It’s funny to think citizens of a country would have misconceptions about their country but for a country like Nigeria with diversity in religion, culture, language, ethics and even dialect, it’s not totally impossible for misconceptions about certain parts, or people of different cultures to occur.

Here are some of the 5 most common misconceptions Nigerians have about Nigeria.

1. Nigeria is a very Rich Country : I’m sure we all must have thought about this at one point or the other in our lives as a Nigerian and come to the conclusion that if only we had good leaders, we would be one of the greatest countries in the world by virtue of how rich we are, however, this is not totally the case. Nigeria like any country in the world, has the potential to become one of the greatest countries in the world, but as of now, we are not as rich as we think we are. I once had a discussion with a friend who said Nigeria ought to be rich like the Persian Gulf countries he even made a statement which is quite common among us Nigerians – “Is it not the same oil that the UAE has that we have”. Well this is true but when you compare the amount of oil produced in relation to the population it’s supposed to cater for, we are not making as much income compared to other oil exporting countries. A 2015 study among oil producing countries proves that Nigeria produces 0.02 barrels per person per day while Qatar produces 0.74 barrels per person, per day.

below is a chart showing oil exporting countries according to their per capita oil production



2. Lagos is the one of the biggest cities in Nigeria : Most Nigerians generally assume Lagos being a city with the highest population and most housing and transport infrastructure, is one of the biggest states and city to live in. This is not true and in fact, an irony, as Lagos is the smallest state in Nigeria. To put in practical terms, you can cut out the entire land mass of the state of Lagos more than 23 times from that of Niger State.

3. Nigeria is one of the most corrupt countries in the world!: he he he, I have to let out a little giggle at this point. So why is this a misconception? Well, a lot might be mismanaged in terms of public funds which causes an uneven distribution of National wealth, but it would be nice to know that Nigeria doesn't even make the Top 20 among the most corrupt countries in Africa nor did we make the Top 100 in the world according to Transparency International, an organization devoted to studying how countries around the world fare in terms of corruption.

4. Nigeria only exports Crude Oil: This is another common misconception that sometimes fuel uprisings and militant activities and encourage illegal sabotage of Oil exploration machinery which leads to economic unrest. However, Nigeria is currently the 49th largest export economy in the world and some of our major exports aside oil, include: Ginger (This is one of the most traded spices in the world which Nigeria happens to be among the largest producers), Palm Kernel Oil, Textiles and Garments, Cocoa Butter, Gallstone, Rubber, Sesame Seed, Honey, Snail, Poultry, Cosmetics and Soaps, Fruit Juice, etc.

5. Northern Nigeria Speaks only the Hausa Language: Most Nigerians are aware of the diversity in Language and culture across various parts of the country however there’s a bias of interest if you don’t belong to the Language or culture being spoken about. Most southerners believe Hausa is the only language in the North and think that it’s part of the reason they’re so united along political and religious lines, let me break it to you, there are over 300 active languages being spoken in Nothern Nigeria some of which include: Gbedde, Bachama, Banso, Batta, Baya, Bilei, Bille, Botlere, Botlere, Bura, Bwatiye, Bwazza, Daba, Daka, Ga’anda, Gira, Gizigz, Gombi, Gude, Gudu,Gwa, Gwamba, Ichen, Jibu, Kambu, Lala, Mambilla, Margi, Matakam, , Shuwa, etc.

So there you have it, these are some of the most common misconceptions Nigerians have about their country.

Have any more ideas? Feel free to add yours below!

Source: http://rave.ng/2017/07/16/5-common-misconceptions-nigerians-have-about-nigeria/

1. Nigeria is a rich country. You said Nigeria is not rich because of oil production and population but I disagree. We haven't done a proper census and you stated in point #4 that we don't only export crude oil. So Nigeria is rich.

2. Lagos is the one of the biggest cities in Nigeria : Here your definition is faulty. You started with city and ended with state. Lagos is actually one of the biggest cities in Nigeria but one of the smallest states. Don't mix up the definitions please.

3. Nigeria is one of the most corrupt countries in the world!: I think English is the problem here. What you are trying to convey is that Nigeria is a corrupt country but not the number one corrupt country.

