Building Abuja: The Planned City that Actually Worked

[@Nerathul1]

Another reason for Abuja's success: At no point where there any plan for "World's largest x" usually planned cities are filled with giant nonsense egomaniacal projects as the first priority.

[@clothokaftan]

watching this, i am left stumped as to why nobody thought to do this from the start. this isn't a new idea, its extremely old, china was infamous for moving their capital every other dynasty for example, this is why china has so many enormous cities (before tofu dreg's and ghost cities became a thing), japan similarly had the same phenomenon, starting in kyoto then moving to edo, then finally tokyo. wherever you move your capital, people will flock to it. people sure as hell wont flock to a city in the middle of bumblefudge nowhere since there is no business there, mining towns for example exist because of the resources nearby, planned cities often dont have that luxury and are poorly planned to attract future growth (or any growth for that matter), the only way for a planned city to succeed is to have a reason for it existing, and it better be a profitable reason or nobody will waste their time going there.

[@idesel]

True.

[@ANTSEMUT1]

​@@clothokaftanweren't most of the Japanese Capital just moved within the same prefecture and even then it still wasn't that far from each other?

[@KevBotM]

@@clothokaftanThe Capital of Japan moved from Edo to Tokyo? When was that?

[@game_boyd1644]

@@KevBotMEdo is the old name for Tokyo

[@agboadeka7629]

Its Not everyday one comes across a report casting a positive light on Nigeria .Thanks for taking the time out to do this 👍🏾

[@akintoye-ilori]

Nigerian and long time channel fan here. I’d say this episode is quite accurate and well rounded. It covers the successes and failures of the Abuja project…as much as can be covered in a 20 minute episode. Well done 👍🏾

[@KelechiAnodere]

It was a very good job but many things were not accurate. It was Ibrahim Babangida that built up Abuja and not Buhari.

[@KelechiAnodere]

Buhari actually stopped all development during his regime

[@momoh992]

As a Nigerian, I find it difficult to understand why you perceive everything as " quite accurate and well-rounded." Numerous pieces of information provided are completely incorrect and a quick Google search would easily yield the correct information.

[@akintoye-ilori]

@@KelechiAnodere Buhari in his first regime indeed worked on it. The plans to create the FCT had indeed been in place since the 70s and several regimes proceeding IB‘s regime worked on it. The only thing is he moved the seat of power post coup permanently there.

[@akintoye-ilori]

@@KelechiAnodere such as?

[@NdauTribe13]

Africa needs a functional Nigeria Love from the Great Zimbabwe

[@RA-ms3je]

😂😂

[@KaeMaiden]

It's functional, otherwise, it wouldn't be the richest economy on the continent. Using the wealth for the right purpose is where they fail.

[@NdauTribe13]

@@RA-ms3je I don’t see anything funny here 🤷🏿‍♂️ This is weird 🙄

[@okonyehilary1461]

Kudos for the documentary on Abuja. Love from 🇳🇬

[@jojopaliyo]

Actually Buhari is not the Nigerian president today. Saying that "Buhari is still the Nigerian president today" makes it sound like he's been in power since 1983. He was elected as a civilian in 2015 and handed over few months ago after two abysmal tenures in office

[@dsistudios8446]

Correct!

[@Makumbi]

That was a hint to when the episode was actually recorded.

[@eldios831]

This guy is too busy he made the episode 5 years ago😂😂😂😂

[@jojopaliyo]

@@eldios831 you're probably right 🤣

[@AndresSebriant]

I believe the episode was recorded during the last month of his second term. But correct! He is no longer in office.

[@chigozieubah5816]

Love this mega-project series. Just a quick fact check, I may be wrong about the timeline but, at 10:00 it's mentioned that N1000 was the equivalent of $2. This is off by a mile. In 1980 the exchange rate was $1- N0.65 (N0.90 on the parallel market). The Dollar was worth less than the Naira then. $1000 in 1980 would be around $3,900 with inflation today. Today, $1000 would be N1,125,000. So yeah corruption is real. Fun fact: My father told me that a return ticket to New York by Concorde in the 80s was N400.

[@AhmedDanjuma]

came here to write this

[@PrincelyWan]

​@@AhmedDanjumathat brother was on point. Our issue as Afrikans is that we don't usually care for detail but that brother with their correction on the Naira exchange rate of the 80s blew that stereotype out of the sky 💪🏿 ❤ from East Africa

[@smanmshelia7225]

​@@AhmedDanjumawhy not? It's a fact.

