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

Government type republic transitioning from military to civilian rule

Capital Abuja; note - on 12 December 1991 the capital was officially transferred from Lagos to Abuja; most federal government offices have now made the move to Abuja

Administrative divisions 36 states and 1 territory*; Abia, Abuja Federal Capital Territory*, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Gombe, Imo, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Lagos, Nassarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, Oyo, Plateau, Rivers, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara

Independence 1 October 1960 (from UK)

National holiday Independence Day (National Day), 1 October (1960)

Constitution new constitution adopted May 1999

Legal system based on English common law, Islamic Shariah law (only in some northern states), and traditional law

Suffrage 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
chief of state: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Olusegun OBASANJO (since 29 May 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Federal Executive Council
elections: president is elected by popular vote for no more than two four-year terms; election last held 27 February 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003)
election results: Olusegun OBASANJO elected president; percent of vote - Olusegun OBASANJO (PDP) 62.8%, Olu FALAE (APP-AD) 37.2%

Legislative branch bicameral National Assembly consists of Senate (109 seats, three from each state and one from the Federal Capital Territory; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and House of Representatives (360 seats, members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003); House of Representatives - last held 20-24 February 1999 (next to be held NA March 2003)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 23%, AD 19%; seats by party - PDP 67, APP 23, AD 19; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - PDP 58%, APP 30%, AD 12%; seats by party - PDP 221, APP 70, AD 69

Judicial branch Supreme Court (judges appointed by the President); Federal Court of Appeal (judges are appointed by the federal government on the advice of the Advisory Judicial Committee)

Political parties and leaders All People's Party or APP [leader NA]; Alliance for Democracy or AD [Alhaji Adamu ABDULKADIR]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Audu OGBEH]

Political pressure groups and leaders NA

International organization participation ACP, AfDB, C, CCC, ECA, ECOWAS, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAU, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNMOVIC, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Jibril AMINU
consulate(s) general: Atlanta and New York
FAX: [1] (202) 775-1385
telephone: [1] (202) 986-8400
chancery: 1333 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036

Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Howard Franklin JETER
embassy: 7 Mambilla Drive, Abuja
mailing address: P. O. Box 554, Lagos
telephone: [234] (9) 523-0916/0906/5857/2235/2205
FAX: [234] (9) 523-0353

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 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Nigeria Government 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Nigeria Government 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.