On the western coast of Africa lies Nigeria with a land mass of approximately 923,769
square kilometers (356,669 square miles). Pre-colonial period had distinct nation states
(tribes) that functioned independent of each other such as the Hausa/Fulani, Igbo,
Yoruba, Ijaw, Efik, Edo, Ibibio, Ogoni, Ikwerre, Igala, Itsekiri etc speaking over one
hundred distinct languages. However, in 1914 the British colonialists amalgamated the
Southern and Northern protectorates to form what is now known and called Nigeria. In
October 1, 1960, Nigeria gained independence from the British and became an
independent Nation. Nigeria is blessed with abundance of natural resources such as
crude oil, natural gas, coal, lithium, gold, iron ore, cobalt, copper, californium and a
vast array of arable land for agriculture.
Nigeria is currently made up of thirty six states and a Federal Capital Territory (FCT),
Abuja which is the capital of Nigeria. However, Lagos situated at the South Western
part of the country is the commercial and economic nerve centre of the nation. It is a
cosmopolitan state, with seaports, an international airport and the most populous State
of Nigeria.
Nigeria is bordered to the north by Niger, to the east by Chad and Cameroon, to the
south by the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean, and to the west by the Republic of
Benin. Nigeria is not only Africa’s most populous country but also the most populous
black nation on the planet, with an estimated population of 222,486,000 according to
the National Population Commission (Kirk-Green et al, 2023).
The Niger Delta, which reaches roughly 150 miles (240 km) from north to south and
around 200 miles (320 km) along the coast, has an area of 14,000 square miles (36,000
square kilometers). Within the delta, the river forms an intricate network of channels
known as rivers. The Nun River is considered the river’s direct continuation, while
additional notable channels include (from west to east) the Forcados, Brass, Sombreiro,
and Bonny. Sandbars restrict the mouths of the majority of these canals. The Forcados,
for example, which replaced the Nun as the most trafficked channel in the early