[@almondfx4365]

I noticed the error too, and I knew I wouldn't be the only one

[@Reap3r-013]

I was actually going to point this out. Nice one!

[@ayomideosho2630]

Abuja transport master plan was designed by my former lecturer in the person of late proffessor mabogunje who lectured and retired in univeristy of ibadan and also was a professor of transport geograpghy from department of geography..he was a brilliant man The transportation master plan is what made abuja free from road congestion today....and the master plan is still be used in abuja

[@localman9063]

Free from road congestion ke? Are you sure you live in Abuja? Maybe you mean compared to Lagos it is better, which makes sense.

[@citizenfootballng]

LoL... Free from wetin.... U go old for road for Abuja..

[@Dem_Girls]

Fellow spatial scientist here from the great University of Benin 🤝

[@dermotwallace5533]

Not tru at all.

[@ernestenujuba6875]

Is it Akin Mabogunje?

[@LeeDaegon]

Can we do a mini series on planned cities in general? like successful and failed? i'm super curious about the topic and I'm sure there are other viewers interested too. Thanks for the gr8 vid!

[@Xisbrezatsgzormd]

I think it should be Barcelona and probably few more examples, all other cities built from scratch/ according to the plan (almost always modernistic in XX century) are fail in terms of urbanistic and simple human sense

[@benrockefeller6334]

​@@XisbrezatsgzormdHe seems to have recently made his own version of the old Geographics channel called "Places", so that might be a good thing to do to promote that channel.

[@homefixprohomefixpro2910]

Great video and spot on with many of the info insights. Abuja is an African success story that doesn't get the props it deserves. Imagine a mega project to create a gigantic city that didn't exist prior. Considering the military coups,political instability and ethnic divisions that bedevilled Nigeria throughout the period. That the Abuja project was delivered and not just delivered but is an actual working masterpiece is something to hold in great awe. There are challenges no doubt but point to any major city in the world that doesn't have them. Bravo.😊

[@benrockefeller6334]

Abuja is Africa's answer to Washington DC. Is it necessarily worthy of that title? Ben Franklin said it best when asked about the Constitutional Convention. "What have you given us?" "A Democracy if you can keep it". Time will tell. Time must tell.

[@tondekoddar7837]

@@benrockefeller6334How is Washington DC planned from nothing ? I think Australia's thing (build between two towns from "empty") could be better example.

[@benrockefeller6334]

@@tondekoddar7837 You do know the story behind DC, right? The entire city was planned by a dude named L'enfant, on land personally surveyed by Washington himself. It was built at the meeting of two rivers, the Potomac and the Attomac (or something like that), on the border between Virginia and Maryland. It was the ultimate dividing line between the Union and the Confederacy. The city was built completely from scratch for the sole purpose to be a capital city. It's placement helped mitigate the power of both Northern and Southern states. It was reasonably close to Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Richmond, allowing the city to be easily accessible to many people. Has it started to sound like Abuja yet?

[@scottola2497]

Well Nigeria hasn't had military coups, political instability in almost 30 yrs which is about HALF of its existEnce... that is not exactly throughout it livelihood period up till date !! So when rather than listen to western media... trying getting much closer to researching the factoids !!

[@benrockefeller6334]

@@scottola2497 What are you even trying to say? It physically hurts trying to figure out what you mean.

[@nomercynodragonforyou9688]

This is the modern example of how to do planned cities RIGHT. Cities like these must always be built around local demand, never political egos of any regime.

[@francisdavid2747]

Shout out to Simon for repping my city where I reside. Been watching for a whole year. A really chill vibe outchea. Peace and love

[@tondekoddar7837]

How long, that been good etc ? Simon got how much OK how much "maybe" and how much "wrong" in your opinion ?

[@kowloonbroadcast]

@@tondekoddar7837yeah, would love to hear an opinion from the local citizen as well

[@taofeekharuna8442]

​@@kowloonbroadcastAbuja boys Don chop small hype we no go rest 😂😂😂

[@oraksvisual8654]

​@@taofeekharuna8442😂😂

[@nnamdiazuakola5254]

@@tondekoddar7837a resident of Abuja too… I’d say he got 80% right.

[@ibrahimshehu859]

Love from Abuja, Nigeria ❤

[@xplain-engineering7613]

I visit Abuja yesterday my first time and here I am when your Abuja video popped up

[@richardali7603]

A really thorough presentation here of our beautiful capital city. I have lived in Abuja for a decade now and raising a young family here. It's a really nice, functional city, and I'm glad you got into the historical problems of native land rights as well as contemporary ones related to urban poor housing. One thing that would add to this video would be the actual layout of the city which shows up in one of your slides, the logic behind the main arteries around which the city has bloomed, in sections as you have correctly noted. Kudos!

