Sunday, November 1, 2026
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01 November 2026 12:30 am WAT
A people on every discourse menu; bold, effortlessly innovative, ruthlessly courageous, brilliant beyond measure; intriguing in more ways that beat the imagination; cosmopolitan with a rare gift to float all over the world and succeed. These are Nigerians.
Daring and full of derring-do; endowed with a rare chutzpah that drives him to explore the world, possess every space; adapt to any culture and climate; eclectic with the special knack to exuberantly embrace and to hold back with cold aloofness; naturally numerate with a peerless flair for entrepreneurship, cerebral. That’s a Nigerian. Ambitious and ready to dare.
Gifted with Amazonian poise, brainy, luminously radiant in her rich melanin beauty that fills the room; self-aware of her worth, exudes confidence that can power a whole community, struts her cognitive fervency and creative vigour with unfeigned confidence. In the boardroom, marketplace, science, entertainment, tech space, she is a winner; a real outlier. From her measured carriage, panache and charm, you can only tell she is a Nigerian.
Nigerians are everywhere. They play in every space. Globally competitive; unfazed by any stage, including the biggest stages. Nigerians are a people talked about. They are discussed at seminars, colloquiums, and conferences. Nigerians are in every part of the world. It is often said that if you find yourself in a country or city and there are no Nigerians there, just flee. Nigerians are the seasoning that determines whether a place is sweet or not.
In music, culture, food, entertainment, education, fintech, fashion, sports, academics, every sphere of life, Nigerians excel. All over the world, they compete. Anywhere they go, they make a mark. At home, they know how to abase and how to abound, navigating the thin line of austerity and prosperity. Here, their confidence is their currency. Confident that waking up with no cash does not mean ending the day with zero cash. Hope drives the Nigerian. Hope that his skill will pay off some day. Hope that hard work rewards A typical Nigerian is one who does not stop hoping, does not stop believing. A Nigerian is a hardworking turbine endowed with the smartness and energy to multi-task; endued with spirit to envision greatness and work his way to achieve it.
Nigeria is replete with stories of men and women who broke the ceiling; changed the status quo and completely rewrote the script of life and entrepreneurship. Ever heard of the principle of turning little to much? Of men and women who against all odds, took a plunge into wealth and job creation when nobody gave them a chance. They just trusted their own intuition and gumption powered by their self-generative courage. Do you know that Otunba Mike Adenuga, the billionaire owner of Globacom with interests in oil and gas, among others, was once a cab driver in the United States? That Leo Stan Ekeh, another billionaire in the nation’s digital economy, started his business with his school fees after dropping out of his post-graduate programme in the United Kingdom and returning to Nigeria? Over the decades, he has grown what started as a computer typing pool into a conglomerate under the Zinox Group which includes Konga Group (E-commerce), TD Africa (Technology distribution), Zinox Technologies, Task Systems, among others.
What if you are told that Allen Onyema, the billionaire owner of Air Peace was in 1990 a squatter in downtown Oshodi area of Lagos and had to trek kilometres because he could not afford bus fares. In 2026, the lawyer-turned businessman has grown Air Peace to a 37-fleet airline. In banking, Tony Elumelu, whose first ever job was a photocopier salesman before venturing into banking through the NYSC route. From serving at a commercial bank during his national service, he now oversees Heirs Holdings, a conglomerate with United Bank for Africa, Transcorp Power, and other interests in oil and gas, insurance, properties, etcetera.
These are billionaires who grew wealth, not from family inheritance but by raw grit of vision, courage and hard work. And they did it in Nigeria and from Nigeria. There are many more successful entrepreneurs who pulled through the bulwarks to achieve sterling success. In the creative economy, it is hard to push Nigeria aside. Nollywood, a wholly Nigeria movie industry, has pushed its way to global reckoning with networth placed at between $6.4 billion and $8.6 billion. This is achieved on low infrastructure and low production budget. Nollywood is ranked number two film industry in the world by production volume with an estimated 2,500 movies per year, next to India’s Bollywood. Nollywood has transitioned from being a Nigeria Brand to Africa Brand. Almost everywhere you go in Africa, in hotels, lounges and homes, Nollywood movies stare back at you from TV screens. It is not a conquest or recolonisation of Africa by Nigeria, it is a continental appreciation and acceptance of stories told through a richly pan-African movie industry that showcases the best of African stories, history, culture, couture, cuisine and civilization trajectories.
But it is in music that Nigeria has created the password to global happiness. Home-grown musicians like Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, Davido, Rema, Tems, Femi Kuti, Yemi Alade, 2Baba, among other stars, have wowed the world at global stages. Their songs are on every lip in Europe, Asia and the Americas. They carry the essence of the inimitable father of Afrobeat, the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti. They bear the Nigeria flag, showcase the Nigeria spirit, advertise the fabulous Nigeria fashion. The lyrics of their songs resonate with the rest of the world as symbolisms of Africa’s celebration of our shared liberties, histories, languages, values, inventiveness, and expressions of affection.
Above the dissonance of orchestrated campaign to tarnish the image of Nigeria, most times borne out of jealousy and the inability of the traducers to cope with the typical Nigeria can-do spirit, Nigeria is a great country of amazing people. Nigeria is the heartbeat of Africa, biggest single market on the continent; home to the largest single-train refinery in the world; the most generous country in the world in charitable giving relative to income (Charities Aid Foundation World Giving Report); and many other firsts in global ranking.
Away with dirty politics, vote manipulation, leadership disorder, corruption scourge, insecurity and pangs of hunger afflicting millions of people, Nigeria remains a great nation, the hope of Africa and emerging solution provider to world peace, happiness and technology. That day cometh!
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