Nigeria is running a managed float not a free float. The CBN intervenes regularly and is an active participant in the FX market, often deciding what rate the FX they sell to BDC should be sold at. The last time a free float was attempted the exchange rate rose to NGN2000, basically everyone moved away from the CBNs platform and used a more organized freely accessible system (Crypto). The CBN in collaboration with NSA went after the platforms and even locked a staff of Binance hoping they could squeeze some cash. When that failed woefully, they returned to managing the float with their NAFEX. Also, the country's debt servicing has now surpassed it's revenue.
The silent barter trade in the north may have happened in what is now Nigeria--gold for salt. As to oil, isn't there a refinery that a wealthy Nigerian built? On the village level there
were the Ekpo Society and other secret male groups that acted as legislators and perhaps also executioners in the Southeast.
You mentioned something about Nigeria's land tenure system being an impediment to its agriculture. I know that the reformation of land tenure, by redistributing it from feudal lords to peasants, was key to the industrialisation of East Asian countries.
But in Nigeria, I don't think most of the land is owned by feudal lords. Rather, in the South, it is owned by the families of these same peasant farmers.
I've never really understood how it's an impediment. I was thinking the FAO source you linked to would go into detail on that. But it doesn't. It's the classic birds eye view of gloom. Do you have more details?
The land tenure in Nigeria is an impediment not because it resembles feudal East Asia, but because of how insecure and fragmented it is.
Property rights are weak in Nigeria. Most land is still governed by customary law, where chiefs or family heads are custodians instead of individuals holding formal deeds.
You have overlapping legal systems statutory, customary, and (in the North) Islamic law often conflict, so ownership disputes can drag on for years. Also there's limited access to credit since most land isn’t titled. As a result. farmers can’t use it as collateral to raise funds or invest in equipment.
The problems also vary by region:
Yorubaland (Southwest): Land is usually family-owned (Omo-Onile or "son of the soil"). Any sale or lease needs the consent of multiple relatives, making transactions slow and uncertain. In cities like Lagos, omo onile landowners often sell the same parcel multiple times, leading to extortion and disputes.
Igboland (Southeast): Land is communal, belonging to the umunna (kindred/members of the same extended family). Individuals have rights of use, NOT ownership. This discourages long-term investment or use of land as collateral, and much rural land remains underdeveloped.
Edoland (South South): Chiefs and palace authorities traditionally hold land in trust for the community, but many now lease it out for personal gain, creating corruption and displacement.
Northern Nigeria: Land is governed through customary and Islamic law, where emirs allocate land informally. Farmers can use plots for generations without formal titles, which limits bank lending and causes recurring farmer–herder conflicts.
So, the issue isn’t feudal lords but fragmented authority and uncertain ownership, which discourage investment and modernization in agriculture.
As for East Asia, land reform did help raise rural productivity and reduce inequality, but that wasn’t what industrialized them. What truly mattered was state-led coordination of credit, technology, and manufacturing. Governments like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan first invested heavily in irrigation, fertilizer, and rural education, then pursued import substitution to build local industry, and later pivoted to exports once their firms became competitive.
Land reform there created a productive peasantry and stable domestic market, but industrialization came from policy, not just property reform.
Jeez... strong words 😅. I dont think Nigeria will ever split though. The North would be unviable without the oil in the niger-delta.
Nigeria is running a managed float not a free float. The CBN intervenes regularly and is an active participant in the FX market, often deciding what rate the FX they sell to BDC should be sold at. The last time a free float was attempted the exchange rate rose to NGN2000, basically everyone moved away from the CBNs platform and used a more organized freely accessible system (Crypto). The CBN in collaboration with NSA went after the platforms and even locked a staff of Binance hoping they could squeeze some cash. When that failed woefully, they returned to managing the float with their NAFEX. Also, the country's debt servicing has now surpassed it's revenue.
Thank you,
1) I changed it the phrasing from "managed anchor" to "managed float" instead of "float".
2) Yes, debt servicing is well over 100% now:
https://newscentral.africa/nigerias-debt-servicing-surpasses-revenue-by-144-in-january-2025/
I'll keep my point though on the 2022 stat, as the point is to demonstrate the issue of external borrowing on US denominated debt.
Great article. Thank you!
Honestly really interesting, thank you for sharing this history.
thank you!
The silent barter trade in the north may have happened in what is now Nigeria--gold for salt. As to oil, isn't there a refinery that a wealthy Nigerian built? On the village level there
were the Ekpo Society and other secret male groups that acted as legislators and perhaps also executioners in the Southeast.
1) Yes to gold for salt (and other goods)
2) Yes, his name is Alito Dangote!
3) Yes! Ekpo also had a written language. I will be talking about then when I discuss the south in pre-colonial nigeria.
You mentioned something about Nigeria's land tenure system being an impediment to its agriculture. I know that the reformation of land tenure, by redistributing it from feudal lords to peasants, was key to the industrialisation of East Asian countries.
But in Nigeria, I don't think most of the land is owned by feudal lords. Rather, in the South, it is owned by the families of these same peasant farmers.
I've never really understood how it's an impediment. I was thinking the FAO source you linked to would go into detail on that. But it doesn't. It's the classic birds eye view of gloom. Do you have more details?
Sorry, i thought I responded.
The land tenure in Nigeria is an impediment not because it resembles feudal East Asia, but because of how insecure and fragmented it is.
Property rights are weak in Nigeria. Most land is still governed by customary law, where chiefs or family heads are custodians instead of individuals holding formal deeds.
You have overlapping legal systems statutory, customary, and (in the North) Islamic law often conflict, so ownership disputes can drag on for years. Also there's limited access to credit since most land isn’t titled. As a result. farmers can’t use it as collateral to raise funds or invest in equipment.
The problems also vary by region:
Yorubaland (Southwest): Land is usually family-owned (Omo-Onile or "son of the soil"). Any sale or lease needs the consent of multiple relatives, making transactions slow and uncertain. In cities like Lagos, omo onile landowners often sell the same parcel multiple times, leading to extortion and disputes.
https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation?paperid=125968#:~:text=The%20word%20“Omo-Onile”,dynamics%20and%20informal%20land%20governance.
Igboland (Southeast): Land is communal, belonging to the umunna (kindred/members of the same extended family). Individuals have rights of use, NOT ownership. This discourages long-term investment or use of land as collateral, and much rural land remains underdeveloped.
Edoland (South South): Chiefs and palace authorities traditionally hold land in trust for the community, but many now lease it out for personal gain, creating corruption and displacement.
Northern Nigeria: Land is governed through customary and Islamic law, where emirs allocate land informally. Farmers can use plots for generations without formal titles, which limits bank lending and causes recurring farmer–herder conflicts.
So, the issue isn’t feudal lords but fragmented authority and uncertain ownership, which discourage investment and modernization in agriculture.
As for East Asia, land reform did help raise rural productivity and reduce inequality, but that wasn’t what industrialized them. What truly mattered was state-led coordination of credit, technology, and manufacturing. Governments like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan first invested heavily in irrigation, fertilizer, and rural education, then pursued import substitution to build local industry, and later pivoted to exports once their firms became competitive.
Land reform there created a productive peasantry and stable domestic market, but industrialization came from policy, not just property reform.
Yikes!
Nigeria, a corpse republic that desperately needs to die
Jeez... strong words 😅. I dont think Nigeria will ever split though. The North would be unviable without the oil in the niger-delta.
Similar things have been said of past states like the Soviet Union and Sudan.