Most residents of the Niger Delta live in abject poverty and have benefitted little from the oil reserves in the region of creeks and mangrove swamps.
Officials say Nigeria has earned over US$360 billion since oil was discovered there by Anglo-Dutch giant Shell in 1957. But today the country's external debts stand at a staggering US$32 billion.
Despite the billions earned from oil, Nigeria, which on Friday celebrated the 44th anniversary of its independence from Britain, is listed among the world's 25 poorest countries and placed 146th out of 162 on the United Nations Development Program index of social indicators. On the World Health Organization index, the west African country occupies 186th position out of 192 member countries for the state of its health infrastructure.
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