Changing economic world

Nigeria is a newly emerging economy in West Africa. In 2014, when its GDP was recalculated¹ to include fast-growing industries such as telecommunications and the film industry, it became Africa's largest economy at that time.

Economic development has improved quality of life for some people. Oil, mostly from the Niger Delta, earns the large majority of Nigeria's export income, and this money has paid for roads, schools and power stations. TNCs such as Shell and Unilever provide jobs and training, and their workers have regular incomes that allow them to afford better housing, healthcare and education² for their children. Growth in services such as banking, mobile phones and Nollywood, one of the world's largest film industries, has created a growing middle class, especially in Lagos. Mobile phone access has also allowed people in rural areas³ to use mobile banking and receive market information.

However, the benefits have been limited and uneven. Because the economy depends so heavily on oil, falls in the oil price cut government income and jobs. In the Niger Delta, where much of the wealth is produced, many local people have suffered from oil spills that polluted farmland and fishing grounds; in 2015 Shell agreed to pay £55 million in compensation to the Bodo community⁴ for spills in 2008. Wealth is concentrated in the south and in cities⁵, while the north has lower incomes, poorer access to education and has been affected by conflict, including attacks by Boko Haram. Corruption has also meant that oil money has not always reached ordinary people. Development indicators show this: life expectancy is still only in the low-to-mid 50s⁶, among the lowest in the world, and around 40% of Nigerians lived below the national poverty line in 2019.

Overall, rapid economic development has improved quality of life only to a limited extent⁷. A wealthier urban minority and those with jobs in TNCs and services have clearly benefited, but because growth has relied on oil and its rewards have been unequally shared, many Nigerians, especially in the north and the Niger Delta, have seen little improvement.

A post-industrial economy is one where manufacturing has declined and most people work in services, information technology and research¹ instead.

From the 1970s onwards, traditional industries such as coal mining, steel and shipbuilding declined rapidly. Globalisation meant that goods and raw materials could be produced more cheaply in countries with lower wage costs, so UK factories and mines could not compete². Mechanisation also meant fewer workers were needed, and many coal mines were closed after government decisions in the 1980s. The last deep coal mine, Kellingley in North Yorkshire, closed in 2015³.

At the same time, the tertiary and quaternary sectors grew. Financial services expanded in London, and services now make up around 80% of the UK's economic output⁴. Information technology allows people to work from home and businesses to locate away from big cities. The quaternary sector has grown in science and business parks, such as Cambridge Science Park, set up in 1970, because they offer modern buildings close to universities⁵, which supply highly skilled graduates and research links.