₦airaland Forum

^-- Well said. Lekki has a good chance of being the air hub of the entire West Africa, Central Africa subregion, if they pull this off properly.

MMIA isn't going to cut it.

^-- Nope, there is actually data to back up Ibos being more violent against their women. There was a study doing a zone-by-zone comparison of domestic violence. . .  SE came first.

In retrospect I should have downloaded or bookmarked the report. If I find it, I'll post it here.

Anyway, obviously every group on earth has some people who abuse their wives. . . Yoruba are human beings too, so shouldn't be surprising. But as I said, some groups have more wife-abusers than others.

^-- All men kills their wives. Just some (Igbo) kill their wives at higher rates than others (Yoruba, other ethnic groups in naija).

lmao. didn't think it'd happen like this

^-- I guess we wait and see what this commission recommends, and then offer advice. Overall though, I think they've identified the key areas that need to be improved.

Bit of a choppy and poorly written article, but key takeway message is that sending girls to school is critical.

No state, region, or nation can develop if it neglects the potential of half of its population.

By Onche Odeh Head, Education & Science

The South-eastern part of Nigeria has recorded significant reduction in poverty levels, thanks to wide spread education of females across various communities.
This observation made by the Nigeria Country Director of Ipas, Dr. Ejike Oji, is in contrast with the fact that the South-eastern part of the country has received the least allocation from the federal government of Nigeria.
But Nigeria is not listed among the countries where access to education has increased over the last two decades, although the UNICEF said, “Today, more children, and girls in particular are in school than ever before.”
This was contained in a statement by UNICEF’s Associate Director of Education, Susan Durston, to mark this year’s Global Action Week that focused on Education for Women and Girls.
According to Durston, “The number of out-of-school children has decreased from 115 million to 67 million between 1999 and 2008, with notable increases in enrolment in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.”
Countries such as Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, Nepal, Tanzania and Yemen have combined rapid increases in enrolment with improved gender equality. As a result, between 1999 and 2008 the gender gap in the out-of-school population narrowed from 57 per cent to 53 per cent globally.
Oji who gave further insight on the reason for the decline in out-of-school girl in south eastern part of Nigeria told Daily Independent that “it has to do with the cultural orientation of the predominantly Igbo-speaking group people known for their industrious nature.”
In the region, most men, even the illiterates would rather marry graduates. This has resulted in over 50 per cent reduction in the poverty levels across the place, according to Oji.
Similarly, UNICEF has said making sure girls and women have equal access to quality education is key to sustainable economic development.
Currently 53 per cent of all children out of school are girls denied of the right to learn. According to the UNICEF statement, poverty, exploitation and armed conflict magnify the risk girls face even as they go to school, forcing many to stay home or drop out in fear of their safety.
“If the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are to be achieved by the 2015 deadline, we must step up efforts to ensure that more girls and women have the opportunity to learn. We have ample evidence that investing in girls’ education yields high returns,” Durston said.
The UN body said girls with access to education not only vastly improve their own lives but also bring change to their families, economies, and societies, adding that providing girls and women with a quality education is a highly effective tool to address poverty and fight disease.
It is a known fact that a woman is more likely to get a job and earn a higher wage if she has a basic education, just as one percentage point increase in female education raises the average level of GDP by 0.37 percentage points, according to UNICEF. It also disclosed that every additional year of primary school boosts girls’ eventual wages by 10 - 20 per cent, and an extra year of secondary school by 15 - 25 per cent.
The ‘Back on Track’ programme of UNICEF works to bring educational opportunities during and after crises, including by establishing child-friendly spaces, which create an environment where children are protected from sexual exploitation and other kinds of abuse.
“Getting girls into school demands concerted action and political leadership. In addition, the rights and needs of girls also have to be addressed to ensure that they stay in school and receive a quality education,” Durston said, adding, “Bolder steps must be taken on all fronts to ensure the successful transition from primary to secondary education and to make sure that girls can complete a full course of learning.”

http://www.independentngonline.com/DailyIndependent/Article.aspx?id=33411

KnowAll:
The first task is for them to convince the FG to hands off both the Ore-Benin Express-way and the Lagos - Ibadan Express-way, I am sure with private capital and a bit of contribution from all member states they should be able to deliver a first class motorway, with eateries, restaurant, petrol Stations and motels on the motorway for the discerning traveller and for convenience.

