AnEconomicHistory of Nigeriar86o-r96o ~ N I G E R I A lGeographicallocation 'i---_"'-r-....__,....._:_;10.00Miles 1600Km AnEconomicHistory of NigeriaI860-1960 R.OlujemiEkundare Methuen&CoLtd IINewFetterLaneLondonEC4 I ~ F i r $ ~published_l973 byMethuen&CoLtd, 11NewFetterLane,Londo11EC4P 4EE 1973R.0. Ekt111dare Printed inGreatBritainby RichardClay(TheChaucerPress)Ltd Bungay,Suffolk SBNhardbound 416751504 SBNpaperback416751601 Thistitleisavailableinbothhardbound and paperback editio11s.Thepaperbackeditionissold subjecttothe conditionthatitshallnot,bywayof tradeorotherwise, belent,resold,hiredoutorotherwisecirculatedwithout the publisher's priorconsentinany formof bindingor coverotherthanthatir1whichitispublished and without a similarconditionincludingthisconditionbeing imposed011thesubsequentpurchaser. Tomywife,StellaAdeola Contents Listof tables Listoffigures pagexi ForewordbyProfessorPeteri\1athias Preface PARTI:INTRODUCTION IAn introduction toNigeria Population,5;Historicalbackground,8;Politicalchanges,12; The national economy,15 XV xvii XXI 2An outline of pre-I86o foreigncontactsandtheir effects2I Thetrans-Saharantrade,21;RegularEuropea11maritime contacts,24;The slave trade,28 Socialand economicconditionsbyI86o37 TheindigenoussocialandpoliticalstmctHre,3 7;Thefiscal system,38;Agriwltural production,39;Locali11dustriesand crafts,41;Theproblemsof excha11ge,46;Transportand corn-rrmnicatioll,46;Commodity-currencies,48;Localtrade,49; Foreign trade,50 PART2:THEFIRSTBRITISHFOOTHOLDI 860-I900 4Generalsurvey57 Political der,elopments,6o;Tirechurchmissions and educatiorr, 64;The fiscalsystem,65 The foundationof moderncommerce70 Transportandcornrrumicatiorr,70;Agriculturearrdminirrg, 79;Money,currencyarrdbarrking,84;Foreigrrtrade,88 viiiContents PART3:THECOLONIALPERIODTO1945 6General survey Politicaldevelopments,104;Fiscalpolicy,106;Economic conditionsandpolicy,1 1 7 7Transport andcommunications Inla11dwaterways,128;Governmentmarineservices,130; Railways,134;Roadsa11droadtransport,142;Rail-road competition,147;Airtransport,149;Oceanshipping,151; Communicatiotls,154 Agriculturaldevelopments Palm products,1 62;Cocoa,167;Cotton,169; Other products, 171;Livestock,173 9Modem industrialproduction Theextractiveindustries,176;Thenon-extractiveindustries, 185 IOMoney,currency andbanking Moneyand wrreucy,187;Banking,192 IIForeigntrade Theexport trade,197;Theimport trade,209;Competitionin foreigntrade,217 PART4:THEMODERNECONOMICREVOLUTION I946-6o I2Generalsurvey Politicalchanges,226;Economicplanning,229;Thefiscal system,233;Developmentinstitutions,244 13Transport andcommunications Inla11dwaterways,253;Railways,257;Roads,264;Air tra11sport,269;Ocea11shipping,272;Postand telegraphs,274 14Agriculturalproduction andthemarketingboards Oil palmproducts,281;Cocoa,282;Cotto11,283;Ground-mlts,284;Rubber,284;Agriculturalresearch,285;The marketingboards,286 15Industrialdevelopment Businessincentives,295;Industrialestablishments,299; Industrial productionand theNigerianeconomy,31 o Contentsix 16 Money,currency andbanking 3 I3 Moneyandwrrency,313;Commercialbanking,316;The centralbank,324;TheStockExchangeandtheNigerian moneymarket,326 17 Foreign trade 328 Theexporttrade,330;Theimporttrade,335;Tradebalance andthetermsof trade,341;Tradecompetition,343 PART5:LIFE,LABOURANDSOCIETY IB The impact of development on the society 349 Healthandpopulation,349;Education,356;Labour,360; Theco-operativemovement,376 19 Epilogue:the post-independence yearsto1972 383 Philosophy oneconomic growth,383;The political economyof sectoralparticipation,385;Thenationaldevelopmentplans, 388;Economicindicators,397 Statisticalappendix 403 Bibliography417 Index441 Tables I. INigeria:area,populationanddensity 7 !.2Population of Nigeriabyethnicgroup,19638 !.3 Grossdomesticproduct at1962factorcost,1958-67IS !.4 SecondNationalDevelopmentPlan:majoritemsof expenditure20 3I Export of palm oiltoBritain from West Africa,I 83 I-so5I 32 Imports fromBritaintoWestAfrica,r83I-50 52 4I Revenue and expenditure ofLagos: selected years, 1862-99 66 5I Vesselsentering theport of Lagos,I 863-1900 76 52 PostOfficeSavingsBankdeposits,LagosI889-99 77 53 Palmoilproductionestimates,andpalmoilandpalm kernelexports,LagosI865-898o 5-4 Exportsof cocoa,LagosI886-998I 55 Valuesof totalimports and exports,Lagos1865--99 93 5.6Total volume of exports and average prices forpalm oil andpalm kernels,LagosI88I-90 94 57 Valuesof cottongoodsimportedintoLagos:selected years,I862-99 95 5.8Percentageof totalimportsand exportsof Lagoswith principalcountries:selectedyears,I865--9996 6.1Nigeriangovernmentrevenueande":penditure,1929-45 112 6.2Indexnumbersof import,export anddomesticprices, 1926-40119 6.3ColonialDevelopment FundforNigeria,1932 I2I 71 Marine services,Nigeria1925-35IJ2 72 Nigerian railway:totalcostof construction,1914-38137 xiiTables 73 Nigerianrailway:goodstraffic,1916-38 138 74 Nigerian raihvay:mileage,passengerand goodstraffic, 1924-39 139 75 Nigerian railway:detailedstatementof receipts,1903-38. 140 76 Roads maintained bytheNigerian government outstde townships,1924-38 144 7-7 Commercial vehiclesregisteredinNigeria,1929-39 146 78 Aircraft arriving from cmmtries outside Nigeria, 1941-5 ISO 7-9Cargo vesselsenteringNigerian ports,1914-38 152 7.10Letters,parcelsand telegramshandledby theNigerian PostOffice,1914-38 155 8.1 Number of oilpressesinuse,1932-7 165 8.2 Oilpalm plantations,1928-36 165 8.3 Palmoilproductionestimates,andpalm oilandpalm kernelexports,Nigeria,190o-44 166 8.4 Exportsof cocoa,190o-44 168 8.5 Exportsof cotton,190o-44 170 8.6Exportsof groundnuts,190o-44 172 91 Exports of tin:selectedyears,1907-45179 9.2 Numberof tin-miningconcerns,capitalof companies andtheirrelative size 180 9-3 Total output of gold,1914-45 181 9-4 Production and employment in the coalmines, 1924-36183 10.1Money in circulation:selectedyears,1922-45194 10.2aLiabilitiesof principalbanks,1943-5 195 10.2bAssetsof principalbanks,1943-5 195 11.1Mean minimum distance of farmsfrom metalled roads, navigablewaterways and railways198 11.2Exportsof principalproducts,1928-34205 11.3Importsof cotton piecegoods:selectedyears,190o-38210 1!.4Importsof certaingoods:selectedyears,190o-45 213 11.5Percentageof totalimports and exportswith principal countries:selectedyears,1900-38 215 12.1 Nigeriangovernment revenue,1946-60 233 12.2 Nigerian government expenditure,1946-60 234 12.3 Company tax by taxableprofit,1955--60 239 12.4 Allocationof fundsundertheColonialDevelopment andWelfareActs,1945-55240 Tablesxiii 12.5Currentrevenuefromfederalsourcesallocatedtothe regions,1953-60243 12.6Federalgovernment borrowing,1946-60244 12.7Statementof capitalexpenditurebytheUnitedAfrica group,1946-60.249 12.8Grossdomesticproductat1957pricesforfiscalyears 195o-6o251 13.1Niger River Transport fleet,1945--60255 13.2Trafficof theNiger River Transport bymajorport of origin anddestination,1959--60256 13.3NigerianRailwayCorporation:passengerandgoods trafficand receipts,1946-60262 13.4Number employed by theNigerian RailwayCorpora-tion,1947-60263 13.5Length of roads,1945-60266 J3.6Registrationof roadvehicles,1937--60268 13.7Aircraft arriving from countries outside Nigeria, 1946-60270 13.8WestAfrican AirwaysCorporation:passenger,freight and mailtraffic,1948--60271 13.9Shippingmovements atNigerianports,1946-60273 13.10Number of postalarticleshandledandannualrevenue frompostalservices,1945-60275 13.IIPostOfficeSavingsBankdepositsandwithdrawals, 1947-60277 13.12NigerianPostOffice:totalrevenueandexpenditure, 1948-60278 14.1Crops grown primarily for domestic use,1950 and 1957280 14.2Exportsof cotton andrubber,1946-60285 15.1The growth of domestic cigarette production,1946-60306 15.2The growth of domesticbeer production,1955--60307 15.3Production of principal economic minerals,1947--60309 15.4Gross product of manufacturing in constant 1957 prices, 195o--603 II 16.1Estimated currency in circulation,1946-60315 16.2Banksandbank branches,September1960318 16.3aAssetsof principalbanks,1946-60320 16.3bLiabilitiesof principalbanks,1946-60320 16.4Customers'liabilitiestobanksforloansandadvances, 1952--60322 xivTables 16.5 17.1 17.2 17-3 17-4 17-5 17.6 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 18.6 Detailed statement of the Central Bank ofNigeria, 1959 and1960 Valueof externaltradeandvisiblebalance,1946-6o Exportsof principalproducts,1946-6o:quantities Exportsof principalproducts,1946-60:values.. Imports ofselected consumer goods, 1946-6o: quantities Importsof selectedconsumergoods,1946-60:values Percentagesoftotalexportsandtotalimportsof principalcountries of origin,1946-6o Terms of trade,1948-60 Balanceof payments:overallbalanceon current trans-actions,1952--{)o Populationandpopulationestimates:selectedyears, 190o-{)o Centralgovernmentexpenditureoneducationand medical services, 1922-48 Grov;th of towns,1921-52/3 Primary occupationsof Nigerians:1952-3census Trade unionmembership,1944--{)0 Number of co-operative societies supervised by the Co-operative Department: selected years, 1939-60 Co-operativemarketingsocietiesandNigeriancocoa production,1935--{)o Comparisonof planforecastswithcurrentestimates, 197o-1and1971-2 Sectoralcontributiontogrossdomesticproductof Nigeriaat1962-3factorcost 325 330 332 333 336 337 339 341 342 351 353 355 361 369 379 395 396 Figures 1Geographicallocation 2Rivers Politicaldivisions:thetwelvestates 4Major ethnic groups frontispiece 4 6 9 Trans-Saharan caravanroutes22 6Transport andcommunications128 7Location of main agriculturalexport products157 8Exports andimports,190o-44199 9Nigerian Railway Corporation: imports carried,195o-60258 10Nigerian RailwayCorporation:internaltraffic,195o-60259 nNigerian Railway Corporation: exports carried,195o-60260 12Manufacturing industries300 13Mineraldeposits310 Foreword Itisnoexaggerationtoclaimthatthisbookopensanewchapter inthehistoriographyof Africa.Therehavebeendistinguished monographsonspecializedaspectsof Africaneconomicdevelop-ment,notablytradeandmorerecenteconomicpolicy.Somevery impressionisticassessmentshavebeenmadeaboutthecourseof economic changein Africamoregenerally.But,betweenthevery specializedresearch,theexcessivelygeneralandthelargeliterature on present-day problems of economic growth inAfrican countries, there hasbeen virtually nothing.Thisisthe firstsystematic study of thegeneraleconomicdevelopmentof Nigeria,includingitslong pre-colonialstory,and,withthis,itstandsasthefirstacademic economichistoryofanyblackAfricancountry.Scholarsand studentsfrommanylandswillthereforegiveitav.rarmwelcome. For a historian primarily concerned with understanding processes of economic change in Europe, the area of study to which thisbook isa contribution provokes much salutary thought.Where one field hasbeentilledandtilledagain,longpastthepointof diminishing returnsexceptwherenewtilthiscreatedbyfreshideasandnew evidence (when reploughing isvital),the other offers virgin land for cultivationwiththeprospectof richyields.Forthehistorianin Europe, written evidence,particularly legal evidence, stretches back intothemistsof pre-Carolingiantimes;andpost-classicalarchae-ology offers its own wide reuvreof data. For the economic history of Africancountriesbeforethecolonialperiodarchaeologyproduces little,wheremostindigenousartefactswereof mud,andanoral