「アフリカの巨人」と呼ばれるナイジェリア連邦共和国は、サハラ以南のアフリカの人口の約20％を擁し、アフリカ最大の石油・天然ガス産出国にして、最大の経済国、そして、文学・映画・音楽の文化的中心地です。しかし、世界の大国としての潜在力を発揮できない問題を抱えています。北東部を中心に活動するイスラム過激派の「ボコ・ハラム」、石油資源の中心地であるニジェール・デルタで続く暴動は、治安上、大きな問題となっています。前者は世俗的なナイジェリア国家を破壊しようとしていて、後者はナイジェリア人が産み出す富に対し、自分達にも権利があるという地域の民衆の感情を反映したものです。土地や水の利用、民族、宗教に関連した暴力も後を絶ちません。
本書はこの重要なアフリカの国について、充実した概要を提供します。今日に至るナイジェリアの近年の歴史、政治、文化に触れながら、石油資源に起因する不平等の拡大、2015年の歴史的な大統領選挙、ボコ・ハラムによる安全保障上の脅威、横行する政府の腐敗、人権問題、そしてキリスト教徒とイスラム教徒がほぼ半々の国で発生する継続的な紛争に関わる問題などを取り上げています。ナイジェリアが民主主義国家として成功することは、アフリカの近隣諸国にとっても、国際社会にとっても利益にかなっています。ナイジェリアについてよくわかる、他に類を見ない概説書です。
    

• Provides a comprehensive overview of the post-independent social and political climate in Nigeria
• Addresses key questions regarding Nigeria's recent history, politics, culture, religion, and economic development, and future trends such as urbanization and climate change
• Clearly examines pervasive security, economic, and political challenges

 
As the "Giant of Africa," Nigeria is home to about twenty percent of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa, serves as Africa's largest producer of oil and natural gas, comprises Africa's largest economy, and represents the cultural center of African literature, film, and music. Yet it is plagued by problems that keep it from realizing its potential as a world power. Boko Haram, a radical, Islamist insurrection centered in the northeast of the country, is a pervasive security challenge, as is the continuous restiveness in the Niger Delta, the heartland of Nigeria's petroleum wealth. The former seeks to destroy the secular Nigerian state; the latter reflects the popular sentiment in the region that the Nigerian people are entitled to a greater share of the wealth it produces. There is also persistent violence associated with land and water use, ethnicity, and religion.
   
In Nigeria: What Everyone Needs to Know®, John Campbell and Matthew Page provide a rich contemporary overview of this crucial African country. Delving into Nigeria's recent history, politics, and culture, this volume tackles essential questions related to widening inequality stemming from Nigeria's oil wealth, its historic 2015 presidential election, the persistent security threat of Boko Haram, rampant government corruption, human rights concerns, and the continual conflicts that arise in a country that is roughly half Christian and half Muslim.
   
With its continent-wide influence in a host of areas, Nigeria's success as a democracy is in the fundamental interest of its African neighbors, the United States, and the international community. This book will provide interested readers with an accessible, one-of-a-kind overview of this significant country.