Thursday, September 30, 2010

NIGERIA, INDONESIA and THE CHINESE

Nigerian Vice-President Goodluck Jonathan shakes hands with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi in Abuja, capital of Nigeria, 8 January 2010.

On 1 October 2010, Nigeria is celebrating 50 years of so called independence.

Indonesia and Nigeria are similar.

Both Nigeria and Indonesia have oil and gas.

Both, at independence, had similar standards of living.

Both have suffered from military rule and corruption.

In 1965, there was a CIA coup in Indonesia which put the military into power.

Nigeria had a coup in 1966.

And also in 1976, when the CIA reportedly put Olusegun Obasanjo into power. (THE CIA IN NIGERIA)

Let's look at some figures for Nigeria and Indonesia

Life expectancy
Nigeria: Men, 47. Women, 48
Indonesia: Men, 69. Women, 73

Gross national income, per capita
Nigeria: $1,160
Indonesia: $2,010

Gross domestic product
Nigeria: $207.12 billion
Indonesia: $510.73 billion

Population below poverty line
Nigeria: 70%
Indonesia: 17.8% (the poverty line is set VERY low)

In 1960, Nigeria produced almost half the world's palm oil, now it covers just 7% (Nigeria and Indonesia)

Why has Nigeria not done so well?

Indonesia has its Chinese-Indonesians, the people said to be responsible for much of Indonesia's economic progress.

Until recently, Nigeria has had no equivalent.

Now, Nigeria has become an important source of oil and petroleum for China.

Nigeria is looking to China for help in achieving high economic growth; China has provided extensive economic, military and political support.[3][4]

The Chinese-Indonesians are not always popular in Indonesia.

The Chinese in Nigeria may not always be popular.

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FACTBOX-Key political risks to watch in Nigeria

'40000 Nigerian girls forced into prostitution in Mali'

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