traditionhasleftlittletangibleevidenceforevaluationbythe historian'straditionaltechniques.OnlynowareWesternsocial historians beginning to explore the new \vorld - here a \'cry ancient world- of'oralhistory'.Paradoxically,evenwhenevidence xvmForeword becomes more abundant,with the arrival of colonial administrators, that data has encouraged traditions of study which mask some of the mostimportantattributesof theeconomy.Alienintruders,con-cernedmorewithpoliticalstabilityandasmallexportsectorof cash-crops,collectedinformationwhichignoredmuchof whatis no>vmisleadinglycalledthe'traditionaleconomy'. Ineconomichistorynolessthanpoliticalandconstitutional change,colonialcountrieshavebeentoooftenseenfromthedeck of aBritishvessel,standingoffshore,bysquintingdownaBritish municipaldrainpipe;studiedlop-sidedlyprimarilyfromthepoint ofviewofthecolonists,themetropolitaneconomyandthose economicfunctionsandbusinessinstitutionslinkingthecolonial territorytothehomecountry.Theobverseof thistradition,inits own way equally tmcritical,has been a blanket condemnation of the economicoppressionresultingfromthisimperialconnexion - the fmancialdrain,theblockagestogeneraleconomicgrowthand industrialization,thedistorted pattern of development. This book's attempt to study the economic impact of imperialism in moreobjectiveterms(Mr Ekundareisatrainedeconomist)isa welcomestepforwardoutof theruckof uncriticalassertionsbut-tressedbyselected,piecemealevidence.Itisalwaysinadequateto speakof \mderdevelopment'and'economicimperialism'asuni-versalentitieswhichcanbediscussedmeaningfully intheabstract, withoutconsiderationof thedifferenceswhichoccurinspeciftc contexts.Beyondthemostsuperficiallevelofanalysis,these assumptionsdarkencounsel.Bothunderdevelopmentandthe economic consequences of imperialism vary dramatically according tocontext:thedifferencescanbeasimportantasthesimilarities, perhapsmoreimportant.Thedebateabouteconomicimperialism nowneedstobereassessedintermsof specificnationalexamples (andcontrasts),examinedindepthandquantifiedwherepossible. Thisis,forNigeria,a firststeptowardsthat goaland animportant basisforcomparative analysis. Thefullfloodofdata,fromwhichreliablenationalincome estimates,output,growthratesandinvestmentflowscanbe quantifiedwithsomeassurance,hascomeonlywiththedevelop-ment plans adopted since independence.For this section of the book MrEkundareis,therefore,abletotreadonfirmground.Here, and forthelatercolonialperiod,theresponsibilityof theacademic ForewordXIX economic historian is crucial- if indirect- tothe guidance of policy, even if his firstprofessionalresponsibility istoget at the truth forits own sake. Policy objectives are determined in the light of a diagnosis made about the significanceof current events andpasttrends,often in the absence of detailed,objective investigation.The myths of the past- creatures of the presentwhich endow them with significance - thusbeckon tothe future.The transcendent duty of thehistorian andtheeconomist,nolesscreaturesof thepresentbutwithpro-fessionaltoolkitsofscientificprocedures,istogettherecord straight;todraw conclusionsinthelightof thetotality of relevant factscritically evaluated; not to produce factsselected to agreewith theconclusionsof apredeterminedmodel.Inthesubsequentfree playof argumentandcritiquesuchproximationstotruthasare attainableby falliblemortals willberealizedand,at the sametime, thesurestintellectualbaseestablishedforsolvingpresentproblems anddeterminingfutureobjectives. All SoulsCollege,Oxford 8 September1972 PeterMathias Preface In thisbook I have attempted topresent a systematic accountof the economic history of modernNigeria;althoughtheexercisetooka few yearstocomplete,it can only serveasanintroduction toa vast subjectwhich hasremainedlargelyunexplored.The periodI have covered,186o-1960,correspondsroughlywiththeperiodof colonialrule. Economic history is primarily the history of growth; consequently one has to make use of economic statistics in illustrating the trend of economic events,and it isin this respect that the economic historian faceshismost difficult task.Before the advent of British administra-tioninNigeria,afewEuropeanexplorersvisitedthecountryand recordedtheirpersonal judgements abouttheeconomicandsocial conditionsof thepeople.Suchrecords,whichcontainveryfe>v reliablestatistics,areusefulinsofarastheyhelponetoimagine conditions which could have existed,and to compare thesewith the unwritten sources handed down orally through generations.Official colonialreportsonLagos,whichbeganinthesecondhalf of the nineteenth century, concentrated on government administration and foreigntrade.However,bythe1920sregulargovernmentdepart-mentalreports were being published.Many of the statisticsinthese reports differed from those published by the central government. On the whole, one hasto adopt the latest of the conflicting statistics.Up to andincluding1960,economicstatisticson Nigeriaweregrossly inadequate,andthosethatwereavailablecouldhavebeenbetter presented. Nevertheless, it is possible to piece together the fragmems of statisticaldataandmake somereasonable judgements aboutthe historyof economic developments inNigeria. Asubjectasyoung asthiswillinevitablyadvancerapidly.New interpretations andemphaseswillcome in veryquick successionto X...'l:llPreface replaceoldnotions,oncemoreattemptshavebeenmadeto!car: about man's economic pastinNigeria.I hope by thisbookto lm, succeededinprovokinginterestinit,andthatmorescholars\\':i' endeavourtodevelopthoseaspectswhichIcouldonlymenticw briefly,andthosethat Ididnotmentionatall. I have made a conscious efforttomake the book usefultounder-graduates,andtostudentsfortheAdvancedLevelof theGencr:d Certificateof Education.ItshouldalsoprovideallNigerianswith the essential links in the economic history ofa rapidly developing and changing country. References to other works in this field,mentioned brieflyinthetext,aregiveninfullintheBibliography. Iacknowledgewithgreatpleasurethehelpandco-operationI receivedfromthe followinginstitutions:thePublic RecordsOffice and theCommonwealth RelationsOffice Library,both in London: Rhodes House and the Institute of Commonwealth Studies Libraries. bothinOxford;theNationalArchives,Ibadan;theUniversityof IbadanLibrary;andtheUniversity oflfe Library. I am gratefultothe publishers of the Nigerian Journalof Econo111ic andSocialStHdiesandAfricanAffairsforpermissiontoemplo;: materialwhichoriginally appearedintheir publications. My thankstoProfessorS.A.Altuco,Department ofEconomics. Universityof Ife,forencouragingmetodevotemoretimetothe study and teachingof economic history.My colleagues in the same departmenthavealsobeenveryhelpfulwiththeiradvice. Iamgreatlyindebtedtoanumberof peoplewhoatvariom stagesreadthemanuscriptandmadeusefulsuggestions.Itis:1 pleasureto beabletoacknowledgethe helpofDr R.M.Hartwcll, Reader in Social and Economic History, Nuffield College,University ofOxford,andProfessorPeterMathias,ChichcleProfessorol EconomicHistory,Universityof Oxford,bothof whom readthe manuscript initsfinalstage. Ineedhardlyaddthatnoneof theindividualsorinstitutionsI havementionedareresponsibleforanyimperfectionsorerrors whichthebook maycontain. Universityof Ife October19 71 RichardOlufemi Ekundarc PartIIntroduction rAnintroductiontoNigeria The Federal Republic of Nigeria,which mea sovereignn:ltion inOctober1960,ispolitically, population-wise, oneof thegreatestcountriesinthecontinentof Africa.Indeed,its importanceinAfricagivesitautomaticrecognitionasacountry withthegreatestpoliticalandeconomicpotentialinthe'Third World'. Theareaof theFederationof Nigeriais356,669squaremiles, which ismore than three times the size of the United Kingdom, and whichcanbecomparedwiththesizeof FranceandItalyputto-gether.Thecountryliesroughlybetween3andI5Elongtitude andbetween4andI4Nlatitude.Thelongestdistancefromeast towest isover 700miles,and fromnorth tosouth,650miles.The countryisdelimitedwestwardsby theRepublicsof Dahomey and Nigeri,eastwardsbytheCameroonsRepublic,northwardsbythe Niger and Chad Republics,and to the south by the Gulf of Guinea, whichincludestheBightsof BeninandBiafra,withacoastline stretchingfromapointnearIkangintobeyond The belt of mangroveswamps,which isupto6omilesindepth insomeplacesinthecoastalareas,giveswaytohighlandsasone approachesthenorthernareas.Thecoastlineisintersectedbyan intricatenetworkof creeksandrivers,andbythehugeNiger DeltawhichisconspicuouslyplacedmidwayalongtheNigerian coastline.Successivebeltsof tropicalrainforestswith scatteredhills liebeyondthemangrove swamps,and furthernorth of theseisthe savannahgrassland,whichgiveswaytothesemi-desertconditions attheextremenorthof thecountry.Althoughthenorthernex-tremitiesof thecountryabutonthedesert,theNigerianfrontier withtheRepublicof Nigerlieswellwithinthelimitsof therainy season. 4An economichistoryof Nigeria The riverNiger,whichisabout730mileslong(insideNigeria). andfromwhichthecountryderivesitsname,isthethirdlongc,r riverinAfrica.Itprovides,throughitstributary,theBenue,thl' longestuninterruptedwaterwayintotheinteriorof Africa.Thl' Nigerrisesinthemountainstothenorth-eastof SierraLeoneand 2Rivers flowsforthefirsttwo-thirdsof its2,6oomilesoutsideNigeria. beforeenteringthecountry fromthewestandrunning in a south-easterlydirectionuntilitreceivesthewaterof itsprincipaltribu-tary,theBenue- whichrisesintheRepublicof Cameroons- at Lokoja, about 340miles from the sea,from where it flowsdue south tothedeltatoemptyitself intotheAtlanticOcean.The other im-portant tributaries of the Niger, all rising within the country, are the Sokoto(390miles),Kaduna(340miles)andAnambra(r30miles), whilethetributariesof theBenueincludeGongola(330miles). KatsinaAla(2I5miles)and Donga (r75miles).There are a number of other important rivers in Nigeria, including the Kamadugu Yobc (290miles),whichflowsinto LakeChadintheextreme north-east A11i11troductiontoNigeria of the country; the Ogun inthe west;the Benin and Escravos inthe mid-west;theSombreiroandBonnyriversystemswithPort Harcounastheoutlet;andtheCrossriversystemwithOpobo andKwarivers. Nigeriaisatropicalcountry.Theclimaticconditionsalongthe coastalareasinthesoutharcmorestablethanfortherestof the country.Therearctwomainseasonsintheyear,thedryandthe wetseasons.Inthesouthernhalf of thecountry,therainyseason lastsforabout sixmonths- fromMay toOctober- whilethenor-thern half of the country has a shorter period of rain.The dry season, whichisof alongerdurationinthenorth,bringswithitthedry, north-easterlycoldwind- theharmattan.Theharmattanismost severe in the north,but itsseverity and duration reduce towards the coastalarea.In the south,the annualrainfallrangesbetween 6oand 150inches.The coastalareaishotter andmorehumidalltheyear round and hasthe highest annual rainfall.The range of temperature isnot aswide neartheseaasitisinland.Lagos,thecapitalcity,on the south-western edgeof thecountry,hasatemperature rangeof between66and92F(19andJ3C),forboththerainyandthe dry seasons;while Maiduguri,in thenorth-castof thecountry,has arangeof temperatureof between47andII0F(8and43C). Forthewholecountry,thehottestmonthsof theyeararcMarch andApril,whilethewettestareMay, JuneandOctober. POPULATION Thetotalpopulationof Nigeriawas55,67o,oooaccordingtothe last population census,taken inNovember 1963.The resultsof this census created a great national controversy asit waswidely believed thattheywereinflatedforpoliticalreasons- toinfluencethe allocation of seats in the Housethe federalparlia-ment.'Thepopulationcensusfiguresfor1952-3,whichgenerated no open controversy,z and those of 1963,are contained intabler. r, 'SeeS.A.Aluko,'HowmanyNigerians?AnAnalysisof Nigeria'sCensus Problems,I90I-6J', pp.371-92. z Althoughthepopulationcensusfor1952-3wasnotopenlychallenged, probablybecausetheBritishwerestillveryprominentlyaroundinthe cowltry, in Southern Nigeria it was believed that the census was manipulated by thecolonialgovernment inorderto guaranteeNortherndominationin theFirstRepublic. 