[@fistandpen2505]

A lot of the world (including quite often Nigerians) tend to be ALLERGIC to positive news about Nigeria. The reality is the country is surging forward mostly in leaps than in spurts. Abuja (Gwagwalada) is the fastest growing city in the entire globe (per UN reports). It is VERY green, spacious and organized. And Nigerians are filling it up gradually and building a narrative within the city to give it a firm identity. Very much an African success story. It is one of a few cities with both a "national" cathedral and mosque, among many other cultural attributes. Kudos for the diligence and well-researched history on this piece.

[@KelechiAnodere]

Buhari took over power as a military dictator on 31st December 1985 and was removed by Ibrahim Babangida, another military dictator on 27th August 1985. He ruled until 1992. He was the one that did most of the buildings and infrastructure that made it possible to relocate to the capital City. Also note that In 1983 the Naira was stronger than the dollar. In those days the cost of the land was truly a fortune.

[@aco420]

*31st December 1983, not 1985.

[@lemonade_ib]

Naira has never been stronger than USD in history, just sat the naira was stronger then than now .

[@jermainefaro6196]

I need to visit that city(Abuja) i've been hearing good things about it 👍👍

[@udemeebong3242]

I didn't expect this coverage, but as a proud Nigerian, I approve.🇳🇬

[@petervarley3078]

Canberra (Australia) and Brasília (Brazil) worked out pretty well. In Australia, there was a lack of agreement on which large city should be the capital - Melbourne/Sydney for Australia - so the solution was to make a new city in between, It seems that São Paulo/Rio de Janeiro rivalry wasn't the problem for Brazil; the Wikipedia article for Brasília includes, "Brasília's geographically central location fostered a more regionally neutral federal capital. An article of the country's first republican constitution, dated 1891, states that the capital should be moved from Rio de Janeiro to a place close to the country's center." Edit: Washington DC is also a successful planned city. Not sure how I forgot it given that I live here!

[@tondekoddar7837]

Need to check Brazil - I thought it was just a way to transfer even more money from poor people to centrally located and bought area, might very well be wrong about that. I know aus isn't that simple. But meh, maybe I'll wait for Simon's article on Brazil. Yeah, I'm lazy speller. Lazy researcher. Many people will tell me I'm wrong (even though I gave no strong opinions).

[@RamblingRodeo]

Also, i think that many of these old capitals were built out of necessity of the time and era of the time they were established and nothing wrong with changing for what makes more sense for the time, just as Egypt is changing the location of there Capital as well, so is Indonesia and India is rebuilding there current one. I think it makes sense, for whatever or how it happens, it happens the way it is suppose to for that nation, just as it has here. The United States original Capital was New York before they moved it to DC.

[@tondekoddar7837]

@@RamblingRodeo What's the pressing need for Egypt to make elite-like city for its military, economic and political leaders exactly ? I'm just average YT watcher, no inside knowledge nor did I even google it much. Or is the city going to fix problems for the average citizen, and how ?

[@RamblingRodeo]

Idk, that is the question for the Egyption government to decide.@@tondekoddar7837

[@jonathandemy-geroe4991]

I mean, Canberra's popular reputation is that its a city that people have to live in rather than want to live in.

[@kevinbrown-ge6sz]

The most important reason for Abuja's success was that the leaders contracted with firms that had practical experience with urban planning.

[@tallest4eva]

I lived in Abuja for several years in the late 90s when it was still a much smaller place. Returned to visit in 2019, and the city was very different. Much bigger.

[@kevinanaks8554]

Abuja was indeed a respond to demand and as such it never needed subsidy... Lovely video

[@baudreyspencer277]

😂one thing I love about this channel is your ability to seamlessly butcher names. It has never failed to make me laugh every time it happens.

[@almondfx4365]

😅😅bro isn't even trying...

[@kelechirichard54]

When he said Olusegun and Shagari I couldn't stop laughing 😂

[@my0.02cents]

I have been to Abuja it is surprising in every respect. Very well organized safe

[@ahmednjidda6182]

Great work. I live in Abuja by the way. Well done

[@caniz80]

I went there in 2012 it was a fun trip.

[@afrikanheritage99]

Wow, it's been a long while. You can't recognize the same city now. Abuja keeps developing rapidly.

