Nigeria: trade, aid and quality of life

Trade and political links

Nigeria mainly exports crude oil and gas, plus crops such as cocoa.
It imports machinery, vehicles, food and refined fuel.
China has become a major trading partner and investor, building railways, roads and power stations.

Political links:

Nigeria is a member of the African Union, ECOWAS, the and OPEC, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
It sends troops on peacekeeping missions in Africa.
Its links with the UK, its former coloniser, remain strong, through trade, education and family ties.

Key terms

Aid

is help given by one country or organisation to another. Types:

bilateral: from one government to another;
multilateral: through organisations such as the World Bank;
short-term (emergency): after a disaster;
long-term: for development, such as schools and clean water;
NGO: from charities, such as Oxfam.

In Nigeria, aid has helped fund vaccinations: in 2020, the World Health Organization declared Africa free of wild polio, after Nigeria, the last country there with cases, stopped its spread. Aid also supplies malaria nets.

But aid can be lost to corruption, and can make a country dependent on donors.

Key terms

Environmental impacts

Economic growth has harmed Nigeria's environment:

Oil spills in the Niger Delta pollute creeks, farmland and fishing grounds. In 2011, a UN Environment Programme study of Ogoniland found that cleaning up its pollution could take 25 to 30 years.
burning off gas at oil wells releases greenhouse gases and pollutes the air.
forests are cleared for farming, logging and building.
Urban pollution: traffic in Lagos causes congestion and air pollution, and waste builds up faster than it can be collected.

Exam tip

Balance the benefits of economic growth against its environmental costs, with Nigerian examples.

Key terms

Quality of life

is how good people's lives are: their wealth, health, education, housing and freedom.

Improvements:

more jobs in services, manufacturing and technology;
more people with mobile phones and internet, for banking and business;
better vaccination coverage.

Problems:

life expectancy was 54.5 years in 2023, among the lowest in the world (World Bank);
an HDI of 0.560, 164th in the world;
the wealth from oil hasn't reached many people, and many still lack clean water and electricity.

Judgement: growth has improved life for some Nigerians, but the benefits are unevenly shared.

Key terms

Exam practice

Plan your own answer first, then open the model answers to see what each level looks like.

9 marks · about 9 minutes

To what extent has economic development improved the quality of life in an LIC or NEE you have studied?

To what extent means: Weigh up how far something is true, with evidence on both sides, then give a clear judgement.

Link it

Use the facts from:

Nigeria (Nigeria, West Africa, Present day)

Level 1 (Basic)· 3/9 marks (band 1–3)

Nigeria has more jobs now, but many people are still poor.

Why this level: Simple points with no evidence. To reach Level 2: use facts to explain how development has improved quality of life, and where it hasn't.

Level 2 (Clear)· 5/9 marks (band 4–6)

Economic development has improved life for some Nigerians. There are more jobs in services, manufacturing and technology, and more people use mobile phones for banking. Vaccinations helped Africa become free of wild polio in 2020. However, life expectancy was only 54.5 years in 2023.

Why this level: Clear evidence of improvements and one limit. To reach Level 3: develop the limits further (HDI, uneven oil wealth) and weigh them to reach a judgement.

Level 3 (Detailed)· 8/9 marks (band 7–9)

Economic development has improved quality of life for some Nigerians. The economy has shifted towards services, which were about 53% of GDP in 2019, creating jobs in banking, telecoms and the film industry, Nollywood. More people use mobile phones, including for banking. Health has improved in places: vaccinations helped Africa become free of wild polio in 2020, after Nigeria stopped its spread. However, many people have not benefited. Life expectancy was only 54.5 years in 2023, and Nigeria's HDI of 0.560 ranked 164th in the world, so quality of life is still low on average. Much of the wealth comes from oil, but it hasn't reached many people, who still lack clean water and reliable electricity, and oil pollution has harmed communities in the Niger Delta. Overall, development has improved quality of life, but only for some, and the gains are uneven between rich and poor and between regions.

Why this level: Detailed, accurate evidence of improvements and limits, with figures, weighed to reach a supported judgement. This is Level 3.

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