6A11economichistoryof Nigeria andsho,,maccordingtothetwelvestatesarrangementcreatedin May 1967. In 1971it was estimated that about 64 million people live, I in Nigeria, thus making Nigeria the tenth largest populated country inthe 'vorld. ~ O M i l u 0150Km 3Politicaldivisions:thetwelvestates Fromthepointof viewof population,theWesternState,with approximately 9'5million- about 17 per cent of the total population -heads thelist.TheNorth-EasternState,with about 78million-14percent- andtheEastCentralStatewithabout72million - 129percent- occupythesecondandthirdpositions.In1963, the average density of population was156per square mile.It varied considerablyfromstatetostate,beingashighas1,045inLagos, 626in EastCentral and347inKano,anddroppingaslow as84in Kwaraand74inNorth-Eastern. Itisestimatedthattheannualpopulation of Nigeria increasesat anaverageof about25percent.While thepopulation growth in mostareasof thecountryconformstothenationalaverage,the population of Lagoshasbeenincreasingata slightly higherrateof Allintroductio11toNigeria7 between 3 and 4 per cent per annum. Beside the normal net increase inthepopulationthroughthegradualfallintheinfantmortality rate and in the deathrategenerally,Lagoshasbeen themain target forurbanmigration.Lagos,asthefederalcapital,offersagreat attractiontomanyNigerians;thecapitalcitiesof theotherstates TABLEr.rNigeria:area,populatio11a11ddwsity 1963 CCI1SIIS 195Z-J AreaCe/JSIIS Density per State(squaremiles)(' ooo)(' ooo)squaremile North-Eastern105,3004,201 7.79374 North-Western 65,143 3.3975.734 88 North Central27,!08 2,3544.098151 Kanor6,63o 3.3985.775347 Bcnue Plateau 38,9292,2954,009103 Kwara28,6721,1952,39984 EastCentralII,548 4.567 7,228626 South-Eastern10,9511,9043,623 33 I Rivers6,985 7471,545221 Western29,100 4.3579.488J26 Mid-Western14,9221,4922,536170 Lagos1,3815011,4441,045 Nigeria356,66930,41755.672156 Note: Detailsmaynot addtototalbecauseof rounding. Source:Annual Abstractof Statistics,1963,Lagos,FederalOfficeof Statistics. arealsoabsorbingalargenumberof migrants.Themajorcities andtownsgrewconsiderably, nearlydoubling,withinthedecade 1953-63.In1963,therewere183townseachwith apopulationof 20,000andover;andof these72werein the W estemState,25in the North-Eastern State and 19in the East Central State.Also,there were 24 towns each with roo,ooo and over,andof these12 were in theWesternState.TheWesternState,thereforewasthemost urbanized inthe coWltry. Nigeriahasatleast250distinctethnicgroupsandtheprincipal onesarc:Hausa,Yoruba,Ibo,Fulani,Ibibio,Tiv,Kanuri,Ijaw, Edo and Nupes. The 1963census showed that the Hausas accowtted 8Aneconomichistoryof Nigeria for209percentof thetotalpopulation,whiletheYorubaswere 203per cent. Eachof thetwo ethnic groups occupies large areasof thecountry:theHausasaretobefoundprincipallyinallthesix Northern States,whiletheYorubas occupy Lagos and the W estem StateandsomeareasintheK waraState. TABLE1.2Populationof Nigeriabyeth11ic group,1963 Ethnic groupPopulatiou(' ooo)Percetztage HausaII,65320"9 YorubaII,pr20"3 Ibo9 , 2 ~ 6r66 Fulani4,784 86 Kanuri2,2594"1 Ibibio2,007J6 TivI,J942"5 !jaw!,0891"9 Edo 955 1"7 Othersro,85o196 Non-Nigerians!020"2 UnspecifiedIO Total 55,670100"0 * Lessthan o1per cent. Source:PopulationCensusof Nigeria,1963,vol.Ill, Lagos,FederalOfficeof Statistics. HISTORICALBACKGROUND Before the archaeologicaldiscoveries of recent years,it was thought thatthepeoplesof Nigeria- andforthatmatter,thewholeof black Africa- had no established history, asit was thought that most parts ofWest Africa were uninhabited until very recent times. How-ever,thearchaeologicaldiscoveriesof suchthingsasaxes,knives, spear and arrow headshaveindicatedthat a palaeolithic civilization existedinWestAfrica.Asinmostotherpartsof theworld atthat period,thepeoplesof Nigerialivedinprimitivehutsandcaves, survivingonwildfruits,ontheanimalskilledinthechaseandon fishfromtherivers.Theforestareasof SouthernNigeria,with abundantwildfruits,riversteemingwithf1shandthesaltof the Anintrod11ctiontoNigeria9 mangrove swamps andtheseawater,wereobviouslythefirstareas where a long-established habitation waspossible.At that stagethere wasnoorganizedfanningassuch,buttheearlyinhabitantssoon observedthat some of the seedsof the fruitstheyhad consumed and thrown carelesslyintothebushgerminatedandlateryieldedfruits, thusproviding the people with their first practical lessoninfanning. 4Major ethnicgroups Itisbelievedthattheneolithicartswereintroducedbythose tribes which filtered into Nigeria from the Sudan inabout 7000 B.C.1 However,theneolithic,aeneolithicandironagesarebelievedto haveexistedsimultaneouslyatdifferentplacesinWestIronore,whichexistedinabundanceinNigeria,hadbeenworked formanycenturies,foranumberof indigenoussmeltingfurnaces indifferentstagesof developmenthavebeendiscovered.Itisalso believedthattheartsof usingcopperandbronzewereintroduced into Nigeria fromUpper Egypt by the Yorubas,who moved dov.n 1 P.A. Talbot,TirePeoplesof So11tlremNigeria,vol.I,p.15. OliverDavies,WestAfricaBeforetireEuropeans. 10Aneconomichistoryof Nigeria fromthenorth-eastaround2000B.C.TheYorubas,whomade Ile-Ifetheircapital,werefollowedintoNigeriabytheDariba (Borgaua),theBassava,Nupe,Dakkahcrriandthe Jukon.Ile-Ifc isbelievedbytheearlyYorubastobetheoriginof man.This belief isprobablyduetothefactthattheYorubasfoundatIle-Ifc clearevidence of anadvancedculturethrough stonecarvings,iron, silverandbronzesculptures.ByaboutA.D.900,greatcivilization hadgrownamongtheNupeandtheYorubas,whowerelater followedbytheBeninculture.Fromthesethreeadvancedethnic groups came theextraordinary fmebronze and brassworks,the art of engraving on brass,pottery, and carvings in wood and ivory. The kingdomsestablishedbythem werewellorganizedandcontrolled by a hierarchy of nobles headed by semi-divine sovereigns.Most of the archaeologicaldiscoveries,e.g.Ife and Benin bronzes,depict the figuresof the sovereigns,and nearly alltheother carvings show life built around thesovereign.In addition,a number of sculpturesand carvingsdepictthegodsandgoddesseswithwhichthedivine sovereignswere strongly associated.Undoubtedly,theearly arts of iron, bronze,brass and other carvings and sculpture were controlled bythesemi-divinesovereigns.Theartsof carvingandsculpturing couldnot haveadvancedandsurvivedunlesstheywerecontrolled or'fmanced'byaperson- thedivinesovereign- whocould affordtoprovide subsistenceforthe artistsin their time-consuming andpainstaking jobs.By implication,therefore,akindof division of labour,howeverbackward,existedinthesekingdoms.Nearly everybodyproduced hisown food,eitherby collectingwild fruits in the forest or by growing a limited range of crops. The sovereigns, ontheotherhand,maintainedthemselves,theirnobles,priests, artistsandarmiesbycollectingtributeor'tax'inkindfromtheir people. The constantmovement of invadersfromEgyptandtheSudan intoWestAfricadevelopedafairlyreliablenetworkofcom-munication through the Sahara desert. Indeed, it laid the foundation forthetrans-SaharantradewhichdevelopedbetweenNorthand WestAfrica:by aboutA.D.1000Kano,inNorthernNigeria,had developed into a strong andprosperous trading centre,and most of the earliest cultivated cropsand somedomestic animalswere intro-ducedintoNorthern Nigeriafrom Egypt. The HausasarebelievedtohaveoccupiedNorthernNigeriaby .r1nintrod11ctio11roNiJ!eriaII about A. D.IOOO.By themiddle of the thirteenthcentury,the kings of Maliwere converted toMoslems,and they inturn began spread-ingtheMoslemreligionintotheneighbouringareas.Thisbrought theFulanistopenetrateintotheHausaareabythemiddleof the fourteenthcentury.Bythestartof theftfteenthcentury,Moslem missionarieswereknowntohavearrivedatKano.Aroundthe sameperiodsomeof themaincitiesinNorthernNigeria- Kano, Zaria,KatsinaandSokoto - hadgrown into greatcentresof com-merce.Finebreedsof horseshadbeendeveloped,anddonkeys, camels,cattle,sheepandgoatsweretobefoundinlargenumbers. ThefineleatherworksandleathertradeatKanohadalsode-veloped. The most important and advanced groupsof peopleswhichthus emergedandwere prominent attheendof theeighteenth century were the Yorubas and the Bini in the south,andthe Hausas,Nupe, Fulanis and Kanuris in the north. These main ethnic groups had each foundedamonarchicalandcivilizedformof governmentcom-pletelyindependentof anyEuropeaninfluence.Inthenineteenth century the Yoruba kingdoms extended in the west acrosswhat are now Dahomey andTogo RepublicstoAccra;in the north andthe easttheyextended tothebanks of theNiger,and in the south-east to Benin.1 The King ofBenin was a Yoruba and it wasbelieved that theKing(Obi)of Onitshawasadescendantof theOba of Benin. By themiddleof the nineteenthcentury,aseriesof civilwarshad brokenoutamongtheYorubas;theylastedformanyyears,and werefinallybroughttoanendin1886byatreatywhichthe Governorof LagosconcludedamongtheYorubas.However,the mainresultof thewarwasthedisintegrationof theYorubaking-domandtheconfirmationoftheindependenceof thevarious YorubagroupsfromtheAlafinof Oyo,hithertotherulerof the entireYoruba kingdom. Inthenineteenthcentury,morevigorouseffortsweremadeby the Fulanis to introduce Islam. It was in 1802 that the quarrel between the King ofGobir and the Muslim Fulani leader, Othman dan Fodio, led tothe invasion of the Hausa land by the Fulanis.Asa result,the FulaniEmpirewasestablishedovertheHausaland,andfourteen emirateswerecreatedundertheoverallcontrolofthesonof 1 Daryll Forde and P.M. Kaberry (cds),West Ajrica11Ki11gdoms ill tire Ninter11tlr Cmtury. 