[@ncheedxx0109]

So far so good. Success stories of projects of this size are hard to come by in Africa, esp Nigeria. Just look at a similar project in neighbouring Ivory Coast, Yamoussoukro. A massive, costly and embarrassing failure. So kudos to Nigeria. It was not easy. Now please clean up Lagos and other major cities. It can be done.

[@samsonadeyemi2169]

We are working towards that as well, I hope it works

[@s.tanh9818]

Sorry to correct you but Yamoussoukro is not a failure. It's a beautiful city with large streets & roads, superb universities and a vibrant street life.

[@okiemute7744]

​@@s.tanh9818 I think what he means by failure is that it is not yet booming with people and businesses as envisaged. People have not relocated enmass. It is beautiful but not yet a booming metropolis anywhere close to Abidjan. For Abuja at the moment, the only thing it lacks majorly compared to Lagos is a sea port.

[@s.tanh9818]

@@okiemute7744 That's not true.... Yamoussoukro is a normal midsize city...the only things that have not been relocated are the assembly, the presidency and most of the administration and we know it's a political decision that need to be made.... Abidjan is overpopulated by the way.

[@amos_eternal]

​@@okiemute7744 Why do you need a sea port in Abuja when it's a landlocked city. It was primarily planned for that same very reason in case of enemies invading from land, sea, and air. This is why you don't find beaches in Abuja unless it's artificial 😂

[@johnemordi7381]

I've been here for twenty plus years, he's quite factual and solid on most points.

[@taiwoadedayo624]

Finally, some goodnews about my country

[@jetsons101]

Simon and team, this was a great watch. Just goes to show that we can learn something new every day.......

[@emperortv4669]

As a Nigerian fan of the channel, am IMPRESSED. If I may add though, It will be the Impact of Nasir El-Rufai as the Minister from 2003-2007.

[@theawesomeman9821]

Good for Nigeria!

[@JohnAko]

Great Peice! Nice touch on the sad way the historical inhabitants were forced out and left in poverty. Abuja is a great city to live in

[@texano1957]

Great insight into the capita Abuja, I learned a lot about it in this video. Keep up the great work!

[@musadabra64]

Nice content, But i want to point out a mistake, as of the time of the land was sold for 1000 Naira, the dollar equivalence was not 500 Naira, probably 1 Naira to 2 Dollars. I'm not sure but I learned that Naira later depreciated.

[@JHKanus]

Yeah Naira was bigger than dollar as of that time. It was 1Naira = $2

[@akeme25]

Yeah you’re correct. N1000 would have been decent compensation at the time.

[@cassmaie]

@@JHKanus N1 = £1 back in the 1980s

[@lawofthesun]

Proud of Nigeria my country , if not for corruption, Nigeria would currently be ranking amongst the 10 top economies of the world

[@ChiTheAesthete]

Abuja is absolutely sublime

[@KCM_zz]

Another African success story of post-colonial planned capitals is Gaborone in Botswana. Attempts for Yamassoukro in the Ivory Coast, Dodoma in Tanzania and Lilongwe in Malawi have so far left quite a lot to be desired. But founding new post colonial capitals is truly a great idea in demographically exploding Africa, and it would be great for other African countries to consider doing the same.

[@homeboybeyondtheborders4935]

But Nigeria stole the master plan from Tanzania 🇹🇿 Dodoma master plan they came to Tanzania for study tour but they stole the whole idea but anyway it's ok they just put things into a practical shape.

[@kiribati9393]

new capitals cities are also a way to leave the most vunerable communities away, and leave them with the mess , when the High middle class move to the new cities and make real estate developers super wealthy

[@KCM_zz]

@@kiribati9393 It just depends on the agenda of the authorities. If you look around Africa and see such overcrowded capitals as Kinshasa, Cairo, Addis Ababa and the like, you cannot help but think of the idea of finding new capitals as a valid one. The authorities just need to set their priorities right, and make sure that the new capitals are all-inclusive.

[@kiribati9393]

A new capital is a more "shinny project" that city rejuvenation, slum upgrading and community oriented project. A lot of African Architects and International group of urban planners demonstrated it can work. Developing existing middle size cities, ... The new capital cities are often vanity projects and the people behind looking for real-estate profits @@KCM_zz

[@azeezedo-omozuwa1820]

​@@homeboybeyondtheborders4935stop lying with that shit. Nigeria never came to Tanzania, very stupid thing to say! Abuja was designed by a Japanese architect. Stop capping.