Hand it off fully. But then the states would need to put tolls on the roads. Otherwise they'd just be a financial burden on the states.

aletheia:
Don't know about the other states but without a doubt Lagos' is #1. It's the 5th largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa. With a GDP of $43 billion, Lagos economy trails South Africa at $467 billion, Nigeria $294 billion, Sudan $107 billion, Angola $80.95 billion, and Kenya $57.65 billion. This means Lagos' economy is larger than that of Ghana.

I was a bit confused by that. The $467 billion for SA, $294 billion for Nigeria and those others countries mentioned in the above article you referenced is GDP, with the PPP adjustment.

However, the $43 billiion reported for Lagos, I'm almost certain is nominal GDP. Just because almost every other article I've read on The Economist before uses nominal (see this for example: http://www.economist.com/blogs/dailychart/2011/01/comparing_us_states_countries).

Nominal figures for SA, Nigeria, Sudan, Angola and Kenya look like quite a bit different: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal). GDP of SA and Nigeria are much smaller using nominal instead of PPP.

BTW, Lagos has the 5th largest economy in sub-saharan Africa (according to that economist article)! So Kenya is #6, after Lagos Whoever wrote that article on did a messy job.

So obvious things:
1. Railway, roads
2. Power
3. Figuring out how to fix agric
4. Healthcare
5. Water

Anything else missing from this list?

I think a non-obvious thing might be education. Especially K-12 level. Is there any way to collaboratively improve it? Or is this pretty much a state-by-state sort of thing?

I have a small idea for crashing down the costs of books. I sort of discussed it here on nairaland a few months ago, and think it could help.

[quote author=ekt_bear link=topic=662524.msg8279234#msg8279234 date=1304853281]Also in attendance at the meeting was the presidential candidate of the party in the just concluded presidential election, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
At the meeting, Ribadu informed party members of his intention to take up his UN job on anti-corruption in Afghanistan.
He bade the party goodbye and sort their permission to return to his UN job,  which he held before returning to the country to run for the presidency.
He expressed satisfaction that the leadership of the party stood by him during the election and thanked them for their support.[/quote]

Among the foremost tasks to be performed by the commission will be in the area of infrastructure development, including railway and road construction, and agriculture services to increase food production and facilitate the establishment of agro-allied industries.

Others areas will be in the area of commercial and social services such as provision of potable water, specialist hospitals, independent power projects, and ensuring the judicious utilisation of water under the control of the river basin authorities in the region.

Excellent stuff.

THISDAY gathered that an initial position paper on the development initiative was put together by a team comprising some former commissioners in Tinubu’s cabinet, bankers and some Nigerians in Diaspora.

I look forward to reading this report.

By Olawale Olaleye
08 May 2011

A regional commission to accelerate development and economic integration in the south-west and Edo State in the south-south is in the works.

The commission to be known as South-west Regional Development Commission (SWERDCO) is being promoted by the Action Congress of Nigeria, which has control over the area covering the old Western Region, presently comprising eight states in the south-west and south-south.

Activities of SWERDCO, ACN sources revealed, will cover Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Osun and Ondo States. Although Ondo is under the Labour Party, it will be included under the commission because the ruling party in the state has an ideological affinity with the ACN.
The jurisdiction of the commission will also extend to Edo State that is in the south-south and is being ruled by an ACN-led government.

Beyond geographical contiguity, Edo State was part of the defunct Western Region in the First Republic from which it was excised to form the defunct Midwestern State on August 9, 1963.

It later metamorphosed into Bendel State from where the present Edo and Delta States were created on August 27, 1991.
Delta State, however, would not come under the jurisdiction of the commission because the ruling party in the state is the Peoples Democratic Party.

A decision to form the commission was taken at a meeting of the national caucus meeting of the ACN in Abuja on May 1.
SWERDCO will perform functions similar to those of Oduduwa Investments Company Limited, a conglomerate that oversees the investments of the old Western Region inherited by all south-west states except Lagos.