12An eco11omichistory OthmandanFodio,theSultanofSokoto,whoheldthetitle 'Commander of theFaithful'. The other ethnic groups were not asorganized.It hasbeen estab-lished,however,thatmostof theethnicgroupsnowinhabiting NigeriacameoriginallyfromeitherEgyptortheSudanorboth. The earlyhistoryof Nigeria - political,socialandeconomic - had a strongtiewithNorth Africa. POLITICALCHANGES TheFederalRepublicofNigeriahasundergoneanumberof political changes in the last120 years.The first direct British political interference in Nigeria came in r8sr, with the British military action againstLagosinanefforttoforcetheKingof Lagos(Kosoko)to abandontheslavetrade.Inr86rLagoswascededtoBritainand wasadministeredaspartof theGoldCoast(Ghana).Inr886a numberof BritishcompaniesarOtmdtheNigeramalgamatedinto theRoyalNigerCompany,andthecharterof thenewcompany gave it power 'to administer,make treaties,levy customs duties and tradeinallterritoriesinthebasinof theNigeranditsaffluents', thusbringingthenorthernterritoriesof thecountryunderthe influenceof Britishtraders.In thesameyear,theBritishgovern-mentproclaimedtheOilRiversProtectorate over theNiger Delta and established the Colony of Lagos. It was not until the Niger Coast Protectoratecameintoexistenceinr 893thattherewasanywell-organizedgovernmentmachinery.Evenatthatstage,theBritish government had to strive to conclude a number of treatieswith the localchiefsin order tohavea strong foothold.By1897,however, the whole of the Yoruba land hadbeenannexedtotheColonyof Lagos asitsprotectorate. In 1900theBritishgovernmenttookovertheadministrationof thenorthernterritoriesfromtheRoyalNigerCompanyand proclaimedtheareatheProtectorateof NorthernNigeria,with SirFrederick LugardasthefirstHighCommissioner.Atthesame time,theProtectorateof SouthernNigeriawascreatedtoreplace the Niger Coast Protectorate. In 1906 theColony and Protectorate of Lagosbecamepartof a newProtectorateof SouthernNigeria. Finally,in1914,theNorthernandSouthernProtectorateswere amalgamated tobecomeNigeria. AnillfrodllctiontoN ( ~ a i aT 3 From1914until1922therewasaNigerianCouncil,purely advisoryanddeliberative,fortheprotectorate,andaL:tgosLegis-lativeCouncilfortheLagosColony.Thetwocouncilswere abolishedin1922,andintheirplacealargerlegislativecouncilwas establishedin1923toinclude,forthefirsttimeinthepolitical historyof Nigeria,fourelectedmembers- threefromLagosand onefromCalabar.Aseparatetowncouncilwasalsosetupfor Lagos.The firstelection tothe legislativecouncilwasheldin1923, on a franchisebased on income andproperty.The councillegislated forSouthernNigeria,whiletheGovernor-in-Councilwasrespon-sibleforlegislatingforNorthernNigeria.InFebruary1924,the mandatedterritoryoftheCameroons(aGermancolonybefore thefirstworldwar)wasjoinedandadministeredwithNigeria. The lastof thepoliticalchangesbefore thesecondworldwar took placeinApril1939,whentheNorthernandSouthernProvinces were broken intoNorthern, EasternandWestern Provinces. The1923constitutionalarrangementscametoanendinAugust 1946,whenanewconstitutionwasintroduced.TheRichard's Constitution provided for a central legislature for the whole country, andthreeregionalHousesofAssemblyforeachofthethree provinces.AlthoughtheConstitutionwastohavelastedfornine years,political agitation by the fewenlightened Nigerians led to its early review only two yearsafter itsintroduction.The next consti-tution,theMacphersonConstitution,whichcameintoeffectin June1951,affordedincreasedregionalautonomyandextendedto Nigeriansafullershareinshapingpolicyandinthedirectionof executivegovernment action.It wasthisconstitutionwhich intro-ducedrepresentativeandresponsiblegovernmentintoNigeria. Thedesireforgreaterregionalgovernmentautonomy,andthe needforamoreprecisedefinitionandclarificationof functionsas betweenthecentralandtheregionalgovernments,ledtothefirst majorconstitutionalcrisisinMarch1953.Thecrisisledtotwo constitutionalconferences,oneinJuly-August1953inLondon, and the other in January-February 1954 in Lagos.As a result of these conferences,anew constitutionwhichintroducedafederalsystem of government came into forceinOctober 1954.The new Federa-tion thuscreated consistedof fiveparts:theNorthern, Eastern and WesternRegions,thefederalterritoryof Lagosandthequasi-federalterritory of Southern Cameroons. Following another consti-I4AneconomichistorytutionalconferenceinLondoninMay-Jtme1957,constitutional arrangementswereconcludedforgrantingregionalself-govern-menttotheEasternandWestemRegionsinAugustI957The NorthernRegionalsobecameself-governinginI959Aftermore constitutionalconferencesin1959andearlyinI960,theBritish governmentdecidedtograntpoliticalindependencetoNigeria. Duringthenegotiationsforindependence,SouthernCameroons decidedtoleavetheFederationof Nigeriain1959.OnIOctober I960 the Federation of Nigeria became an independent and sovereign nation withintheBritishCommonwealth. In1962theMid-Western Regionwascreatedafterbeing carved outof theoldWesternRegion.OnIOctoberI963arepublican constin1tion was introduced intoNigeriaby the federalparliament, anditoperatedtmtil JanuaryI966.Followingaseriesof political crisesinI965,thePrimeMinisterof theFederation,theWestern RegionPremier,theNorthernRegionPremierandtheFederal MinisterofFinancewereassassinatedonI5JanuaryI966ina coupd'etatledbysomearmyofficers.Onthedayfollowingthe coup,theadministrationof thecountrywashandedoverbythe remainingmembersof thefederalcabinettotheGeneralOfficer Commanding the Nigerian Army,Major-General]. T.U.Aguiyi-Ironsi,whosuspendedtheofficeof President,thePrimeMinister Parliament,andvestedlegislativeandexecutivepowersin the federalmilitarygovernmentcomprisingaSupremeMilitary CouncilandaFederal ExecutiveCouncil.He alsoappointedmili-tarygovernorstoadministertheregions.On 29 JulyI966Major-GeneralAguiyi-Ironsiwasassassinatedinacountercoupinwhich the Military Governor of the Western Region, Lt-Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi,alsolosthislife.Afterthefewdaysof confusionwhich followedthecountercoup,GeneralYakubuGowon(thenaLt-Colonel)tookoveronIAugust1966asSupremeCommander of theArmed ForcesandHeadof State. The two coupd't!tats in 1966 created a deep rift between the Hausa andIboarmy officers.Followinga seriesof clashesbetween Hausa and Ibo civiliansin Northern and Eastern Regions,some of the Ibo leadersledby Emeka Ojukwu, who wasthen a Lt-Colonel and the military governor of EasternRegion,feltthattheIbosasagroup should constitute themselves into a separate country.However, one of the major political issuesin Nigeria,that of the creation of more Ani11troductiontoNigeriaI 5 statesinordertoprotectminorityinterests,wassolvedbythe creationof twelvestatesoutof theexistingfourregions,on27 May1967.ThreedayslaterOjukwuannouncedthattheterritory comprisingtheformerEasternRegionhadsecededfromthe Federationof Nigeria.Hegavethename'Biafra'tothisarea.Asa result of this event the civil war broke out in July1967.1 It lasted for about30monthsandendedon12 January1970,afterLt-Coloncl Efflong,themantowhomOjukwuhandedoverpowerafterhe fledthecountryonthenightof roJanuary1970,madearadio broadcastannouncingthesurrenderof therebels.Effiongordered anorderlydisengagementof therebeltroopsandledadelegation toLagostonegotiateapeacesettlement.Onthenightof13 January1970,GeneralGowonwelcomedthesurrenderofthe rebels,andthusNigeriawaskepttogetherasaFederation.Atthe celebrationof thetenthanniversaryof Nigerianindependenceon IOctober1970GeneralGowonannouncedthatmilitaryrulein Nigeriawastocontinueuntil1976,andthatthemilitarygovern-mentwouldendeavourtosurrenderpowertoaciviliangovern-mentthroughanorderlyconstitutional process. THENATIONALECONOMY AgricultureisthemainstayoftheNigerianeconomy.In1970 about70percentof Nigeria'slabour forcewereemployedinthe agriculturalsector.Nigeriahasawealthof agriculturalresources. Thecountryhasavastareaof arablelandonwhichalmostall tropicalcropscanbegrown.Agriculturalproductionconsistsof localcropsfordomesticconsumptionandanumberof export crops; a number of agricultural products are both consumed locally andexported,forexample,palmoil,groundnutsandcotton. Whencomparedwiththetotalareaof thecountry,theareaof land under cultivation remains relatively small.In 1968,the average acreageunder cultivation per farmerwasro2forthe three Eastern States,428forthe sixNorthern States,243forthe Western State, 2'07fortheMid-WesternStateand2'45forthewholeof the country. However, Nigeria is self-sufficient asfar as food production isconcerned - except in fishanddairy products - and thishasalso 1 SeeSirRexNivcn,TireWar of NigerianUnity,andA.H. M.Kirk-Greenc, CrisisandConflictinNigeritt:ADocrmrcntarySo11rccBook1966-1970. 16A11economichistoryof Nigeria beenincreasinginrecentyears.Theimportantcropsfordomestic consumption includeguinea corn,groundnuts,yams,maize,beans, cassava,plantainandcocoyam.Locallyconsumedfoodstuffs constituteabout75percentofthecountry'stotalagricultural production. Livestock production is also a major means oflivelihood inthe SL'{Northern States. Agriculturalexportcropsearnanaverageof between 65and 75 percentof Nigeria'sforeignexchange,andprovidethemostim-portantsourceof revenueforthefederalaswellasstategovern-mentsthroughexportproduceandsalestaxes.Theyalsoprovide funds for the marketing boards- ftmds which are used,among other things,foragriculturalresearch,scholarshipawardsandforthe developmentof theagriculturalareas.Themostimportantagri-culturalexport cropsaregroundnuts,cotton and benniseed,grown mainlyintheNorthernStates;andcocoa,palmoil,palmkernels andrubber fromtheWestern,Mid-Western and thethree Eastern States.ItmustbeaddedthattheNorthernStatessupplyallthe country'scattle,whichprovide exportsof hidesand skins. Nigeria isthe world's largest exporter of groundnuts,with about 36per centof theworldtrade.Shealsoranksasthesecond largest exporter of cocoain theworld,supplyingabout 20 per cent of the worldtrade.Herexportof cottonseedsrepresentsabout18per centof theworldsupply,andthecountry'sshareintheworld tradeforvegetableoilisabout11percent. Nigeriaisalsorichinmineralresources.Someof thecow1try's mineralswhichareof considerableeconomicsignificanceinclude coal,tinore,columbite,gold,limestone,petroleum oil and natural gas.Thepotentiallyeconomicminerals- thosenotyetcommer-ciallyexploited- includelignite,ironore,chinaclay,leadzinc, wolfram andtantalite.Other mineraldepositswhich are known to existinNigeriaincluderadioactiveminerals,preciousstonesand metals,includingdiamonds,silver,phosphates,salt,asbestos, diatomite,ilmentineandxenotine. Coalistheoldestof theeconomicmineralsof thecountry.The bulkof Nigeria'scoalproducedsinceminingbeganin1915has beenconsumedinternallybyilieNigerianRailwayCorporation. Theonly coalfieldiniliecountryisatUdi,intheCentral-Eastern State.Apart from the alluvial miningof gold from the goldfields in Ileshadivisionof theWesternState,thegolddepositsof Nigeria, Anintroductio11toNigeria17 reportedtocoveralargearea,haveremaineduntapped. Nigeriasuppliesabout5percentof theworldoutputof tinore, andisthustheworld's sixthproducerof tin.Columbite,whichisa by-productof tin,is::tlsoproducedinlargequantities.Nigeriais theworld'slargestproducerof columbite,accountingforabout 95percentof totalworldsupply.Limestonedepositswhichexist inmanyof thestatesarcproducedforinternalconsumptioninthe production of cement.The production of petroleum oiland natural gasareof recentorigin,datingbackto1956.Thesemineralsnow existintheMid-Western,RiversandSouth-EasternStates.The production of petroleum oil was interrupted by the civil war but has nowbeenfullyresumed,withtheresultthatNigeriaisthetenth largestproducing country in theworld. Generally,theNigerian economy hasexpanded rapidly sincethe endof thesecondworldwar.Someeffortshavebeenmadeto developand improve the infrastructure of the economy.Through a numberof developmentplanningschemes,transport,communi-cations,andanumberof socialoverheads,suchaswatersupplies, education,healthandsocialwelfarehavebeengreatlyimproved. The main portsof Nigeriainclude Lagos(Apapa),Burutu,Warri, Sapele,Port Harcourt,Bonny,Calabar,Degema andOkrika.The portsat LagosandPort Harcourt handlethebulkof theNigerian ocean shipping.Therailwaysystems,which in1969coveredsome 2,178miles,continuedtoprovidepassengerandcargoservices betweentheNorthernStateson theone handandthe Eastern and Western States on the other. However, the limited and rigid railway systemshavebeenunabletocopewiththerapidgrowthof the economyinrecentyears,andasaresultanetworkof roadshas developed.Forexample,between1950and1966the totalmileage of roads increased from 28,042 to 55,256,of which the total mileage of tarredroadsincreasedfrom1,024to 9,476.Alongwiththeim-provedroads,the roadtransport systemwasdeveloped,linking all the states of the Federation. The air transport system, with Lagos and Kano asthe main airports, hasbeen improved substantially in recent yearstocopewiththeincreasingdemandforconm1ercialflights. Thetotalcargocarried(inwardandoutward)oninternationalair routesincreasedfrom373tonsin1950to2,965tonsin1965. Over the last two decades,industrial growth hasbecome a crucial factorinthepaceandpattern of Nigeria's economic development. 