Nigeria: Independence in a Federation of Regions

Nigeria, Britain's most populous African colony, was created by joining northern and southern protectorates in 1914. Britain governed the regions differently: in the mainly Muslim north it ruled through emirs and limited missionary education, while the south developed more Western schooling and commerce. Politics after 1945 formed around three regions, each dominated by a major group and party: the Hausa-Fulani North, the Yoruba West and the Igbo East.

A series of constitutions in 1946, 1951 and 1954 moved Nigeria toward a federation with strong regional governments. Nigeria became independent on 1 October 1960 with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as prime minister. Its federal structure was designed to hold diversity together, but because the Northern Region held more than half of the population and parliamentary seats, southerners feared permanent northern dominance. Disputes over the census, elections and the Western Region's government soon strained the young federation.