September 8, 2024 1:47 AM
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Lagos was occupied by British forces in 1851 and formally annexed by Britain in the year 1865. Nigeria became a British protectorate in 1901. The period of British rule lasted until 1960 when an independence movement led to the country being granted independence.
The name Nigeria did not exist before the British occupation. Flora Shaw, a British journalist on 8 January 1897 named the country Nigeria, after the Niger River, which dominates much of the country’s landscape. Flora later married Lord Lugard, the colonial administrator of Nigeria.
Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa (1912-1966) was the first prime minister of independent Nigeria, serving from 1957 to 1966. He was among Nigeria political activists that participated in the discussions on constitutional reform which ultimately led to independence.
Nnamdi Azikiwe was a Nigerian statesman and political leader who served as the first President of Nigeria between 1963 a 1966. Considered a key force behind the nation’s independence, was known as the “father of Nigerian Nationalism”.
Known today as Federal Republic of Nigeria, Nigeria is a country that covers an area of 923,769 square kilometres. With a population of over 218 million, it is the most populous country in Africa, and the world’s sixth-most populous country. Nigeria is diverse and it is rich in my mineral resources.