18A r ~economichistoryof Nigeria The expansion in industrial production has been made possible partly byanumberof incentivesgiventoforeignprivateinvestment, includingtaxreliefs,andpartlybyincreasedgovernmentcapital expenditureontheinfrastructureof theeconomy,thesupplyof powerandlandtorindustrialestates.Thebulkof industrialpro-ductioninNigeriahasconcentratedonprovidingimport-substi-tutiongoods suchastextiles,cement,metalproducts,beer and soft drinks,soapsanddetergents,andbuildingconstructionmaterials. TABLE1.3Grossdomesticproductat1962factorcost,1958-67 (million) 1958-91960-1 Agriculture,forestryand672'2 799'9 fishing Mining10'2158 (15)*(5s)* Manufacturing and crafts 45'357'0 Electricityandwater supply28 4'2 Building construction 35'355'4 Distribution 127'9154'7 Transport and communication 40'8 53'4 Generalgovernment 39'849'7 Education238 29'5 Health 4'05'3 Other services218 25'3 Total 1023'91250'2 * The contributionof petroleum oiltomining. Source:Digestof Statistics,vol.19,no.4(1970). 1964-51966-7 8667869'5 47'5 II4'4 (35'4)* (1o1o)* 78893'1 81 10'7 65o813 194'9 200'9 672627 52'1516 43'048'2 9'49'3 30'7 41'4 1463'415831 The foreigntrade of Nigeria hasexpanded consistently in the last twodecades.Thetotalvalueofexternaltradeincreasedfrom 1521millionin1950to385'6millionin1960andto571'9 millionin1969.Theincreaseindomesticexportshasbeenmore consistentthantheincreaseinmerchandiseimports.However,the costof import itemshasincreasedconsiderably.Inresponsetothe various development projects which began in 1946,increasesinthe imports of machinery,transport equipment and industrialmaterials A11itrtroductiontoNigeria19 becamenoticeable.Forexample,in1968theseitemsputtogether accountedforabout6opercentof thetotalvalueof imports.The volumeandthevalueof exportshavealsoincrcasccl.Theworlcl prices for the 'traditional' agricultur::tl export crops of cocoa,cotton, groundnutsandpalmproductscontinuedtofluctuate;however, theseitemsearnedmorethan50percentofNigeria'sforeign exchange. Between 1955and 1965the country experienced anmtally a consistent adverse balance of trade.The sharp increase inthe export of petroleum oil,which hasnow become themost important single item of export, has been largely responsible for the annual favourable balanceof tradesince1966.Aphenomenonwhichhasbecome noticeable in the lastdecade hasbeentheincreaseinNigeriantrade with the East European countries. Theoverallgrowthof theNigerianeconomyinrecentyearsis shownintable1.3;andtheimmediatefutureprospectcanbe seenin thelight of thenew Development Plan1970-4,which was launched inNovember1970.1 The new planisexpectedtoinvolve atotalexpenditureof aboutr ,6oomillion,of whichBopercent istobefinancedwithinthecountry.Fortheremaining20per cent,thegovernmentplannedtoraiseexternalloans;however,a contingencyplanhasbeenmadetoresorttointernalborrowing if foranyreasonat allexternal loanscannotberaised. Theplanestimatesanettotalexpenditure(i.e.excludingfederal and stateunderspending)forthepublicsectorof thesumof 780 million;table1.4givesthemajor allocations.2 The federalgovern-mentplanstoestablishefficientadministrativeservicesandan appropriate economic infrastructure throughout the country. It also hopestopromoteevendevelopmentandfairdistributionof in-dustriesin allpartsof thecountry. On thebasisof investment projections,basedpartly on pastper-formancesandpartlyontheinvestmentrequirementsofthe economy,itisestimatedthattheentireprivatesectorshouldpro-videover the plan period a grossinvestment of B15million,con-sistingof about692millionfortheincorporatedbusinessesand r23million fortherestof theeconomy. 1 Second National Development Pla11197o-4, Lagos, Federal Ministry oflnforma-tion. R.0.Ekundarc,'Nigeria'sSecondNationalDevelopmentPlanAsA Weapon of SocialChange'. 20An economichistory~ FNigeria Atthisvay earlystJgeof theplanperiod,onecJnnotprophesy with Jnv degree of certainty the possible achievements of the various developmentprojectsasconceivedunderthepbn.'Nomatter howbrilliantly-conceivedJndexpertly-designedandformulated, thesuccessorfailureof apLmdependslargelyonhowitisexe-cuted.'One of themajorproblemsfacinganydevelopmentplanis TABLEI..J.Secor1dNatirnalDerelopmentPlan:111ajorite111sof ex-Transport Education penditure Agriculture,forestryand fishing Defenceandsecuritv Industry' Health Fueland power Communications millio11 Perce11tageof total planned expenditure 23'7 13"5 12"9 9'4 84 5"2 4"4 4"2 thegulf betweenthosewhoformulatetheplanandthepolitical ormilitaryauthoritiesthatwillexecuteit.However,giventhe basicstrengthof theNigerianeconomy,andthevariouspolicy reforms contemplated inthe plan,it isreasonabletoexpect that the investment targets willbeachieved.A good indicator foroptimism isthe sizeof theNigerian marketdefined in terms of physical area, populationandpurchasingpower.Giventherichanddiversified resource endowment of the nation, and a lasting political stability, the economicgrowthof thecountryshouldproceedllllinterrupted. Moreover,theselectiveeconomicincentivesprovidedbythe governmentshouldprovidetheencouragementneededby private investors.Itmustberealized,however,thattheregulationof the economy through theincomes policy,themobilization of financial resources,theregulationofconsumptionandexpenditure,the problemof distributionand- aboveall- thesuccessfulexecution of theplan,canonly berealizedwithprompt andtimelygovern-ment decisionsand actions. 2Anoutlineof pre- r 86oforeign contactsandtheireffects THETRANS-SAHARANTRADE1 ThefirstregularforeigncontactwithNigeriawaswithNorth Africa.Bytheuseof camels,caravantraderoutesweredeveloped acrosstheSaharabetweenWestandNorth Africa,andforalong periodtheseroutesweretheonlywaystoandfromWestAfrica and theoutside world.There isno evidence of regular contact with any part of southern Africa.Tllis isperhapsunderstandablebecause therewerenotradeincentives inthesouth.The caravantrade isat least2,000yearsold.Indeed,it hasbeen suggested that theCartha-ginianscrossedthedesertanddiscoveredWestAfricamanycen-turiesbeforeChrist,andthattheyestablishedcommercialcontacts on the coast, exchanging their manufactures for the African products by meansof aprocessof bartercalledthe'dumbtrade'. zThishad nothingparticularlysignificantaboutitotherthanthepractical expediencyof conductingtradetransactionsbyhanddescription becauseof thelanguagebarrier. 'TradebridgedtheSahara,oneof theworld'smostformidable barriers to human intercourse.' Betvveenthe eighth century and the nineteenth century a number of statesand empires sprangup along the caravan trade routes in Western and Central Sudan.The caravan routesknown toexistaroundtheseventeenthandeighteenthcen-turiesweregroupedintothree:theTaghza-Timbukturoutein the west; the Ghadames-Air route to Hausa in the centre; and in the 'Foramoredetailedandinterestingaccountof thetram-Sahara.tttrade,sec E.W. Bovill,TireGoldenTradeoft/reMoors,andA.AduBoahcn,Britain, tireSalrara,arrdtireWe stemS11dan1788-1861. 1 AllanMcPhcc,TireEconomicRevol11tioninBritishWestAfrica,p.28. 22A11economichistory Nigeria cast,theFczzan-KawarroutetoBornu.Oneachof theseroutes, whichwereinterconnected.werelongwaterlessstageswhich heavily ladencamelhadto passat great peril.The journey acrosstheSaharausedtotakebetweentwototwelvemonths dependingonthedistancetobecovered,theincidenceof animal diseases.reliablecasesforwatersupplyandf.wourablcweather conditions,suchastheabsenceof sandstorms.Manyof theearly Caravanroutes- --5Trans-Sabarancaravan routes caravanrouteswereabandonedthroughthefailureof wellsand pasturage which were necessary to sustain the traders and their camels inthecourseof their journeys.'Nothing illustrates the dangers and ravagesofthetrans-Saharantrafficmorethanthehundredsof skeletonsthatlitteredtheroutes.' 1 Wherethewellsandpasturage didnotfail,repeatedwarfareamongthedesertkingdomsledto thedecline of trading contacts andactivities,particularlyalongthe western route. However, the central and eastern routes which passed through relativelypeacefulkingdomsgrew in importance. AlongthesecaravanroutestoNorthAfricawerecarriedsuch itemsasgold,dyedcloths,leathergoodsandslaves,whichwere 1 Boahen,Britaiu,tireSal1ara,and tireWesternS11dan,p.I20. A11outli11cforcigllcollt-I5313198541,704 1951-2 549 728 529 1,8o6 1952-35877015161,804 1953-4823 492 r661,48! 1954-57872933101,390 1955-6 1,186 346296 1,828 1956-71,624724*2092,557 1957-81,3517 4 0 ' ~ 635 2,726 1958-9935897*2632,095 1959-6o1,0741,073*t40 2,187 Includingagriculture. f ThisfigureincludestheUnited Africagroup'sshareof capitalexpenditure byindustrial enterprises in which the group isa minority shareholder. It will benotedthatthegroup'scapitalexpenditureinindustrialenterprisesin 1959-6oaccountedfor45per cent of itstotalexpenditure. Notes: 1.'Commercial'includes warehouses,shops,housing,etc. 2.'Industrial'includesforestactivities,factories,plantations (including appro-priatehousing). J.'Transport' includesrivercraft,plant,wharves,bulk oilinstallations,etc. 4Discrepanciesbetweentotalsandthesumsof constituentitemsaredueto roundingoff. Source:UACStatisticalandEconomicReview,1953-61. role in the economic development ofNigeria,1 investing in a number of projectsincludingthelightengineeringindustry,sawmillsand housingdevelopment; and by the end of 1956 its current projects in Nigeriaamounted to 2,799,000. It encouragedparticipation inits 1 TheColonialDevelopmentCorporationwascreatedbytheOverseas ResourcesDevelopmentAct(UK)of 1948.Itsdutiesweredefinedasthe formulationandcarryingout of projectsfordevelopingcolonialresources. 