NIGERIA AT 62: DEPENDENCE OR INDEPENDENCE

FIRST ESSAY WRITING CONTEST TAGGED : F.W.C. 1.0 TOPIC : NIGERIA AT 62 DEPENDENCE OR INDEPENDENCE NAME : ENOH, EYAKUKPONO ESSIEN DEPARTMENT: GEOGRAPH LEVEL : PART 4 NIGERIA, mine, yours and our country became a formally independent federation on 1 October 1960. After experiencing a civil war from 1967 to 1970, followed by a succession of military dictatorships and democratically elected civilian governments until achieving a stable democracy in the 1999 presidential election. Dependence in oxford language is said to be the state of relying on or being controlled by someone or something else. While Independence in Cambridge dictionary is the "freedom from being governed or ruled by another country" Speaking about dependence, it goes well beyond the notion given above. Evidence, facts, and statistics demonstrate that the Nigerian naira's value is significantly impacted negatively by the importation rate, which is 16.57%, as compared to her exportation rate of 8.83%. This statistic is to blame for the high rate of poverty. Dependency is when a nation depends on another to determine its level of living in the areas of food, health, and education. Because of this, Nigeria has experienced a wave of mass migration this year, totalling 56,000 immigrants, or 7 out of 10 Nigerians leaving the nation, which has resulted in a loss of human capital, brain drain, and a shortage of personnel. In a dependent nation, this doesn't take place. Nigeria, at the age of 62, is influenced by two factors: a push factor that highlights the lack of basic amenities in the nation and a pull factor that highlights the possibility of finding these amenities in other nations. It is common knowledge that our educational and medical staff relocate, particularly in light of the greater salaries, adequate benefits, and improved standard of living. The primary talking points for our beloved nation Nigeria at age 62 will undoubtedly centre on the current situation of the nation. Did you know that Nigerian remittances have reached $10.11 billion, a 9.6% rise from prior years? It will undoubtedly apply differently to other people's circumstances. Life is a cycle of Independence which however stems from a circle of give and take and it is important to create this balance, the ability to adequately control the immediate affairs of a country, make difficult decisions, prioritize your role as a sovereign leader, understand the needs and demands of the country and put measures in place to meet these needs connote independence. Nigeria is politically independent in that its laws are created, carried out, and interpreted independently. Nigeria is viewed as an independent nation both in our minds, globally and on paper, even finding materials online to back up Nigeria's independence is scarce, why do you think this is? Are we really independent in the genuine sense of the word? Nigeria is still a dependent country at 62 but there is hope that Nigeria as a country can rise above their loopholes after all wherever there is a will, there will always be a way.