Commonwealth Local Government Forum

Nigeria

Key facts:

POPULATION (2020 estimate): 206,000,000
AREA (2006): 923,768 sq km
CAPITAL: Abuja
CURRENCY: naira (NGN)
HEAD OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT: President Muhammadu Buhari
FORM OF GOVERNMENT: republic
PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM: bicameral
STATE STRUCTURE: federal
LANGUAGES: English (official), Edo, Efik, Fulani, Hausa, Idoma, Igbo, Ijaw, Kanuri, Yoruba (recognised)
NATIONAL ELECTIONS: last: February 2019, turnout: 34.7%; next: 2023
WOMEN IN PARLIAMENT (2015): representatives 5.5%, senators 6.4%
LOCAL ELECTIONS: timings vary from state to state
WOMEN COUNCILLORS: 9.8% (2015)
LOCAL GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE as a percentage of total government expenditure 2015/16: na

Summary

Nigeria is a federal republic with three tiers of government: federal (central), states and local government. Although democratically elected local government is protected by the constitution, and development areas and autonomous communities are created by individual state legislation, elected local government is lacking in around half of the states. At the state level, the relevant ministry of local government and chieftaincy affairs, or bureau of local government affairs, is responsible for the administration of state-level Acts governing local authorities. Local government exists in a single tier across all states. There are 774 local government authorities (LGAs) and six area councils. Following the 2015 local elections, 9.8% of councillors and 3.6% of chairpersons were female. The funds raised by taxes are collected by all levels of government, with local government being responsible for collecting licence fees for haulage, trade and motor vehicles. All revenue collected is pooled in the federal account which is in turn split across the three spheres of government. The core functions of local government include pre-school, primary and adult education; public health; town planning; roads and transport; and waste disposal.
Read the profile of the local government system in Nigeria.

CLGF activities in Nigeria

CLGF’s 2014 board meeting and West African regional symposium were held in Abuja and co-hosted by the Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs. Building on the outcomes of these meetings CLGF has been developing a joint program on local government transparency in conjunction with UNDP Nigeria. CLGF will continue to work with its members and partners in Nigeria as it takes forward the EC funded project “Strengthening local government’s role as a partner in development” focused on the role for local government and other local and national actors in localising and implementing the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). CLGF provided support to ALGON for its position paper for the 2014 constutional conference. CLGF was involved with election monitoring in Nigeria in1998.

CLGF members in Nigeria

Knowledge hub

Knowledge hub

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West Africa regional office

Regional office

Contact CLGF's office in West Africa

 

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Board members in West Africa

Board members

Hon Isaac A Odamtten
Hon Jules D Ndongo
 

 

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News from CLGF West Africa

Latest news

Latest CLGF local government news and information from West Africa

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