September 2025
The Smartphone versus the Candlelight
On a humid evening in Lagos, a young Nigerian software developer hunches over his laptop. He writes code for a fintech startup that has just raised millions of dollars in Silicon Valley funding. His phone buzzes with notifications from WhatsApp groups, Twitter threads, and TikTok videos. He is globally connected, part of the digital economy that is reshaping the world.
But as he types, the lights flicker and go out. NEPA, the country’s erratic power authority, has struck again. He fumbles for a kerosene lantern, the same kind his grandmother once used in her rural village. In one hand, he holds the latest iPhone; in the other, he lights a wick like a medieval peasant.
This scene captures the paradox of modern Nigeria: a nation plugged into the 21st century yet trapped in conditions that often resemble the Middle Ages.
Nigeria’s Two Realities
Nigeria is both futuristic and feudal. It is a country of billion-dollar startups and billion-naira bribes; of world-class musicians selling out arenas in London and America, and children sitting on classroom floors in rural Kano.
On paper, Nigeria belongs to the digital age. Its population is the youngest in the world, and its tech-savvy youth are building apps, launching startups, and driving Africa’s digital revolution. Lagos is sometimes called the “Silicon Valley of Africa.”
Yet, the lived experience of the majority of Nigerians feels centuries behind. According to the World Bank, over 40 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. Healthcare is chronically underfunded, with women in rural areas still dying in childbirth at rates comparable to medieval Europe. Millions of children remain out of school, and electricity supply is unreliable, pushing citizens to rely on petrol generators and candlelight.
Nigeria, in short, lives in two time zones: one digital, the other medieval.
The Medieval Shadow: Corruption as Feudalism
To understand Nigeria’s paradox, one must begin with corruption—the country’s original sin.
In medieval Europe, peasants paid taxes and tithes to their lords and the church, often leaving them with little to survive. The elites controlled land and resources, while the masses labored under oppressive systems of patronage and tribute.
Nigeria’s corruption functions in much the same way. Citizens pay formal taxes, but they also endure informal levies: bribes at police checkpoints, “dash” to civil servants, inflated government contracts, and outright theft of public funds. Billions of dollars have been siphoned off from Nigeria’s oil wealth since independence in 1960, enough to build world-class infrastructure across the country. Instead, much of it lines the pockets of political elites—the modern-day lords in Abuja and state capitals.
Ordinary Nigerians, like medieval peasants, are left to fend for themselves. Hospitals require “under-the-table” payments before attending to emergencies. Police officers extort motorists under the guise of “routine checks.” Government offices delay simple applications until a bribe changes hands.
Corruption here is not just an aberration—it is the system itself.
Weak Institutions and the Politics of Strongmen
Medieval societies revolved around monarchs and warlords, not institutions. Kings ruled by decree, and justice often depended on the whims of the powerful.
Nigeria has not fully escaped this reality. Its political system is dominated by “godfathers”—powerful patrons who control elections, allocate positions, and dictate policy. Institutions such as the judiciary, legislature, and anti-corruption agencies often bow to political pressure.
The rule of law exists in theory, but in practice, it bends to those who can pay or wield influence. Justice is selective, prosecutions are politicized, and institutions are frequently captured by the very elites they are meant to regulate.
Instead of modern democracy, what emerges is a feudal democracy—an electoral system that preserves the power of elites while offering citizens little beyond token participation.
Poverty Amidst Plenty
Perhaps the cruelest irony of Nigeria’s medieval condition is the persistence of poverty amidst great wealth.
Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer, with fertile land, abundant natural gas, and a vast youthful population. Yet, the country consistently ranks among the poorest in the world. Inflation has eroded household incomes, unemployment is rampant, and basic services are inadequate.
This is not unlike medieval Europe, where peasants labored on fertile lands yet starved while nobles hoarded surplus grain and livestock. Today, Nigerian politicians live in sprawling mansions, drive luxury cars, and jet off to Europe for medical treatment—while their constituents queue for hours at understaffed clinics or fetch water from contaminated streams.
The gap between ruler and ruled in Nigeria is not just economic—it is existential.
Digital Pockets of Progress
To paint Nigeria as entirely medieval would be misleading. The country is brimming with energy, talent, and digital creativity.