250A11ecollolllichistoryof Nigeria schemesandthe eventual assumption of fullresponsibility forthem bythegovernments,theiragenciesor commercial firms.1 Someof themajortradingcompaniescontributedsubstantially totheeconomicdevelopmentof Nigeria.After1946,thesecom-panies increasedtheir capitalexpenditure to cover many production fields,includingcommerce,industryandtransport.Oneof the majorcompanieswhichmadesuchacontributionwastheUnited AfricaCompany(UAC)Ltd. Between 1955and 1960,theVAC Ltd spent about 6 million on commercialprojectsinNigeria,andforthesameperioditspent about 44 million on industrial and agricultural projects and about 14 million on transport. Anappraisalof developmentplanning Between 1946 and 1960,the patterns of social and economic systems changed sofastthat it isdifficultto assesscorrectly the achievements or lack of progress which could be associated with any given period of development planning. In general terms, however, it is possible to assess the results of the fifteen years ofeconomic planning by examin-ingthechangeswhichtookplaceinthevolumeof thenational income of the country, and the capital formation among the various sectorsof the population. Totalproductionoverthedecade195o-60grewbyapproxi-mately 4 percent per year in real terms. In 195o-1 the national income of Nigeria was estimated at 593-4 million,2 and a survey of 1956-7 basedon current pricesput it at 8123million.On thefaceof it, therewasanincreaseof 2189millionover aperiodof sixyears. However,itisnowknownthatthetrueincreasewasdisguised: different methods of calculating the consumption of certain locally-producedfoodstuffshadbeenadopted,withtheresultthatthe 1956-7 survey included values in respect of yams, cassava and guinea corn, which, after allowing for price changes, were 26 per cent lower than those included for195o-I.J Perhaps a clearer illustration of the economicgrowth of Nigeriaisshownby thechangesinthegross domesticproductof Nigeria(seetable12.8).Thegrossdomestic productof Nigeriaat1957priceswas6887millionin1950. 1 UACStatisticalandEconomicReview,September1957. z A.R.Prest andI.G.Stcwart,T11eNationalIncomeof Nigeria1950-1. 3 NNEC,EconomicSurveyof Nigeria,1959,p.rs. TABLE:Z2.8 Gross dvuu:stic produce.at1.957 prices for fiscalyears1950-6o( nlilliun) Activity 195019511952 1953195419551956 1957'95B'959 1960 Agriculture (including land development) 385842324387454247954921468o479654225262549"4 Livestock 601 57"752"553"555"7565576 57"752"3587 6ro Fishing 9"798 9"9 100 10310"3126 13"315"015"0rso Forest products 9"4 120101 11"912"3 13"413614610"413"114"6 Mining(including oil exploration) 7676 7"97"9 81 9"096 9"47"0 6684 Manufacturing and public utilities 3"94"05863 7"987 120131 25"4 306361 Communications 27273"02"926 2"426 J"I2"93"!3"2 Building and civil engineering 20"3 25"419"425"937838336543"022"932"! 33"3 Ownership of buildings 899"19"2 9"49"49"79"8103 7"9 86 9"3 Transport 286 34"0 35"345"450"9 60265r 74"629"1 32"337"3 Crafts 158 15"9 16or61r62r6416516720"420"420"4 Missions 697"076788711"412"715"9 181216 23"3 Government 15"0164 19"9165176 23"4287 30"529"136"335"0 Marketing boards 41"0ro528o288 427 25"0 44"9 11"707 II6sB Banking,insuranceandtheprofessions 1"5 !2 1"31"71"7 212"2 2"5J"l 373"7 Domestic services 4"44"44"44"7 485"05"7553"73"9 4"0 Miscellaneous services 0"9 1o11111"2151"9 2orS2"1 3"7 Distribution, residual error,etc. 662 99"5123"4107"5104"7109873710651o8on26IITB Gross domesticproduct at factorcost 68877414793"58rr68721895287379roo9ooo93859Sr3 Source:Annual Abstract of Statistics,1966. 252A11econolllichistory Itincreasedto895'2millionin1955,andto9813millionm 1960. Theinterdependenceofthedifferentsectorsoftheeconomy indicatedsomeincreas.:sinthewealthof thecountry.In1950tbc totalgrosscapitalformationinNigeriawasestimatedat366 million,of which45'1percentcamefromthepublicsectorand 549percentfromtheprivatesector.In1955-6itincreasedto 783million,of which the public sector accountedfor45'1, i.e. 576 per cent, and the private sector 332 million, i.e.42'4 per cent. Finally,in195(}--60thetotalgrosscapitalformationreachedthe highestvaluesofarof 1334million.1 Of thisvaluethepublic sectoraccountedfor889million,i.e.666percent,andthe private sector33'4per cent. Virtuallyallsectorsoftheeconomydevelopedrapidly.The quantity of agricultural production grew by 30 per cent- which was more than enough to offset the rise of between 2 and 2! per cent per annuminthepopulation.Themanufacturingindustries- though stillrelativelysmall- increasedaboutfivefold,andconstruction worksweremore thantrebled.The supply of electricity andwater alsoincreasedfourfold.Theeconomicgrowthof thecountrywas notevenlyspaced,asitvariedaccordingtotheprosperityin agricultural production, which accounted for over 6o per cent of the nationalincome.Increasesinthepricesof themainagricultural exportproducts,particularly upto1955,brought prosperity tothe entireeconomy.z Therewasasignificantexpansionintheprivatesector.For example,thegrossinvestmentbymajor companies,which in1954 wasestimatedatn7 million,roseto205million in1959-60. Theinvestmentsof otherenterprisesaswellaspersonalinvest-mentswereestimatedtohavereachedaboutsz millionin1960, comparedwith31millionin1954.Thisexpansionwasun-doubtedlyduetotheeffortsof thegovernmentsinprovidingthe economy withthemuch-neededinfrastructure.Theproduction of locally-consumeditemsalsoincreased;althoughtherisewasless thanthat forexport production,itwasneverthelessof theorder of 50percentoverthetenyears195o-6o. 1 AnnualAbstractof Statistics,1963,Lagos,FederalOfficeof Statistics. NationalDevelopmentPlan,1962-B,pp.6-IJ. 13Transportandcommunications INLANDWATERWAYS Themajordevelopmentof theinlandwaterwaysafter1946con-cernedtheimprovementof theNiger-Benue system.Thegovern-mentinstitutedlarge-scalestudiesintothenatureandbehaviourof thesetwomainriversystems,andfrom1953to1959teamsof hydrologicalexperts carried out detailed investigations of the routes withseaaccess. 1 Effortswerealsomadetoimprovetheother importantriversandthenumerouscreeksbydredgingthem.The most important project considered in connexion with navigation on theinland waterwayswasthe construction of amulti-purpose dam ontheNigeratKainji.2 Itwasthoughtthatbyconstructinga systemof lockson it navigation would be considerably improved. The volume of foreign trade traffic forNigeria's transport system increased after the second world war, but river transport enjoyed the leastprosperity.Between1946and1957,roadtransportandrail wnnageincreasedbyabout17"5percentand64percentper annumrespectively,while river transport increasedby only 41per centperannum.Apartfromcompetition fromboththerailways androads,oneotherimportantconstraintuponincreasedriver transportwasthelimitedcapacityof theriversthemselves,dueto physicaldefectsandlackof artificialimprovements.An important disabilityof theriverrouteswastheirseasonality.Onlythelower NigerbelowOnitshawas navigablealltheyearround.Inevitably, thisincreasedoperational costs and led to high freight and passenger fares.Producehadtobestoredforlongperiodswhileawaiting 1 Statewenl of Policy forthe Nigrr and Brn11cRivers, Sessional Paper no.3 of 1959. 'TheKainjiDarnProject,oneof themajorprojectsconceivedwtdcrthe 1962-8NationalDevelopment Plan,isoutside the scopeof thisbook. 254All economichistoryof Nigeria shipment- agreatdisadvantagebecauseof thedeteriorationin qualityof produceandhighcostsofholdingstock.Thepoor conditions of the river ports also contributed to delay and inefficiency inrivertransport.Infact,mostof theimprovementstoriverpons that were made were carried out by private companies, of which the UACand JolmHo!twere the largest}There were fewbuoys,and f.1cilitieswerenot availablefornightnavigation. However, the vast riverain area of the lower Niger was still served practicallyexclusivelybyriver,andtransportby the Benne wasof primaryimportancetothecommerciallifeof theregionbetween YolaandMaiduguri.Thegovernmentcontinuedtoprovidea numberofmarineservices.Publictransportandferryservices maintained by the Marine Department and later by the Department oflnland Waterways2 included a passenger ferry between Lagos and Apapa;vehicleferriesacrosstheNiger andthe Ethiope atOnitsha andSapelerespectively;inlandwaterservicesthroughthelagoons andthedeltabetweenLagos,WarriandBurutu,betweenPort Harcourt,Degcma,Nembe,BrassandAkassa,andbetween Port HarcourtandBonny;andcoalandcoastwiseservicesbetween Lagosand PortHarcourt. TheservicesbetweenLagosandPortHarcourtwereprovided weekly by government vessels.Fortnightly services were alsomain-tainedalongthecoastbetween Lagos,Port Harcourt,Calabar and Victoria.Ferriestransportedpassengersaswellasmotorvehicles. Duringthefinancialyear1957-8,294,543passengersand48,363 vehiclesweretransportedontheSapele-Beninroute;and99,094 passengersand41,383vehiclesweretransportedontheOnitsha-Asaba route.3 Of the 4,200milesof navigable waterways under the control of the Inland Waterways Department in 1958, only a total of 1,059mileswere inspectedand improved fornavigation,ata total costof 8,98!.Theincreasingcostof maintainingthewaterways wassaidto beduetohigh costsoflabour and equipment.4 1 SessionalPaper no.3 of 1959,p.7 2 The Department of Inland Waterwayswasestablishedin1956.Statement of thePolicyproposedbytheGovernmentof theFederation fortheEstab/islmreutof anInlandWaterwaysDepartment,SessionalPaper no.7of 1956. 3 AnnualReportof theFederalDepartmentof InlandWaterways,1957-8,Lagos, Government Printer,1959,p.2.0. 4Jbid., p.2.. Transportandcommunicntio11s255 Inadditiontogovernmentmarineservices,averyextensive internal traffic,mainly in foodstuffs,was provided by Nigerians who operatedwithcanoesandafewengine-boats.Afewexpatriate firmsalsoprovidedriverfleetsexclusivelyconcernedwithforeign trade:theseincludedtheNigerRiverTransport(abranchof the UAC),which in 1960 operated with 24 tugs and 96barges of a total of22,220tons,representingtwo-thirdsofthetotalriverfleet capacity;Holts Transport Ltd (a subsidiary ofJohn Holt &Co. Ltd) whichoperatedwithr 8tugsand59bargesof atotaltonnageof 6,650;andarelativelynew company,theNiger Benue Transport, with7 tugsand 25bargesof atotalof 4,8oo tons. TheNigerRiverTransportcarriedgoodstothetonnageof 150,000in1946-7,159,000in1950-1andr87,000in1959-60(see tableIJ.I).TheMobilOilNigeriaLimited(anoilcompany operatinginthedelta)alsoowned andoperated atankbarge-train TABLEIJ.INigerRiverTransport fleet,1945-60 GoodsPassengers Tonnage FinancialcarriedTonmileNumber ofRevenue* year('ooo)(' ooo)passengers(ooo) 1945-6II952,25723233 1946-715059,218 7274 1947-8155 64,028 9328 1948-9158 55.385 8 301 194!1--50145 55,882 5 310 195D-I159 69,048 4495 1951-216168,2126 538 1952-J 16974.625663 1953-417579,028 4 692 1954-5 181 79.470 4 780 1955-6186 76,043Sos 1956-719277,053 793 1957-8!6966,6842 583 1958-918476.429 620 1959-60187 82,220 638 1 Ninety-fiveper cent or more of the revenue isobtained from goods traffic. Source:UACStatisticalaudEconomicReview,1948-6o. 256An ecotJomichistoryof Nigeria carryingbulk petroleum products fromSapeletoup-riverinstalla-tionsasfarasGarua.The MonroviaNavigationCo.Limitedalso operatedpetroleumtankersforMobilOilNigeriaLimited,asfar asOnitshaandbeyondtoLokojaandMakurdiattimesof high water.Table13.2 shows thetrafficof the Niger River Transport by majorriver port of originanddestination for1959-60. TABLE13.2Trafficof theNigerRiverTransportbymaior port of originanddestination,1959-60 DownstreamUpstream PortTonsPer centTortsPer ce11t Baro42,029 37"3 24.78737"0 Garua12,001Il"112,217r82 IdahII,922ro61,II51"7 Onitsha9,8148721,34531"9 Lokoja 9.573 851,719 26 Numan 5.7015"16641"0 Makurdi 4.3523"9 0 AssayPatani4,0783"64910"7 Dalmaro 3.335 3"0325 o5 Ibi 2,4252"20 Gana Gana/Okpari2,2522"02780"4 Yola2,0933"1 LauI416o6 Other 4.5624"01,5602"3 TotalII2,646100"067,010100"0 Source:Babafemi Ogundana,TheChanging Role of RiverTransportinNigeria, Universityof Ife,unpublishedStaff Seminar Paper,1969-70. Ports The increaseinthevolumeof trademeantthat theNigerianports hadtohandlemoretraffic,particularlycargo.Italsomeantthat harbourfacilitieshadtobeimprovedinordertocopewiththis increased traffic.The ports in order of importance were Lagos,Port Harcourt,Sapele,Burutu,Warri,Calabar and Degema.The Lagos port had two sets