[@jowieslifestyle]

Nigerian and long time fan...it's nice you did an episode on Abuja that's where I live

[@francisdavid2747]

Also another thing Simon, when we where building Abuja, we where far from broke, we where in the midst of an oil boom and our currency was really strong.

[@Legalgodzilla]

Please watch the video before saying something stated at the 2 minute mark

[@tondekoddar7837]

So you were building it, and are at the moment maybe living there ? Maybe give some more datapoints please, I've been rather unsure even after watching a random video in youtube about this.

[@lebenlarge5282]

@@tondekoddar7837no they started building in the 70s and was supposed to be inhabited by 1986, just watch the video lmao

[@afrikanheritage99]

😂😂😂👍 true.

[@afrikanheritage99]

Excellent analysis 👏 Great job well done 👍 Confirmed as a middle-aged Nigerian who witnessed the transition from Lagos to Abuja. Your narration is absolutely 💯 spot on. Thank you for covering my country. #Subscribed ❤

[@Davidsonikuli]

Finally a video about Nigeria

[@artbydivine]

This is so cool, hearing how the city I currently live came about is really nice Great video

[@damilolaademiluyi2003]

Wow! My country is being mentioned. Proudly Nigerian!

[@eldios831]

Nigeria is a big country...diverse people...big economy...but also where the boys have to get their share...but interestingly this makes it good for both sides...Nigeria is one of only few countries in Africa you can buy subsidized fuel and petroleum in the streets...visited there and you can literally buy bottled fuel....I was amazed

[@svenw-u3f]

hurray!

[@johnchimbani8473]

The bottles on the street are a result of pipelines been syphoned by pirates. I wouldnt say this is for the greater good. Especially if you see what the illegal refineries and leaking pipelines are doing to the environment in the delta. Not to mention loss of income to the state IMO

[@caesar7733]

No subsidy anymore

[@kamorbalogun6021]

Where on the street of Nigeria did you by a bottled fuel from because I have never seen one my self as a Nigerian, maybe you wanted to mentioned Benin republic?.

[@andreyking2062]

Its called black market. People standing on the roadside with gallons of fuel ​@@kamorbalogun6021

[@ugoawa3171]

This is a documentary worth archiving. Nice work, thank you 🇳🇬

[@african-history-fountain]

Fabulous video. Well done.

[@Loweffortperfectionism]

You guess Guys are getting sooo professional - it's frightening Great keep the good work up

[@menzibhengu9657]

Simon, I am a supporter of your work.. Glad to see the beard has also grown !!.. Will subscribe to this channel aswell..

[@TheMubashar99]

Thank you for doing your research, This is as balanced as it can get. Thank you from Abuja.

[@yusluv]

Dude this is the best documentary video i have watched about Abuja so far. good job Cus most of us don't even know the story behind our own capital city 😅

[@nmg1909]

If you don't know about Okah's coup, then, I guess you are one of the genzees. I know the story about capital city

[@yusluv]

@nmg1909 truth to be told I don't really know much about the okahs coup but will check it out But I'm not a genzi lol

[@nmg1909]

@@yusluv Lagos state would have ramained the capital if not for the failed Okah's coup. Babaginda decided to move the capital amid criticism, from Dodan barracks to Aso rock. Though before the coup, Abuja has been marked, but it was still a rocky and open land occupied by the Gwari people.

[@yusluv]

@@nmg1909 I'm happy we have a failed coup tho 😀 But to be fair the gwari people who occupied the land was not treated well by the government sadly

[@nmg1909]

@@yusluv I totally agree with you. This is one of the reasons why a tribe should take education seriously because few of them are educated and don't have a voice that can speak for them. They were chased mostly to Nasarawa and Niger. Some still remain in Abuja, though.

[@manassehegbodo5355]

This is absolutely an amazing documentary

[@daupadaniel7210]

One thousand was worth over 1000$ in 1977 not 2$, anyway love ur content Simon ❤

[@dwaynne_way]

I love your videos they are so informative and i have learnt so much about such a wide array of subjects.

[@IrishMike22]

You'll soon learn (hopefully) how swayed and poorly researched the videos are. Happy new year!!

