There are so many areas where Africa’s largest and most dynamic economy<\/p>\n
derives its strength and one of these borders on geographic diversity. Is
\nNigeria a single country? If you ask me , frankly , I will say NO in block
\nletters being a collection of many nations and quasi-independent
\ncity-states fused into one geo-polity each with its own tastes,
\nproclivities, resources and problems.<\/p>\n
The different ethnic nationalities that make up the Federation of Nigeria
\ndoubtless once compete with one another with the once glorious north
\nlosing its economic importance, dominance, and prestige to the south
\nresulting from self-inflicted pains and misery ravaging the region via
\ninsurgency. Talents have since begun to flee the embattled region known
\nfor its gentler climes to the humid south as lives are being hacked to
\ndeath by powerful dangerous powerful explosives. This forebodes nothing
\nbut grave danger to the biggest economic power house of the supposedly
\n”Dark Continent”<\/p>\n
Time was when the great groundnut pyramid in the desert city of Kano
\nserved as a huge foreign exchange earner for the country. The desert
\ncotton fields up north provided employment for people in the region but
\ntoday the reverse is the case as the open arable fields transmute into
\nbattle fields killing the inhabitants of the region in their hundreds and
\nthousands. Poverty in Nigeria today is better blamed on this and not the
\neconomic policies of government which has been trying to better the lots
\nof Nigerians in that the wealth generated in the south is not enough to
\nbenefit the rest of the country considering the steady decline in oil
\nprices.<\/p>\n
Drift from the north to south’s semi-autonomous economic states has
\nbeen on-going . This had happened many times in history before now. Some
\nof these economic migrants were intercepted and swooped down on in the
\nsouth east sometime ago and branded as terrorist although this claim was
\nrefuted by sympathizers who held contrary opinions and claims. The North
\nwhich used to be the nation\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cultural centre , is steadily losing
\nthat title to the south.<\/p>\n
For quite sometime now the South – the least populous region has
\nrocketed ahead of the North as a high-tech centre. It has by far the
\nhighest percentage of workers more than 50% above the national average
\nand the largest share of artisans in its workforce. The south owes this
\nsteady progress to nothing but peace and the once communitarian north
\nmust take their cue from this. Kano once the pearl of northern Nigeria
\nremains distinct from the rest of the country. Long a lure for migrants
\nfrom the south , it has slipped in recent times, losing not only
\npopulation to other areas but whole industries and major corporations.
\nOnce youthful, it is experiencing among the most rapid declines of any
\ncosmopolitan area in the nation. Yet it retains one of Nigeria’s oldest
\ninternational airports and manufacturing factories in the whole of
\nnorthern Nigeria. Kano a great cultural and religious centre achieved
\nthis then by her strong and stable government.
\nBut in the past, no state in Nigeria apart from Lagos and Rivers has
\ndisplayed greater economic dynamism. This is one of the reasons why the
\ninhabitants of the region must embrace peace.<\/p>\n
\nMost remarkable of this would be the region’s demographic revival. Lives
\nhave been lost to violence and terror and expected to increase further if
\nthe trend continues. A few armed terrorists gang must not be allowed to
\nput millions of lives in jeopardy. The strong pro-growth spirit in the
\nregion, its wealth in natural resources in the northern tier, suggest
\nthat the region will play a far more important role in the future
\ndethrones the south as the nation\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s leading economic power base ,
\nlocus for trade and a cultural and business destination in the
\nsub-region. President Jonathan’s pursuit of peace in the nooks and
\ncrannies of Nigeria will bring about economic prosperity and sustainable
\ndevelopment and this requires our collective efforts.<\/p>\n
\nThe north which used to be one of the nation\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s industrial heartland has
\nhaemorrhaged millions manufacturing jobs over the past 10 years of
\nIslamist militancy in the region bringing untold hardships to its
\ninhabitants . Have the natives ever pondered over this problem hand on
\nchin? This problem is man-made and we have no option but to join forces
\nwith the present administration under President Jonathan to reinvent and
\nregenerate the embattled northern province.<\/p>\n
Iyoha John Darlington , aka Lington Donovan , a political activist and
\npublic commentator on national and global issues writes from Turin, Italy.<\/p>\n
Email: jamestmichael2003@yahoo.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There are so many areas where Africa’s largest and most dynamic economy derives its strength and one of these borders on geographic diversity. Is Nigeria a single country? If you…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34596,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n