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Beginning
in the 17th century Europeans established ports
for slave trafficking. In the early 19th century
the Fulani leader Usman dan Fodio united most
areas in the north under the control of an Islamic
Fulani Empire centered in Sokoto.
The 17th
century brought Portuguese traders to what is
now the Lagos area. However, it was the British
in the 19th century that established permanent
settlement and control over the region. In 1901,
Nigeria was made a British protectorate and remained
in control of Britain until it granted Nigerians
independence in 1960.
Ethnic and
religious tensions following independence led
to the Nigerian Civil War and the start of intermit
democractic and military rule that did not end
until 1999, when the democratic republic was permanently
re-established with the election of Olusegun Obasanjo
as its current president. Recently, supporters
of Obasanjo had tried and failed to extend term
limits following rejection by the national assembly.
New elections are set for 2007.
With its
economy and infrastructure devasted by years of
military rule, corruption, and mismanagement,
Nigeria is now reforming and rebuilding itself
to be a modern, prosperous nation. It is taking
advantage of its position as sub-saharan Africa's
most populous country to push for a more prominent
role in African and International politics. Such
examples are its chairmanship of ECOWAS and the
deployment of peace keeping troops to Liberia
and Sierra Leone, and the African Union with troop
deployments to the Sudan. Nigeria is a member
of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Despite
these positive developments, problems abound in
Nigeria such as endemic corruption and crime such
as the 419 scams; ethnic and religious strife,
particularly between Christians and Muslims in
the northern half of the country, and insurgents
in the oil-rich Niger Delta. The Niger Delta conflict
is hampering Nigeria's oil production capabilities
and is even affecting international oil prices.
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