of quays- those at A papa on the mainland, and the customsquayonLagosisland.Apapawasservedbyrailandw a ~ Transportand CO/IIIIIItnicatiolls257 usedforup-countrycargoes,whilethecustomsquay,whichwas road-served only,was used for Lagos cargo. Both the A papa and the ~ u s t o m squayareaswere extendedby thereclamationof landfrom rhelagoon.ThemodernquayatApapa,withimprovedharbour !lcilities, was opened byQueen Elizabeth Il on her visit to Nigeria in 1956.ThePortHarcourtportwasapproachedby theBonnyriver wd lies41miles from the sea.The approach to its entrance wasover theBonnybar,whichvesselscouldcrossonlyathighwater.The importanceof thisportincreasedaftertheestablishmentofthe cement industry andthe exploration forpetroleum oil in the area it served.TheWarriport wassome25milesaboveForcadosonthe Warririver.Thechannelsofthisriverwerealsoshallowand demandedgreatcarewhenusedbyvessels.TheCalabarportwas some 40milesdistant from the Fairway buoy, and 5 miles above the mainentrancetotheCrossriver.Theapproach,asinothers,was dif!icultanddangerous,but shipsof 20feetdraught couldenterat high tide.The port ofDegema was situated on the Sombreiro river, butcouldonlybe reached via the Bonny river. Themostsignificantfeaturesof theseportswerethenarrow passagesleadingto them,the shallow rivers on which vesselshadto sailandtheproblemof dredginginordertokeepthemopenas muchaspossible.TheNigerianPortsAuthoritysucceededthe MarineDepartmentin1954,andbecameresponsibleforthepro-vision,improvementandmaintenanceofharbourfacilitiesand servicesinallports.Itsdutiesincludeddredging,hydrographic surveying,buoyage,pilotage,maintenanceof lighthouses,towage andsalvage.Newbuoyagesystemswereintroducedbytheports authority,andspecialpatrolsusingup-to-dateequipmentfor recordingandbroadcastingriverdepthsandbuoyagedetailswere operated on the Niger and Benue. The ports authority also provided rivermapscompiledfromhydrographicsurveysandaerialphoto-graphy,togetherwith anetwork of rivergaugesforthebenefit of shipping. RAILWAYS Themosturgent problem which f.1cedthe railway in1946w:tsthat of makingnecessaryrepairson thecoaches and engines,which had beenoverworkedduringthewarperiod.In1947,14mainline 258Atl economichistoryof Nigeria locomotives,orderedbythegovernmentfromCanadainI94J, weredeliveredtohelpreplaceenginesbeyondeconomicuseand repair.1 Eventhen,therailway'spowerpositionwasverymuch Lmderstrength.In1948another20mainlinerailwayengineswere 19501195121952-31953-41954-51955-619567195 7-8195891959-60 YEARS

salt etc. CIJ Hardware, machinery etc. ITIIIllJPetroleum products m;j Piece goods Beer, wine and spirits 9Nigerian RailwayCorporation:importscarried,1950-60 boughtfromtheUnitedKingdomasapartialsolutiontothe problemsof providingadequaterailway services. Following the recommendation of the International Bank Mission toNigeria in1953,theNigerian railway cameunder acorporation in April 1955.2 The railway corporation made a number of improve-1 ColonialAnnual Reports,Nigeria,1947,p.77 z Theadministrationof theNigerianrailwayuntil1955wascarriedon bya GeneralManagerwiththehighestauthorityvestedintheDirectorof Railwaysand Works,subjecttotheGovemor-Ge11eral'scontrol. TraHSport1111dCOIIIIIIIIIlicatiolls259 memstothesystem.One of themost significantdevelopmentswas rhcintroductionof diesellocomotivesin1955.Thesecouldlundlc bigger and heavier loads, and could beusedmore continuously with lessmaintenance and servicing work. The factthat they did not have 19501195121952319534 1954519556 195671957819589195960 YEARS EZJ Kolanuts ITIIIIll Stone !m Livestock Other farmproducts 10NigerianRailwayCorporation:internaltraffic,195 TherelationshipbetweentheCentralBankandorherbankswa; defined:'The Bank may act:asbanker to other banks in Nigeria anci abroad', and 'shall wherever necessary seek the co-operation of,anci co-operatewith,otherbanksinNigeria'.5 Building operations began in earnest towards the end of 1958, and onI JulyI959theCentralBankof Nigeriawasformallyopened, \\ith MrF.P.Fenton, anadviser to the Bank of England,asitsfirst governor. It isdifficult to give a full appraisal of its operations for me short period of its life covered in thisbook,but tabler 6. 5 shows its 35Setsandliabilities.ThebankissuedthenewNigeriancurrency noteSand coins in 1959,and continued to manage the West African CurrencyBoardnotesandcoinsuntiltheywere completely wim-drawn.TheCentralBankalsosupervisedthemanagementof the country's external reserves, and assisted the government in cr;eating a moneymarketby issuesof treasurybills.It servedasthebankers' bank.andexercisedsomecontroloverthecreditactivitiesof the commercialbanks.Aboveall,theCentralBankwasthebanker, agent andfinancialadvisertotheNigerian government. THESTOCKEXCHANGEANDTHENIGERIANMONEYMARKET Inmostdevelopedcountries,suchasBritainandtheUSA,stock exchangeswereformedbythedrawing-togetherof peopleand firmsalready engaged in the profession of stockbroking. In Nigeria there were no stockbrokers and comparatively little dealing in stocks and shares; yet the desirability of the establishment of a share market was fullyrecognized in the early fifties,and thisbecame the subject of discussionby acommittee setupbythefederalgovernment in 1 Section6 (1).Section16(1).JSection 17.4 Section 38.s Section 39 :;This commirrL'e favoured rhe L'iubl!shn:cnr of lst.xk ex..:hmt!.: nvrrhink irFr.lcti.c.lblet-orsome [!me'Huwc'\er.r!lc'ig;-....: .'1:0DOD1Ygrc\V rapidly. ana asa r theyfailedtofurnishfullandregularparticulars. The firstFactoriesOrdinance was passedin1955andit came into force on 1 September 1956.1 It was based on the factory legislation in theUnitedKingdom.Afactorywasdefinedasaplaceemploying tenormoremanualworkersmakingorprocessingarticles,and includedshipyards,drydocks,railwayworkshops,clectriciry-generatingstations:tndwaterworks.Theordinancelaiddownthe minimum standards forthe safety,health and welfareof workers in factories,but did not apply to the mines,which were covered by the Minerals Ordinance. All factories had to be registered with the Chief Inspectorof Factories,whowasalsoresponsibleforensuringthe enforcementof thelegislation. Casesof industrialdiseaseswere rare in Nigeria because industrial development wasfairlyrecent.However,there were afewcasesof leadpoisoninginthemines,andsuspectedcasesofpneumo-coniosis,which wasthought tobe due to the inhalation of dust and cotton fibres. Anumberof privateconcernsprovideddispensaries,maternity homes and hospitals forthebenefit of their workers.These facilities were usually placed at the disposal of the workers' funilies as well. In a fewother cases,employers arrangedfordoctorstocallatregular intervalstoattendtoworkerswhomighthaveanycomplaint regarding their health. The Red Cross Society also provided first-aid classes for factory workers in several centres throughout the country. Modern cloakrooms, washing facilities and sanitary accommodation were provided by the few large firms.The number of canteens and mess-roomsgradually increased,andworkerscould eitherbuythe food provided there,usually at subsidized prices,or bring their own foodandconsume itinthemess-rooms. THECO-OPERATIVEMOVEMENT The co-operative movement in Nigeria first appeared in agricultural production. The early co-operative societies, which were in Western Nigeria, took the form of group-farming societies, and concentrated on providing labour on the farms.After 1924, however, some began toorganizecollectivesalesof cocoaunderthesupervisionof the 1 Lawsof theFederationof NigeriaandLagos,1958,chapter66. Theimpactof developmemOilthesociety377 AgriculturalDepartment.1 Thusasocietyof middlemen,someof whomowned coc?afarms,developed,andby 1933 themovement inthe cocoa-growmg areaof Western Nigeriawas 50 advancedthat thegovernment theneedtosetthesesocietiesonamore definitelyco-operativebaSIS,andtoappointaregistrarofco-operatives?cieties.2 InFebruary1_936CaptainE.F.G.Haig,an administrativeofficer,wasappomted;andtheCo-operative Departmentthuscreatedbecameresponsiblefortheco-operative movementaffairs.3 Theofficeandstaffquarterswerelocatedat Moor Plantation (an agricultural research station) at Ibadan,the area withthelargestnumber of 'indigenous'co-operative societics.4 Theimmediatetaskof thedepartmentwastotrainthethree Nigerianofficialswhoformedthenucleusof aninspectorate,and whosejobitwastoinstilthebasicprinciplesof co-operation,to applythemtopracticalproblemsinvolvingtheexistingcocoa-marketingorganization,andtoteacha sound andsimplesystem of accounting.5 Farmers who desired to form a society were encouraged todoso,andwhere asociety alreadyexisted,it wasencouragedto becomeagovernment-recognized co-operative organization. TheNigerianco-operativemovementfollowedthreebasic princi pies: (a)Theshare capitalof thesocietywasprovidedbyitsmembers. The sharescouldnotbesoldandtheyneitherappreciatednor depreciatedinvalue;and soamemberwasinmuchthesame positionasadebenture-holder in a joint-stockcompany. (b)Thesocietyoperatedontheprincipleof one ?ne. vote, regardlessof capitalholding or the scaleof part!ctpationthe society'sactivities.Themanagementof the societywasmthe handsof acommittee appointedby allitsmembers. 1 Theearlyco-operatives inagriculturalproductionwereknown as'agricul-turalassociations':Amwal Reportthe Department, 1924Lagos, Government Printer,p.ro..LaosGovernment 1 AnnualReportontheAgmulturalDepartment,1934,g Printer,p.20....._IssuedasSessional 3 ReportontheProgressof Co-operatronrnNrgerra, 19351 Paper no.2of 1938...)fidoluntarilywith-4 Thesewerethe societies(agriculturalassoCiatiOnsormcv out anygovernment assistance...citp.r. 5 ReportontheProgressof Co-operationinNrgcrra, 1935-7op. 378Aneconomichistoryof Nigeria (c)Thesocietydidnotmakeprofit,but'surplus',which wasallo-cated atthe end of the fm::mcialye;U" to members in proportion to theirpurchasesasconsumersortheirsalesasproducers.The societywas,therefore,excludedfromtheprovisionsofthe companytax. TABLE18.6Numberof co-operatiLJesocietiessuperLJisedbythe Co-operativeDepartment:selectedyears,1939-60 Thrift ProduceandThriftCo11- Other Yearmarketingloanaud creditsumerssocieties 31Marchsocietiessocietiessocietiessocieties(*)Total 1939Il3 t 194014032 t 1945187 20061 t 1947242265141 4 40692 1950310 314 3883842 1,092 1955545 27391343 II6!,890 19581,243293!,093SI 26!2,941 19591,4933081,183 39357 3.380 19601,237 34195 t Including secondaryorganizations. t Totalnotreliablebecauseof lackof statisticsaboutotherco-operative societies. Source:Annual Abstractof Statistics,1963. Before1945development was slow,but thereafter more societies wereformedandtheybegantoplayanincreasingroleinthe country'seconomy.Table18.6showsthatthetotalnumberof co-operativesocietiesincreasedfrom692in1947to1,092in1950, 1,890in1955and3,380in1959.Inthe1945-6cocoaseasonthere were 219co-operative marketing societies,and this number roseto 310in1950,545in1955andto1,493in1959;theygrewrapidly, particularlyintheWesternRegion,whichin1960 hadmorethan two-thirdsof themarketingsocietiesin the country. It was in the marketing ofcocoa that the societies were most active: table18.7showstheproportionof Nigeria'sproductionof cocoa whichcamethroughthem.Theincreaseinprimarywealthand exports,andthesubsequentadvanceinthelivingstandardsof the Thei111pactof developmeut011thesociety379 people,broughtaboutaremarkableincreaseinthenumberof co-operatives,particularly intheproduce marketingandthriftand credit sectors.The Association of Nigerian Co-operative Exporters, whichlaterbecame alicensedbuying agent of theWesternRegion MarketingBoard,wasresponsibleforsellingtheproductssupplied bytheproducemarketingsocieties.'Italsohandledthesocieties' non-marketingboard produce, such asrubber, copra,coffee,ginger andcastorseed. TABLE18.7Co-operativemarketingsocietiesand Nigeriancocoa production,1935-60 (b) Co-operative (a)marketing NigeriasocietiesPercerztage Year(tons)(tons)(b)to(a) 1935-6 79.469 2,161 2'7 1939-401!2,841 5,9155'2 1945-695,18913,76214'5 1949-50100,520 9.6979'7 1959-60 154.595 29,300*19'0 Approximatefigure. Source:AnnualReportsoftlteRegistrar of Co-operativeSocietiesi11Nigeria. TheCo-operativeThriftandLoanSocieties,whichcaterpri-marily for salary earners, were among the earliest co-operatives to be formedin the country.Originally they existedonly in government departments,but themovement laterspreadtomercantilehouses, schoolsandcorporations.Theyincreasedinnumberfrom224in 1946,to 314 in 1950,dropped to 273in 1955,but increased again to 308in 1959.Their total savings increased steadily between 1948and 1959.However, in 1957 total withdrawals exceeded total savings for the firsttime.This was due to a number of factors: (a)theincreasedcostof living,especiallyinLagoswhere most of thesocietiesexisted,made itmore difficultforsalaryearnersto save; 'AnnualReportontl1eProgressof Co-operationinNigeria,Llgos,Govemment Printer. 