A country once envied, quietly rewritten

There is a Nigeria worth remembering — and worth building again.

Before the headlines turned one-note, this was a country whose currency outmuscled the dollar, whose graduates walked into jobs with cars and housing waiting, and whose doors the rest of the world lined up to enter. BetaNaija exists to put that Nigeria back in view — alongside the one being built today.

Start with our heritage Meet the people

1959: Nigeria began television broadcasting — first in Africa
36: states, each with a heritage story untold
200M+: people, most never asked about the good they've built

Stories worth telling

Economy

The years the naira outmuscled the dollar — and what changed

Before the currency became a punchline, it was a point of pride. A look at the policy decisions, oil windfalls and institutions that once made the naira one of the strongest currencies to trade in Africa.

Aremo Adebanjo Ojedeji Sep 12, 2026