However, unlike Oduduwa, a source close to the meeting said SWERDCO would not dabble into investment initiatives that would incur debts for member-states.

Rather, it will focus on stimulating development initiatives for the collective good of the region and its people. According to the source, the meeting which began on May 1 ran into the early hours of May 2, during which the party leaders and governors discussed the need for regional integration that would provoke vast and even development across the region.

He said all the governors elected on the platform of the party and other national members of the party, including its chairman, Chief Bisi Akande and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, attended the meeting.

He said the governors bought into the idea and agreed to work on the establishment of the commission after their inauguration on May 29.

Also in attendance at the meeting was the presidential candidate of the party in the just concluded presidential election, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
At the meeting, Ribadu informed party members of his intention to take up his UN job on anti-corruption in Afghanistan.
He bade the party goodbye and sort their permission to return to his UN job, which he held before returning to the country to run for the presidency.

He expressed satisfaction that the leadership of the party stood by him during the election and thanked them for their support.
Among the foremost tasks to be performed by the commission will be in the area of infrastructure development, including railway and road construction, and agriculture services to increase food production and facilitate the establishment of agro-allied industries.

Others areas will be in the area of commercial and social services such as provision of potable water, specialist hospitals, independent power projects, and ensuring the judicious utilisation of water under the control of the river basin authorities in the region.

THISDAY gathered that an initial position paper on the development initiative was put together by a team comprising some former commissioners in Tinubu’s cabinet, bankers and some Nigerians in Diaspora.

The party initially had difficulty selling the idea to Ondo State governor, Olusegun Mimiko, who was miffed with ACN over its attempt to take over the state.

He was said to have taken offence at a statement reportedly made by the Ekiti State chairman of the party, Chief Jide Awe that Ondo would fall to ACN in next governorship election slated for 2012.

Mimiko, the source said, had dismissed the possibility of working together with ACN if the ultimate plan is to take the state from him. The issue has since been resolved but the source did not disclose under what terms.

The source said Ondo is critical to the regional relationship because the state has natural resources that could help the commission achieve its target.

For instance, Ondo has bitumen deposits in commercial quantity, a major raw material for both road and railway constructions.
The source said a steering committee that would drive the initiative would be set up soon after the inauguration of the governors.
He said the composition of the committee would include members of cabinets of each member state such as commissioners for agriculture, works and housing, finance, and economic planning, among others.

Some members of the private sector, who would be partners in the venture, could also be co-opted into the committee.
The managing director or chairmanship of the commission will be rotated among member states. The source said the committee would also iron out the pattern of funding with its private sector partners.

http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/acn-plans-regional-development-commission-for-s-west-edo/90970/

no electricity + no rail + bad roads linking north and south = dead industry in the north

manufacturing is a pretty small part of naijas overall gdp anyways, so isn't like the amount in the south is anything to write home about

Regarding HDI stuff, there is also this more recent report: http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/national/africa/nigeria/name,14593,en.html

Seems to contradict some things posted here, though.

Solar is definitely more expensive than diesel per watt (looks like 2X according to Table 1 here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cost_of_electricity_by_source)

But this ignores the cost of wiring up all the street lights together on one grid, I guess hiring a guy to make sure the gen is running, general inconvenience and hassle, etc.

If it were me, I'd just do solar. . . the overall cost won't be too much higher (since these street lights don't need massive amounts of electricity, if I'm not mistaken. How much can each one use, say 100 W? 200W?), but is a lot more convenient.

Just install it and don't worry about anything except for some periodic maintenance.

Interesting thread.

monkeyleg:
At what cost? Uduaghan's wife charging delta state 4miilion every week for desiel to power those streetlights.

I fail to see clear evidence to support your point. How much does delta state generate locally, we are not talking of federal allocated funds, and why did uduaghan have to borrow 20BN to run for the elections

Are they diesel, really? Was thinking it'd be solar. So if diesel, they have the street lights on a separate power grid which is powered by a diesel gen?

