African securityBuhari wins -- but the new president of Nigeria faces an enormous challenge
Nigerians have chosen General Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler, over incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, to be their president. Buhari will face daunting challenges, as the general political and economic situation in Nigeria is problematic. Nigeria is home to a corrupt government. The economy is in crisis: Nigeria has an unhealthy dependence on its oil exports, which represent more than 80 percent of its national income. The World Health Organization recommends that governments spend 15 percent of their budget on health, but Nigeria spends only 6 percent of its budget. The situation in northern Nigeria is critical, and Nigeria’s neighbors have been more active than the Nigerian government in fighting Boko Haram. The way the government has addressed violence in the north has been abysmal. Muslim clerics identified lack of good governance as the primary reason Boko Haram succeeded in recruiting members. With these conditions Boko Haram filled a vacuum. The militants will now be much harder to remove but ultimately, the next government can take steps to start tackling the problems that allowed them to gain a foothold.
Nigerians have chosen General Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler, over incumbent Goodluck Jonathan, to be their president. Following an election that saw forty-one people killed in the north of the country, Goodluck conceded defeat, and congratulated Buhari on his victory.
Buhari’s military regime from 1983 to 1985 was draconian: he systematically repressed freedom of expression through the jailing of journalists, radical public intellectuals, and student protesters. He is now saying that “the global triumph of democracy has shown that another and a preferable path to change is possible.”
Nigerians and the international community will be watching whether this time around Buhari will work for the common good in Nigeria.
Corruption and crisis
The general political and economic situation in Nigeria is problematic. Nigeria is home to a corrupt government. According to Transparency International, Nigeria is ranked 136 out of 175 states in terms of perceptions of corruption. Women are underrepresented in political affairs: until now, the House of Representatives had only one female principal officer, and only 7 percent of the 362 members were women. The House of Representatives committee on women has called for more participation from women in the nation’s politics. We will now see if the new government responds to this demand.
The economy is in crisis: Nigeria has an unhealthy dependence on its oil exports, which represent more than 80 percent of its national income. There has now been a drop in oil prices, which means that public sector jobs will have to be cut; 24 percent of Nigerians are unemployed. Nigeria must double its investment in infrastructure, and improve its power sector, the water and sanitation sector, its road networks, and its air transport safety.
Nigeria has to be serious about health. The World Health Organization recommends that governments spend 15 percent of their budget on health, but Nigeria spends only 6 percent of its budget. Nigeria had 40,000 pregnancy-related deaths a year account for approximately 14 percent of the world’s total in 2012.