3SoAn economichistoryof Nigeria (b)housing difficulties in Lagos forced up rents,and severalmomhs' rent wasoften demanded in adv:mcc; (c)itbecamecommonpracticeformemberstousethesociety asacurrentaccountsavingsbank,therebymakingfrequent withdrawalsforpurposesnotprovided in thebye-laws; (d)the liquidation of a number of societies,andtheamalgamation of others,necessitatedheavy withdrawals. Membersof thethriftandloansocietieswereallowedtoborrow fromthe society,or againsttheirsavings,forobjectsof permanent use: for example, for buying land or buildings. They were encouraged to save the minimum of rs.per pound of salary,and to limit savings to what they could afford. The accumulated savings were invested in variousaccounts;partwaskept in the commercialbanks and,from 1953,ataco-operativebank;1 somedepositsweremadewiththe Post Office Savings Bank; while some of the societies also invested in governmentstocks.Co-operativeThriftandCreditSocietiesfor non-salaryearnersgrew considerably after1946,the number rising from 98in 1946,to 388in 1950,913in 1955and 1,237 in1960.The credit societieshad great supportamong farmersandsmalltraders, particularlyatCalabarin EasternNigeria.TheCo-operative Con-sumerSocieties,on theother hand,were slow todevelop forthree mainreasons:first,theyfacedcompetitionfromthemultitude of smalltraderswith low overhead costs;secondly,there were inade-quate fundsto developthe societies and extend their operations; and thirdly,thesocietieswereoftenmanagedbypeoplewithoutany experience.The number of consumers'societies increased from 4 in 1947,to38in1950,43in1955and to51in1958,but fellto34in 1960.OtherNigerian co-operative societies which cameinto exist-enceafter1945included craft and artisanssocieties(covering raffia-work, wood-carving, ironwork, carpentry and fancy-leather work), farmingsocieties,buildingsocieties,andco-operativeschoolsand maternity homes. The co-operative movement was also extended to cover banking. The firstco-operativebankwasestablishedinWesternNigeria in 1953withacapitalof r million grantedbytheNigerianCocoa MarketingBoard.Itwasfollowedin1955bytheEasternNigeria Co-operativeBank,whichstartedwithacapitalof zo,ooo.The 'Co-operativebankingisdiscussedbelow. Thei111pactdcpcfoplllmto11the3!11 prinury functionof theb:mkwastoprovidea sourceof capitalfor co-operativesocieties.Membershipwasopentoanyregistered co-operativesocietywithintheareaof thebank'soperations,pro-videdthatthenecessaryminimumsharecapitalof rwaspaid. Therewasno maximum limit tothe amount of share capitalwhich a societycouldhold.The fundsof thebankwerecomposedof r sharesfromtheco-operativesocieties,depositsfrommembersand fromthepublic,loanssanctionedby theRegistrarof Co-operative Societies,grantsfromanysourceandundistributedsurpluses. The bank granted loans and advances to co-operative societies,but thesewerenotautomatic:theywereonlygrantedaftercareful consideration, and only if adequate material securities were available -the society had to produce the names ofpermns prepared to guaran-teetheloans.The bank alsoservedthe publicthrough its'ordinary bankingbusiness'asunderstoodin commercialbanking. Theday-to-dayoperationofanyco-operativesocietywas governedbyabye-lawwhichwasbasedontheCo-operative SocietiesOrdinance.Untiltheearlyfifties,whentrainingwas provided,mostof thefmancialtransactionsof thesocietieswere handledby the secretaries,whowereentrustedwithlargesumsof money.Sincemostof thesociety'smemberswereilliterate,secre-tarieswereoftendishonestwithoutanyfearof detection;casesof embezzlements of societies'fundswere common, and unfortunately many of the people involved in such malpractices got away v,ithout punishmentbecausetheirfraudswerediscoveredtoolate.After 1950,moretrainingcoursesforthesecretarieswereorganizedby theCo-operativeDepartmenttoimproveefficiency,butitwas obviousthatimprovementcouldonlycomeifbetter-educated people were encouraged to take upsuch appointments,andif better wages were offered. In 1953thegovernment opened a Co-operative Training School at Ibadan for inspectors and auditors.z The co-operative movement inNigeria played animportant role in the social and economic life of the people. Indeed, social conditions inthecountry were suchthat without themovement,many of the smallertradersandagriculturistswouldhavefounditdifficultto 1 Lawsof theFederatior1of NigeriaandLagos,1958,chapter39 Thegovernments of theother (former)BritishWest Africancolonies(The Gambia,SierraLeoneandGhana)senttheirofficerstobetrainedatthis school. 382An economichistoryof Nigeria operate.Themovementalsoimprovedthesavingshabit,particu-larlyin ruralcommunities.Generally,businessesamongNigerians tended to operate in small units,but the co-operative movement set theexampleof parmershipand co-operation neededforeconomic growthtobeachieved and sustained. 19Epilogue:the post-independence years to1972 PHILOSOPHYONECONOMICGROWTH Intheprecedingchapters,we havetracedtheprocessof economic revolutioninNigeria.A purely subsistence economy a century ago hasbeen transformed into a fairly sophisticated market economy.It ~important,therefore,toexamineverybrieflythephilosophy whichmotivatedeconomicgrowth inNigeriawithina compara-tivelyshortperiod,andwhich hassustainedgrowthtothepresent dav. Everyeconomichistoryispremisedonaphilosophy,explicitly ~ r a t e dor implied;a philosophy which revealsthe conception of the economicworldinwhichapeoplehavelived.Insubstance,the philosophybehindtheeconomichistoryof Nigeriaisbasedon 'Competitive Capitalism'. This is most practicable in a free-enterprise economyinwhich certain fundamentalprinciplesareobserved and accepted:theprivateownershipof factorsof production;theright toorganizesuchfactorsforproductivepurposesandforprofit motives;and the exercise of these rights within the legal framework of thecountry. Anindividual,therefore,couldownfactorsof production,set himself upinbusiness, join others in partnership,or own shares in a ioint-stock venture. He could then sell his produce for profit without .anygovernment intervention on observing allthebasic lawswhich madeit possible for him and the other citizens to enjoy 'competitive capitalism'.1 The British administration in Nigeria between I86o and 196o was maderelativelyeasybythefactthatitmetwitha philosophyof 1 R.0. Ekundarc,'The Political Economy of Private Investment in Nigeria'. 384An economichistoryof Nigeria economicgrowthonwhichthemodernsystemwasbuilt.The adoptionof theindirect-rulepolicybythe British 1 wasmadepos-sible by the indigenous economic system which wasnot completely alientotheBritish,andwhichencouragedBritaintoadoptthe colonialeconomy asanarm of the British economic system.There wasnothing on recordto indicate that Nigerians were 'socialists' or 'communists'.Thefactthattheindigenoussocialandeconomic systemsof thecountry werebasedlargelyontheextendedf.1mily systemtendedtogivetheimpressionthatNigerianswere'natural socialists'.Thisimpression,whichwasoftenadoptedbythepro-tagonistsof socialisminNigeria,hadnoeconomicfoundation.In a developing country,wheretheprocessof divisionof labourand exchange had not been fully entrenched into the economic system, a relianceonsubsistenceproduction,whichisthemaineconomic characteristic of the extended family system,was inevitable. Indeed, subsistenceproduction did not precludeexchange.While themain motiveforproduction inthissubsistenceeconomywastosatisfy individual wants, surplus production over and above the subsistence level often formed the nucleus of an exchange system- either barter or money exchange. The fact that a wealthy member ofa family was obliged to help his less fortunate brethren was not a sufficient reason to brand him asa socialist.The question was,how did he acquire his wealth?Surelynotthroughanysocialistsystem,butbyworking hardenoughtoearnareasonablyhighincomefromwhichhe accumulated his wealth. Indeed, he would prefer to help his brethren in such a way as to ensure ultimately that they had individual econo-mic independence.The economics of the slave trade and that of the legitimatetradewhichfollowed- andwhichhaditsfoundation in'rural'agriculturalcapitalism- hadstrengthenedtheclaimof a long-establishedcompetitive capitalism in Nigeria. With the rapid development of a modern exchange economy, the extended family system was gradually losing its ftrm grip on Niger-ian society. It was a slow but inevitable process of change in what was fastbecomingahighlymaterialisticsociety.2 Somefamilyobliga-tions, such as the care of the sick, and fmancial support for education, hadbecomepartlytheresponsibility of the government. 1 SeePerham,NativeAdministrationinNigeria. 'R.0.Ekundarc,IntroductiontoEconomicsforIestAfricanStudents,New York,Nok PublishersLtd:inpreparation. Epilogue:the yearsto1972385 The philosophy of competitive capitalismgave scopeforgO\em-ment enterprise,forprivate enterprise(corporate andindividual), as wellasforacombinationof both,toparticipateinshapingthe economichistoryof thecountry.However,thegeneralresponsi-bilityofgovernmentforpacemakingandoveralldirectionof economicandsocialactivitywas,nevertheless,inevitable andpara-mount.The colonialadministrationwhich endedin1960provided thekindof economicleadershipcompatiblewithimperialism.At independence,however,threesectorsof economicactivityclearly emerged:fmt,thepublicsectorwhichwasdominatedbythe activities of the government and its agencies; second, the semi-public sectorinwhichthegovernment joinedwithprivateenterpriseas partneror sponsor;andthirdly,theprivatesectorforprivatecor-porateandindividual activity. THEPOLITICALECONOMYOFSECTORALPARTICIPATION Asthemain policy of the government was to increase the country's rateof economic growth,every sector hadtoincreaseitspa