Classroom lesson 路 Population馃嚦馃嚞 Nigeria

Africa's most populous country

Over 230 million people - more than any other African country

Aerial view of Lagos, Nigeria - one of Africa's biggest cities

Photo 路 Wikimedia Commons

What is it?

More people live in Nigeria than in any other country in Africa. Over 230 million Nigerians live across the country - that's about 1 in every 35 people on Earth. The biggest city, Lagos, has around 20 million people on its own.

Tell me more

To picture 230 million people, think of this: it is more than three times the population of the United Kingdom, and almost the same as the United States. Yet Nigeria fits all those people into a country only about four times the size of the UK.

Most Nigerians are young. The average age in Nigeria is 17. Compare that to the United Kingdom, where the average age is around 40. That means Nigeria is full of children, teenagers and young adults - one of the youngest countries in the world.

Lagos, the biggest city, is enormous. About 20 million people live in and around it. That is bigger than the whole population of Sweden or Portugal. The traffic is famous - the city can feel like it never stops moving. There are music studios, markets, beaches, and skyscrapers all packed together.

Because Nigeria has so many people, it is also one of the biggest economies in Africa. People work in farming, oil, films, fashion, banking, tech start-ups, and music. A new business idea that starts in Lagos can reach millions of customers without ever leaving the city.

In the classroom

Walk your class through this in 15 minutes.

Talk together

Discussion prompts

  1. 01What do you think the busiest place in the world feels like? Have you ever been somewhere with lots and lots of people?
  2. 02Nigeria is a young country - the average person is 17. How might that change what a place feels like?
  3. 03Lagos is bigger than many whole countries. What would be the best and hardest things about living in a city that big?
Try this

Classroom activity

Look up the population of your own town or country. Now compare it to Nigeria's 230 million. How many of your town would fit inside Nigeria? Then look up the population of Lagos and compare it to the biggest city you've been to.