NIGERIA BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Transportation and the Movement of People in Nigeria
some tentative notes

By Brennan Kraxberger

There is some variation by region. This is at least partly due to income differentials between the North and the South. Since the Southern part of the country is generally more prosperous, people typically have more budgetary income to devote to transportation. Another indicator of this regional difference in the movement of people is the frequency of scooters and small motor-bikes in the northern part of Nigeria. Informal, intuitive observations in Jos and Kano (northern cities) and Abeokuta, Ibadan, and Benin City (southern cities) as well as discussions with Professors Mike Filani and Stanley Okafar at the University of Ibadan indicate that scooters and motorcycles are much more commonly used in the northern half of the country. These observations on motorized bikes are also relevant to non-motorized bicycles. Rural people in the North are much more likely to rely on bicycles for part of their transportation needs. This reliance on bicycles is influenced by a complex set of economic, cultural, and environmental factors. As mentioned earlier, economic inequality and poverty are more pronounced in the North, making bicycles much more affordable when compared with cars. Also, the physical environment of the North is savanna. Savanna regions have widely spaced trees and less dense undergrowth when compared with the forested regions of the South. These characteristics make the North more amenable to the use of bicycles. This is not to say that people in the northern part of the country do not make use of cars, only that they have a relatively greater reliance on bicyles for their daily transportation needs.

With respect to road travel, it is important to evaluate the extent and quality of the road network. In terms of the extent of the road network, the federal government has done much in the last fifteen years to improve the coverage of Nigeria’s road system. One outstanding example is the work of the Directorate of Food, Roads, and Rural Infrastructure (DIFFRI), which in the late 1980’s embarked on a campaign to construct approximately 60,000 kilometers of new rural roads. As can be seen from a tour of rural areas, many roads that have been constructed are in a terrible state of disrepair. As with so many things in post-oil-boom Nigeria, many rural (and urban) roads have not received adequate maintenance. Poorly-maintained roads are particuarly problematic in the rainy season (approximately March to October). In fact, some rural areas are only accessible by car in the dry season. July field trips on Nigeria’s Jos Plateau proved these points well enough. Many rural roads in the Plateau region cannot be safely travelled at speeds exceeding 25 to 30 miles per hour. The slow rate of travel is necessary given the large and frequent potholes that mark the many rural roads. Certain stretches of rural roads are so bad that motorized vehicles have bypassed the original roadway to form new dirt tracks. Other portions of rural roads have been reduced to one lane. The road network of the Jos Plateau is indicative of the poor state of maintenance of many rural roads. Even though a good network of colonial-era roads existed (partly due to the intensity of mining activity on the plateau), many of these roads have not been maintained in the post-independence period. Proper maintenance is critical because rainstorms can be tremendously intense. Thus, small areas of road decay can very rapidly expand under the forces of erosion and weathering in the rainy season. Much of the problems associated with the erosion of roadways are compounded by the lack of adequate drainage infrastructure (which also makes driving hazardous during heavy rains). While Nigerians are not forced to address maintenance problems derived from recurrent freezing and thawing (like temperate areas of the United States), they do have to deal with intense seasonal rain.

Although urban roads are in better condition than most rural roads, maintenance of roads is also a problem in the cities. Since the collapse of oil prices in the early 1980’s and implmentation of a Structural Adjustment Program in 1986, state budgets have been extremely tight. Fiscal austerity has also been exacerbated by corrupt military regimes that have funelled state revenues into non-productive projects (often contracted to firms owned by military leaders) or foreign bank accounts. Although almost all urban roads are paved (Nigerians often say "tarred"), many have large pot holes or large sections where pavement has been eroded. An interesting scene in the city of Ibadan is the activity of informal road repair crews. Young men can often be seen filling city pot holes with dirt and rocks. In return for their unsolicited service, road users often tip these unofficial public workers. The work of these brave maintenance crews notwithstanding, Nigerian urban roads can still be very rough. The important point to note is that aside from unconfortable travel, poor urban roads can cause bottlenecks in traffic and contribute to traffic congestion.

Another issue that directly relates to urban transportation is city planning. While the extent and effectiveness of planning in Nigerian cities varies to some extent, most urban areas are forced to deal with city regions where no formal planning was conducted. Hence, transportation routes are often confined to pre-existing routes that may not always follow optimum courses. A dramatic example of planning done after development occurred in the city of Ibadan in the 1980’s. Under military direction, city workers bulldozed swaths of houses and businesses, making way for new streets. While this action probably improved traffic flow in certain parts of the city, it clearly violated the human rights of the people affected by the removal process.

One final area will be discussed on the issue of urban transportation. It is that of cost of transportation. Relative to the early 1980’s when cars were relatively inexpensive, many people in Nigeria have trouble purchasing cars. As a result, there is presently a thriving market in Nigeria for used cars, many of them imported from other parts of the world (like Europe). Given the cost of new cars (and imported used cars), many people fix cars that would be discarded in more affluent societies (see pictures of "Mechanic Village" in Jos). One other aspect of Nigerian urban transportation is the notable lack of public transportation. While there have been several different programs and agencies established in the post-1988 period, government efforts to provide public transportation have been mostly failures. Thus, those without cars requiring long-distance urban transportation are forced to turn to the private sector. Taxis, "danfos" (small vans that hold about 10-15 people), and scooters provide urban transportation for many urban residents. One final issue to consider with respect to cost of transportation is the cost of fuel. It is ironic indeed that an oil-rich country such as Nigeria often has a scarcity of fuel. Twofactors contributing to a discontinuous supply of oil are the reduced production capacity of Nigerian refineries and price controls imposed by the federal government. Low refining capacity means that Nigeria often has to import much of its petrol. Artificial price controls have led to the expansion of a black market in gas, making it difficult to find gas in certain places (especially the North) and at certain times.

It now remains to say a few words about inter-regional and inter-city transportation. First, most internal transportation is via land. Internal air traffic is low relative to a country like the United States. Second, many inter-urban land linkages are in good condition relative to rural-rural linkages.