Country name
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Nigeria
conventional short form: Nigeria

Data code NI

Government type military government; Nigeria has been ruled by one military regime after another since 31 December 1983; on 1 October 1995, the present military government announced it will turn power over to democratically elected civilian authorities on 1 October 1998

National capital Abuja
note: on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially moved from Lagos to Abuja; many government offices remain in Lagos pending completion of facilities in Abuja

Administrative divisions 30 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Abuja Federal Capital Territory*, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe
note: the government has announced the creation of six additional states named Bayelsa, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Gombe, Nassarawa, and Zamfara as part of the process of transition to a civilian government

Independence 1 October 1960 (from UK)

National holiday Independence Day, 1 October (1960)

Constitution 1979 constitution still partially in force; plan for 1989 constitution to take effect in 1993 was not implemented; draft 1995 constitution has not been published; the military government rules by decree

Legal system based on English common law, Islamic law, and tribal law

Suffrage 21 years of age; universal

Executive branch
chief of state: Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council and Commander in Chief of Armed Forces Gen. Abdulsalam ABUBAKAR (since 9 June 1998); note - the chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council and Commander in Chief of Armed Forces Gen. Abdulsalam ABUBAKAR (since 9 June 1998); note - the chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Federal Executive Council (chaired by the Chairman of the Provisional Ruling Council)
elections: none; on 9 June 1998, the Provisional Ruling Council appointed Gen. Abdulsalam ABUBAKAR as their new Chairman to replace Gen. Sani ABACHA who died in office; Gen. ABUBAKAR immediately pledged a program to return the government to civilian rule as promised by Gen. ABACHA

Legislative branch bicameral National Assembly, comprising a 109-member Senate and a 360-member House of Representatives
note: the National Assembly was suspended after the military takeover of 17 November 1993; in October 1995, the government announced a three-year program for transition to civilian rule; elections to the National Assembly took place 25 April 1998 for a term starting 1 October 1998; the election was substantially boycotted by the opposition and the legislature is unlikely to be representative of the electorate

Judicial branch Supreme Court, judges appointed by the Provisional Ruling Council; Federal Court of Appeal, judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee

Political parties and leaders political party system, which was suspended after the military takeover of 17 November 1993, was reestablished by the Provisional Ruling Council on 30 September 1996 with the registration of five of 15 competing political parties; these were the United Nigeria Congress Party or UNCP [Isa MOHAMMED, chairman]; National Center Party of Nigeria or NCPN [Magaji ABDULLAHI, chairman]; Grassroots Democratic Movement or GDM [Alhaji Gambo LAWAN, chairman]; Committee for National Consensus or CNC [Barnabas GEMADE, chairman]; Democratic Party of Nigeria or DPN [Saleh HASSAN, chairman]

International organization participation ACP, AfDB, C (suspended), CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUA, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNPREDEP, UNTAES, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Wakili Hassan ADAMU
chancery: 1333 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400
consulate(s) general: New York

Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador William TWADDELL
embassy: 2 Louis Farrakhan Crescent, Lagos
mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos
telephone: [234] (1) 261-0097
FAX: [234] (1) 261-0257

Flag description three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and green

NOTE: The information regarding Nigeria on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Nigeria Government 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Nigeria Government 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.