Kilode: I've been influenced by Western civilization, yes. But not entirely. Remember, here we have the Bushes, the Clintons, the Kennedys, and most people don't have a problem with 'em and their "born to rule" mentality.

I believe that the best way to run a society is to find the best talent available and fully utilize it. Now, what are the odds of the best talent being all concentrated in one family? Basically, very slim.

I dunno if you follow the NBA at all? Have you noticed how even Michael Jordan's sons absolutely flopped? They just aren't good enough to make the NBA. Rarely does an NBA son make the NBA; you find these top players in random places (with athletic parents, to be sure, but not necessarily parents who both are basketball players.) Serge Ibaka is from the Congo, Dwight Howard's pop was a policeman, etc, etc. It isn't the children of the 70s and 80s NBA elites who are dominating the game today.

I believe the same thing holds more generally in life. Fashola's pikin are very unlikely to be the best folk we can find to govern Lagos state in say 30 or 40 years.

Anyway, this is why I'm against hereditary authority.

The oppression of the Ngwa must stop.

Pharaoh, let the Ngwa go!

Wish the ignore list on this site worked 

[quote author=isale_gan2 link=topic=234706.msg8277769#msg8277769 date=1304816752]This is not the first time I've seen this point of view from you.  It is really disappointing.  'Nuff said.[/quote]They are selfish, petty and largely look after their own interests. Not that of their own people. How can we still be squabbling over supremacy of Alaafin and Ooni in 2011

Don't we have bigger fish to fry in Yorubaland? Wasting energy and resources on things that don't matter is annoying. World of 6+ billion people, and we are battling over Alaafin versus Ooni 

Neither of them matter very much for what we need to accomplish. Give me electricity, manufacturing jobs, healthcare and education over any kings.

Katsumoto:
They set Yorubaland back several centuries by not fighting and eliminating each other until there was one ruler. All that stone throwing and cursing instead of taking each other's throne did not encourage innovation. Made Yorubaland vulnerable to the British.

It is tough though. Yorubaland was a pretty fvked up place at that time. All this human sacrifice, ritualism, slavery stuff. I can see why it'd be hard to consolidate rule with such harsh practices.

But yeah, if there had been some sort of enlightened Oyo Empire leadership, it'd have been best if they'd conquered all of Yorubaland. We'd be in a much stronger position today.

OAM4J:
^^ in what ways? can you expatiate?

I know there were bad rulers but there were many good ones too.

I'm just against royalty, monarchy, things like that. Even a "good" king. . . how good is he really going to be, in this day and age? what is the difference between a monarch and a military dictator? Pretty much the same thing

I believe in decentralized power, checks and balances, the ability of those governed to offer feedback on how their leaders are doing, etc.

hrm

Terms like uncle tom, I'm not sure that they make sense for the Nigerian/African context.

Or maybe I'm misunderstanding the OP.

Perhaps name some names of some Uncle Toms, and explain why you classify them as that?

I'm glad that the influence of these kings is shrinking day by day.

Can you imagine how much it'd set Yorubaland back if these guys were still prominent?

PhysicsMHD:
The kid's a dumbass

Why do you say that? Offensive to Americans, or offensive to jihadists? Or for returning the money?

^-- Which official immigration statistics can there be about movement in Nigeria? 

Look, here is what I'm assuming is true:
1. net migration into SE is negative and net migration into SW is positive

If you don't believe this, then the rest of the argument doesn't follow. But if you do, then it does.

I think most people believe (1) is true, though.

Abagworo:
I am no fool but I can tell you that the North has the most immigration in Nigeria both nationally(domestic) and internationally(foreigners).There are more Igbos in the North than SW.There is also heavy migration of Yorubas to the North.Nigeriens,Chadians and Malians in the North run into millions.So my brother just take note that the desert seems more rosy than the forest.

Hrm, I'm comparing zones though. Sure, NW, NC and NE combined may have seen more. But are you saying that any one of them individually has seen more than SW?

If so, which zone?

In any case, I typed a bit carelessly. . . net migration into SW doesn't need to be the largest in Nigeria for what I'm saying to be true about the effects on employment.

