management. The nation's former military rulers failed to diversify the economy away from its large dependence on its oil sector, which accounted for a fifth of GDP, 95% of foreign exchange earnings and more than half of budgetary revenues. The agricultural sector has not been able to keep up with Nigeria's rapid population growth, as the country is the most populous in all of Africa. For this reason, though the country was once a large net exporter of food, must import it. After the August 2000 signing of an IMF stand-by agreement, Nigeria received a debt restructuring deal from the Paris Club, as well as a $1B credit from the IMF; both were contingent on economic reforms. Nigeria failed to meet spending and exchange rate targets and thus pulled out of the IMF program in April of 2002. In 2004, the government has finally begun to show the political determination to implement market-oriented reforms urged by the IMF, such as modernization of the banking system, curbing inflation, and resolving regional disputes over the distribution of earnings from the oil industry. During 2003, the government began deregulating fuel prices, announced the privatization of the country's oil refineries, and instituted the National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy. GDP rose strongly in 2004.
Industries: Crude oil, coal, tin, columbite, palm oil, peanuts, cotton, rubber, wood, hides and skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food products, footwear, chemicals, fertilizer, printing, ceramics, steel and small commercial ship construction and repair.
Agricultural Products: Cocoa, peanuts, palm oil, corn, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava (tapioca), yams, rubber; cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, timber and fish.
Export Commodities: Petroleum and petroleum products, cocoa and rubber.
Import Commodities: Machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, manufactured goods, food and live animals.
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