Take the tech ecosystem: Nigerian startups like Paystack, Andela, and Flutterwave have attracted international funding and expanded across Africa. Lagos is home to a thriving fintech scene, offering mobile payment solutions that leapfrog traditional banking systems.
Nollywood, Nigeria’s film industry, is the second largest in the world by output, shaping cultural narratives across Africa and the diaspora. Afrobeat artists such as Burna Boy, Wizkid, and Tems are global superstars, embodying a Nigeria that is modern, creative, and unapologetically global.
Social media has become a powerful political tool. The #EndSARS movement, sparked by police brutality, mobilized young Nigerians across the world, forcing the government to disband the notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad. Though brutally suppressed, the protests revealed a digitally empowered generation unwilling to accept medieval governance.
These are Nigeria’s bright spots—the flickers of the digital age in a country otherwise trapped in the past.
Looking Outward: Lessons from Others
The starkness of Nigeria’s paradox becomes clearer when compared to the trajectories of other nations.
Western Europe: Escaping the Medieval Trap
Europe emerged from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance, Enlightenment, and industrial revolution. Over centuries, institutions replaced monarchs, and accountability replaced feudal privileges. By investing in education, science, and infrastructure, European nations created the conditions for sustained growth.
Asia’s Transformation
Asia provides an even more painful comparison. In the 1960s, South Korea and Nigeria were on similar economic footing. Both were poor, postcolonial nations struggling to find their footing. Today, South Korea is a technological powerhouse, exporting Samsung phones and Hyundai cars worldwide. Nigeria, by contrast, imports virtually everything—from fuel to pencils—despite its vast resources.
Singapore, once dismissed as a “swamp with no resources,” is today one of the richest countries in the world. Its success was built on strong institutions, a zero-tolerance approach to corruption, and visionary leadership.
China, despite its authoritarianism, has lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty in just four decades, powered by industrialization and digital infrastructure. Nigeria, with comparable population size and potential, has instead fallen further behind.
The lesson is clear: resources do not guarantee progress; governance does.
Why Nigeria Remains Stuck
Why does Nigeria remain in this paradox? The answer lies in a toxic mix of historical legacies, political culture, and elite behavior.
Colonialism left behind fragile institutions designed to extract resources, not empower citizens. Postcolonial leaders inherited this machinery and used it to enrich themselves. Over time, corruption became normalized, and weak institutions failed to hold leaders accountable.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s oil wealth created a “resource curse.” Instead of diversifying the economy, successive governments relied on oil revenues, which enriched a few while making the state dependent on volatile global prices. Citizens, excluded from true participation, were left disempowered.
The result is a country rich in potential but poor in outcomes—a nation where digital dreams exist alongside medieval nightmares
Breaking the Medieval Chains
Can Nigeria escape its paradox? The answer is yes—but it requires radical change.
1. Crush Corruption: No society can modernize with corruption at its core. Nigeria needs an uncompromising war on corruption that punishes elites, not just scapegoats.
2. Strengthen Institutions: Courts, legislatures, and anti-graft agencies must be independent, not puppets of politicians.
3. Invest in People: Education, healthcare, and digital infrastructure should be prioritized over elite perks.
4. Empower Youth: Nigeria’s young population is its greatest asset. Creating opportunities for them to innovate, work, and participate in governance is critical.
5. Shift the Culture: Citizens must reject “business as usual”—from petty bribes to voting for corrupt politicians.
Conclusion: A Call to Conscience
Nigeria stands at a crossroads. One road leads deeper into the medieval swamp of corruption, inequality, and stagnation. The other leads toward a digital future of opportunity, innovation, and prosperity.
The irony is glaring: Nigerians hold smartphones while fetching water from wells; they watch Netflix on laptops powered by petrol generators; they boast of billion-dollar startups while millions live in hunger.
The question is not whether Nigeria has the talent or resources to succeed—it does. The question is whether its leaders and citizens have the courage to dismantle medieval systems and embrace true modernization.
The world is marching forward. South Korea, Singapore, and China have shown that transformation is possible. Will Nigeria remain a nation of candlelight in the age of satellites? Or will it finally break its chains and claim its rightful place in the 21st century?
The answer lies not in the hands of fate but in the choices Nigerians make today.
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Opinion