Nigeria is now the highest GDP country in Africa, but will it survive as a state?

[RollingWave]

Recently, Nigeria passed South Africa for the highest total GDP for an African country, but as a State, you can not help to feel the sense of impending doom.

As most of us who keep tabs with international news is probably aware. the Boko Harem group has been on of the most active islamic insurgency in the world in the last few years. Recently they stagged a massive kidnap of 200 School girls and also probably blew up a bunch of cars in the Capital city killing nearly 100.

Boko Harem's sphere of influence is basically throughout the entire northern Nigeria, 3 department out of the 36 in Nigeria is already in a state of emergency. Given the nature of the country, both geographically (bordering the very unstable Sahel region) and religiously (almost evenly split between Islam and Christianity.) and that despite being reasonably wealthy, they have little to no industrial capacity that can realistically be used in a military fashion, their military is almost entirely light infantry based. it seems like a ripped situation for disaster. (Thanks, silly Colonial state border drawing.)

Judging from the situation, I'm inclined to believe that there's significant chance that Nigeria will cease to exist in it's present form sometime in the next couple decades. it will either split in half or the entire south may be overrun. The later is a bit less likely due to it requiring a full conventional war, of which UN intervention would become almost a certainty, but the former... seems rather hard to avoid at this point.

[Sphere]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Tiger

[Verr]

greed made by the west imported to africa, the most hideous poison ever

[Ace_General]

greed made by the west imported to africa, the most hideous poison ever

Lol white guilt much? The Chinese do just as much if not more business in Africa, as did the Communist Bloc in the cold war.

And capitalism and greed are not only western inventions, and it has actually massively raised the standard of living of almost everyone on the planet. What would you rather of had them stay in a Feudal or tribal political and economic system where most children didnt survive to adulthood?

[Col. Tartleton]

greed made by the west imported to africa, the most hideous poison ever

Yes, Nigeria was a Utopia before.

[Alkaline Earth]

Yes, Nigeria was a Utopia before.

If imperialists from the west had never taken africa, and they were still little huts, i would bet there would be less deaths from war.

its a trade off, truly.

[hellheaven1987]

If imperialists from the west had never taken africa, and they were still little huts, i would bet there would be less deaths from war.

Too bad Muslim Hivemind already reached Nigeria before Western Imperialists.

[Col. Tartleton]

If imperialists from the west had never taken africa, and they were still little huts, i would bet there would be less deaths from war.

its a trade off, truly.

They had cities and countries you know. Armies, kingdoms, slavery, and wars. Trade with the Orient and trade with Europe. They had guns, germs, and steel.



This man was an ambassador to the Netherlands, impeccably dressed in Dutch fashion circa 1640.

[Sharpe]

If imperialists from the west had never taken africa, and they were still little huts, i would bet there would be less deaths from war.

its a trade off, truly.

Ugh, the West African kingdoms were immensely powerful before European arrival and during. Kingdoms such as Dahomey made their fortune off selling African slaves to other Africans, the Arabs and in turn to the Europeans.

The Bight of Benin was seen as too costly to conquer by the Europeans and so the kingdoms were used as middlemen to fuel the European's Atlantic trade and the British triangular trade, as well as making the African Kingdoms selling the slaves into powerhouses.

[Condottiere 40K]

I kinda think that Nigeria will rattle along as it is, a while longer.

At the moment it has a security problem, and a question has been raised if the government is now prepared to get more concrete assistance from outside sources.

I think external vested interests will be less concerned once oil production has peaked.

[Caelifer_1991]

I imagine that Nigeria will be fine, as far as African countries go its fairly powerful, large population, fast growth, natural resources... so long as it continues to get richer and uses that to improve its military capability it'll be relatively fine, it just has to last long enough to become rich enough for religion to begin to become irrelevant.

[hellheaven1987]

As long as south continue pump their oil money to north, Nigeria would be fine; everyone loves to be rich, even Somali pirates love that.

[Condottiere 40K]

Until you kidnap their daughters.

[Rijul.J.Ballal]

Wasn't there a controversy in the way they measured the GDP?

[Condottiere 40K]

Minor incompetence, actually.

[Col. Tartleton]

Spoiler for Snelweg Rik Ross: