Colonial Education and Women of the Cross River Region of Nigeria, 1900 – 1960: An Appraisal

Evidence abounds that women of the Cross River area braved all odds against their acquisition of Western education and, in the process, became agents of change and development. Unfortunately, this important aspect of the history of the area has not been researched and documented by historians. As a result, there is a gap to be filled in this respect, in the historiography of the Cross River region. This is the concern of this paper. The paper reveals that the women of present-day Cross River State contributed to the educational development of their communities in cash and kind. Even of greater importance is that a few of the women joined their male counterparts in nation building, and in rooting out British colonialists. But, prior to the above development, these women had laid a solid foundation on which subsequent generations of educated women such as medical doctors, teachers, pharmacists and politicians, among others, have built. The paper concludes that more attention shouldbe given to the education of women, because they are the foundation of any nation.Keywords: Administration; colonialism; education; discrimination; development

Nigeria’s vision 20:2020: the challenge of infrastructural development

Vision 20:2020 represents an aspiration for Nigeria to have a large, strong, diversified, competitive and technologically enabled economy that effectively harnesses the talents and energy of its people and responsibly exploits its natural endowments to guarantee a high standard of living and quality of life for its citizens. It seeks to position Nigeria among the 20 largest economies in the world by the year 2020. It is however disheartening that the infrastructural facilities in Nigeria make the realization of the vision an uphill task. Nigeria‟s present ranking based on the state of her infrastructure tends to suggest that she is merely day-dreaming. On the Global Competitive Index, Nigeria is currently ranked 119th out of 131 countries based on the state of her infrastructure. A vision must be supported by a sustained effort for its achievement and for Nigeria‟s vision 20:2020 the provision of a functional infrastructure is a necessity if the goal post will not be shifted again.Key Words: Vision 20:2020; infrastructure; Development; Technology, Econom