Really, I should have been more specific and said "net migration into SW is positive", "net migration into SE is negative", rather than overstating and saying that "net migration into SW is the largest of the 6 zones."

zstranger:
There is only one reference. Everything was copied from the paper: The Descent from Oduduwa: Claims of Superiority among Some Yoruba Traditional Rulers and the Arts of Ancient Ife by Cornelius O. Adepegba


I though I made that clear already!

My bad, wasn't sure that all the posts were from the same source.

Katsumoto:
Economists have argued that positive net migration increases unemployment because workers migrating to an area will not always have the skills required to get into work immediately. For instance, wanna-be actors moving to California have to take acting classes and not all become successful actors.

Exactly. And I think we know how the different zones in Nigeria look if ranked by net migration.

Katsumoto:
In the US, the states with above national population densities have higher than average unemployment figures. Rhode Island, California, Michigan and South Carolina have the highest population densities and also have unemployment figures higher than the National average of 9%.

Conversely, the states with the lowest population densities have below national average unemployment figures. Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, North and South Dakota all have the lowest population densities and also have less than 5% unemployment.

OK. So this can be true, but doesn't affect my point.

Btw, do you think 50 points is enough to conclude that? Would be more interesting to look at US countries (3143 of them). . . calculate pop density and unemployment for each, and for example do a simple linear regression to tease out the relationship, figure out how significant it is.

fstranger: Can you edit each of your posts above and add a reference?

Jakumo is no doubt connected to this, one way or another

ezeagu:
That's if you will tell me how many people have left the south east for the south west, one of the questions you haven't answered, but you're still talking about south east emigration.

What does emigration have to do with population density  it isn't possible in your mind for a place with high outmigration to be simultaneously be densely populated

But a high density means you have more competition for a job.

So? There are places with high pop density that have low unemployment rates (manhattan), and others with low pop density that have high unemployment rates (I guess some densely populated parts of Africa).

Pop density ALONE doesn't say anything about employment. Or at least, that isn't what I'm arguing here.

I'm saying that migration from point A to point B increases unemployment in point B. That is all I am saying. All of this other stuff that you are talking about it is IRRELEVANT.

So what did you mean by "easy to have low poverty rates if all your people leave"? And after that, tell me what percentage of the population of the south west you think are native south easterners. You can't say you don't know because you've already said you've convinced yourself that you know there's a high emigration from the south east to the south west.

Comparing the sizes of states and the population in the official census, and with the claim of high emigration, the high density shows that there are a lot of people who have emigrated out of the states while the states remain highly populated. The official census say there's 24 million in the south east, maybe 5, 7 million of the south west population is native south eastern?

WTF? Irrelevant! I feel like i'm arguing with Kobojunkie here. None of those things are relevant! Population of states, size of states, density, whatever, all irrelevant.

Which place has seen the most outmigration in Nigeria? The SE zone; only a fool would deny otherwise. Which place has seen the most immigration? The SW zone; only a fool would deny otherwise.Those two factors have affected the employment rates of each zone relative to what employment would have been if no population had moved from zone to zone.

That is all I'm saying. All this other stuff you bring up is about as relevant as the price of tea in China.

What is the deal with this Ngwa stuff? How on earth have Ngwa never ruled in their own state?

Seems extremely messed up to me.

ezeagu:
You can't understand what population density has to do with employment and job availability,

Please tell us what the relationship between population density and employment/job availability is. I'm all ears.

but you know that a higher population causes unemployment and then poverty in the south west? Is there anything anyone can do but be convinced?

1. Well, first of all, high population density doesn't mean high population.
2. It isn't "high population causes unemployment." It is, "increased immigration to location A" causes increased unemployment in location A. . . that is what I'm arguing. Not that places with high pop density, or high pop necessarily have low employment rates, or whatever else you think I'm saying.
Do you not see how these are two different statements? In the latter statement, you are comparing employment rates in location A before and after a change.
So of what relevance is this "high population density" you keep referring to? If I take a place with a high population density and add more people, unemployment increases. Take a place with average pop density and add more people, same should generically be true.

With that density map, there must have been at lest 20 million that have left.

Of what relevance is that density map?