4. Nigeria only exports Crude Oil: I think you are very wrong with this. People know we export other things apart from crude oil. It's Nigeria's heavy dependence on crude oil that is taken into account when the actions you described are taken.

5. Northern Nigeria Speaks only the Hausa Language: This your language list includes middlebelt.

Above all Nigeria, God bless Nigeria
Punish our bias Politicians
Who divide us Religiously
Tribally and Politically
For their political gain

Boy101:
It’s funny to think citizens of a country would have misconceptions about their country but for a country like Nigeria with diversity in religion, culture, language, ethics and even dialect, it’s not totally impossible for misconceptions about certain parts, or people of different cultures to occur.

Here are some of the 5 most common misconceptions Nigerians have about Nigeria.

1. Nigeria is a very Rich Country : I’m sure we all must have thought about this at one point or the other in our lives as a Nigerian and come to the conclusion that if only we had good leaders, we would be one of the greatest countries in the world by virtue of how rich we are, however, this is not totally the case. Nigeria like any country in the world, has the potential to become one of the greatest countries in the world, but as of now, we are not as rich as we think we are. I once had a discussion with a friend who said Nigeria ought to be rich like the Persian Gulf countries he even made a statement which is quite common among us Nigerians – “Is it not the same oil that the UAE has that we have”. Well this is true but when you compare the amount of oil produced in relation to the population it’s supposed to cater for, we are not making as much income compared to other oil exporting countries. A 2015 study among oil producing countries proves that Nigeria produces 0.02 barrels per person per day while Qatar produces 0.74 barrels per person, per day.

below is a chart showing oil exporting countries according to their per capita oil production



2. Lagos is the one of the biggest cities in Nigeria : Most Nigerians generally assume Lagos being a city with the highest population and most housing and transport infrastructure, is one of the biggest states and city to live in. This is not true and in fact, an irony, as Lagos is the smallest state in Nigeria. To put in practical terms, you can cut out the entire land mass of the state of Lagos more than 23 times from that of Niger State.

3. Nigeria is one of the most corrupt countries in the world!: he he he, I have to let out a little giggle at this point. So why is this a misconception? Well, a lot might be mismanaged in terms of public funds which causes an uneven distribution of National wealth, but it would be nice to know that Nigeria doesn't even make the Top 20 among the most corrupt countries in Africa nor did we make the Top 100 in the world according to Transparency International, an organization devoted to studying how countries around the world fair in terms of corruption.

4. Nigeria only exports Crude Oil: This is another common misconception that sometimes fuel uprisings and militant activities and encourage illegal sabotage of Oil exploration machinery which leads to economic unrest. However, Nigeria is currently the 49th largest export economy in the world and some of our major exports aside oil, include: Ginger (This is one of the most traded spices in the world which Nigeria happens to be among the largest producers), Palm Kernel Oil, Textiles and Garments, Cocoa Butter, Gallstone, Rubber, Sesame Seed, Honey, Snail, Poultry, Cosmetics and Soaps, Fruit Juice, etc.

5. Northern Nigeria Speaks only the Hausa Language: Most Nigerians are aware of the diversity in Language and culture across various parts of the country however there’s a bias of interest if you don’t belong to the Language or culture being spoken about. Most southerners believe Hausa is the only language in the North and think that it’s part of the reason they’re so united along political and religious lines, let me break it to you, there are over 300 active languages being spoken in Nothern Nigeria some of which include: Gbedde, Bachama, Banso, Batta, Baya, Bilei, Bille, Botlere, Botlere, Bura, Bwatiye, Bwazza, Daba, Daka, Ga’anda, Gira, Gizigz, Gombi, Gude, Gudu,Gwa, Gwamba, Ichen, Jibu, Kambu, Lala, Mambilla, Margi, Matakam, , Shuwa, etc.

So there you have it, these are some of the most common misconceptions Nigerians have about their country.

Have any more ideas? Feel free to add yours below!

Source: http://rave.ng/2017/07/16/5-common-misconceptions-nigerians-have-about-nigeria/

I agree with you except on number 4. Crude oil still earn more than 60% of the foreign exchange to nigeria. Anybody disputing this have to provide a very solid data to back his arguement and if orherwise why do we have economic crisis every time the price of crude oil fall. My dismay is that even top government persons have this wrong notion that the country is rich hence their penchant to loot what is given to them to run the country.
The only solution to this looting madness is to enshrine true federalism as obtained in other countries so that any state that loots their resources will suffer the consquences alone. This will also enable rich states to invest in poor states and cub waste by parasitic state parastatals whose staff produce nothing but expect to be paid by the state government every month.
For example if enugu state is very rich and invest and run a company in taraba，the bulk of the employees will be from taraba and because they know the company is owned by another state they and can be relieved of their services if they are not productive the non-chalant attitude of na our money will be very low.

NothingDoMe:
1. Nigeria is a rich country. You said Nigeria is not rich because of oil production and population but I disagree. We haven't done a proper census and you stated in point #4 that we don't only export crude oil. So Nigeria is rich.

2. Lagos is the one of the biggest cities in Nigeria : Here your definition is faulty. You started with city and ended with state. Lagos is actually one of the biggest cities in Nigeria but one of the smallest states. Don't mix up the definitions please.

3. Nigeria is one of the most corrupt countries in the world!: I think English is the problem here. What you are trying to convey is that Nigeria is a corrupt country but not the number one corrupt country.

4. Nigeria only exports Crude Oil: I think you are very wrong with this. People know we export other things apart from crude oil. It's Nigeria's heavy dependence on crude oil that is taken into account when the actions you described are taken.

5. Northern Nigeria Speaks only the Hausa Language: This your language list includes middlebelt.

1. Crude oil is still one of our major sources of income and a fall in the price of crude is tantamount to economic crisis, so Nigeria is still not rich.

2. Lagos isn't one of the biggest cities, and yes Lagos city can also be referred to as Lagos state as it encompasses all the different areas in Lagos which include Ikorodu, Ikeja, all the way to Lekki.


3. The heading says Nigerians think Nigeria is one of the 'Most' corrupt.

4. As a matter of fact, a little research was made before this post was written and it proved that An average Nigerian on the street is very aware that Nigeria exports Crude but isn't sure of any other commodity.

5. The languages listed were selected from Adamawa, Bauchi and Yobe according to indigenes living in those parts of the country.

greenmonk:

I agree with you except on number 4. Crude oil still earn more than 60% of the foreign exchange to nigeria. Anybody disputing this have to provide a very solid data to back his arguement and if orherwise why do we have economic crisis every time the price of crude oil fall. My dismay is that even top government persons have this wrong notion that the country is rich hence their penchant to loot what is given to them to run the country.
The only solution to this looting madness is to enshrine true federalism as obtained in other countries so that any state that loots their resources will suffer the consquences alone. This will also enable rich states to invest in poor states and cub waste by parasitic state parastatals whose staff produce nothing but expect to be paid by the state government every month.
For example if enugu state is very rich and invest and run a company in taraba，the bulk of the employees will be from taraba and because they know the company is owned by another state they and can be relieved of their services if they are not productive the non-chalant attitude of na our money will be very low.

Your suggestion is very apt with logic however the post doesn't disprove the importance of crude as a major export commodity in Nigeria, it only seeks to settle a misconception that Nigeria only exports crude which a lot of people think.

1. Crude oil is still one of our major sources of income and a fall in the price of crude is tantamount to economic crisis, so Nigeria is still not rich. You didn't say anything about population.

2. Lagos isn't one of the biggest cities, and yes Lagos city can also be referred to as Lagos state as it encompasses all the different areas in Lagos which include Ikorodu, Ikeja, all the way to Lekki. You are still mixing up definitions. Google the definition of a city.


3. The heading says Nigerians think Nigeria is one of the 'Most' corrupt. They are right because we are ONE of the most corrupt. Everyone's got different lists. Fact is we are known internationally and nationally. Let's not pretend and sugarcoat it please .

4. As a matter of fact, a little research was made before this post was written and it proved that An average Nigerian on the street is very aware that Nigeria exports Crude but isn't sure of any other commodity. Which research and where are the results?

5. The languages listed were selected from Adamawa, Bauchi and Yobe according to indigenes living in those parts of the country.