[@kylesummers420]

Germany circa 1930s-45, we are gonna build the ultimate city ‘Germania’. Nigeria present day, ‘hold my beer’ 😂

[@louisokorodudu3754]

Thanks for this.......learnt more about my own countries capital than ever before

[@gladysokwuchi-mirikweh8501]

Fantastic work and delivery of Abuja as a planned city and really detailed. Thoroughly enjoyed this. Keep it coming. Godbless

[@kayalee783]

I'm from Canberra Australia and our city still follows Walter Burley Griffin's plans from over a hundred years ago and it works pretty well. How do you define a planned city if as you say abuja was to grow as needed? You haven't shown how it was a "planned" city just that people wanted to build a capital. In your summation every city is a planned city because someone "planned" to build it

[@obamtl]

Abuja has a masterplan that they’ve largely stuck to. There have been instances where people have built on land they’re not supposed to, but those structures have largely been demolished. As for growing as needed, the city’s masterplan is phased, so new districts only get opened up when existing districts have their full contingent of infrastructure, and are largely built up and occupied. They way, you don’t have largely expanses of empty areas with infrastructure but no occupants.

[@kayalee783]

@@obamtl I'm not disputing that I'm just saying in a video about a planned city I would have expected Simon to at least outline what the plan itself is. Canberra for instance has a very structured "parliamentary triangle" and 2 man-made lakes. It would have been interesting if Simon went into more detail about the plan itself.

[@Bprovo]

​@@kayalee783 he mentioned it briefly. The concentric outer rings. But yes, Abuja is entirely planned. Within 5 seconds of looking at it on google maps, you would be able to tell. As far as planned cities go it is actually widely known. It is undoubtedly a top 10 planned city in terms of global awareness. So, because of that might have been one reason why he didn't feel the need to prove the point. It might even be considered a top 5 known planned city. An easy way to distinguish the city from OTHER cities is that a masterplan predated settlement and the city's growth largely adheres to that masterplan. In fact, while the city does occasionally deviate from the master-plan, there is also something that goes on in Abuja where the original masterplan is sometimes used to overturn 'wayward' developments. Which is to say that the original masterplan is still in consideration. That is NOT how regular cities develop. I'm from Australia as well, and you cannot say that cities like Brisbane, Sydney etc had a pre-emptive plan that has determined their settlement pattern. The master-plans that we have in Australian cities (Canberra excluded) is more patchwork and restrospective.

[@Bprovo]

The grow as needed is partly a misnomer. The Core of the city was entirely planned, and the outer rings that would envelope the rest of the city were also planned, but the outer regions were not planned from the onset in their entirety, because their 'need' was non-existent. Which is to say that the core and structure of the city were planned.

[@blackoralArt]

​@@kayalee783 He wasn't too specific about the planning of Abuja but went on rambling about things not related to the topic. Abuja has a masterplan to be executed in phases. I think they are on phase 3 or so now It has what is called a 3 Arms zone- that is where you have the National Assembley complex for political representatives from all over the country, the Judiciary with the Supreme Court then the Presidential Villa, official residence of the President, they are all situated in this area There's an artificial lake, a huge park in the centre of the city, many planned residential areas and separate business districts. Abuja is well planned, very beautiful and a green city. The landscaping in the whole city is spectacular

[@lotannamol4903]

Finally Simon talks about my country

[@OladotunDavies]

Great video.. A little correction though. A thousand Naira in the '70s was the equivalent of more than 1000 dollars. Not 2 dollars.

[@JM-st1le]

Correct

[@MrPbhuh]

Flevoland should also be mentioned, the newest province of the netherlands. It has multiple planned cities and villages, that work relatively well.

[@promisebethel2226]

What you have shown here is 15 years ago footage of Abuja......what your name on Instagram.....let me show you what and beautiful Abuja is.......its so clean and greenery.......and developed.......its sad that the world only knows lagos and doesn't know that Abuja exist........

[@bletrick3352]

Abuja developed? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[@promisebethel2226]

@@bletrick3352 sorry I mean still ongoing construction on other phases......only phase 1and 2 is complete

[@okiemute7744]

I believe the new minister Wike is giving the right vibes and if he continues well, Abuja would continue to grow. The former minister was too quiet.

[@ikemmanuel7859]

​@@promisebethel2226just shut up, mumu!

[@promisebethel2226]

@@ikemmanuel7859 I think it's your father you are referring to......opunu

[@zariqmohdali5779]

Putrajaya in Malaysia is somewhat an example of a planned city that has succeeded. Hoping you can do a vid on that too Simon ✌🏼

[@birdrabbit290]

A thousand Naira in 1976 was definitely not $2. At that point, the exchange rate was around $1= N0.62. Plus, you'd also have to consider the value of the dollar in 1976 compared to today.

[@supercoolcat7692]

Watching this from Abuja

[@karthikvinaymahesh5406]

Chandigarh in India designed by a French architect le corbusier is also a flourishing planned city

[@Terrorstar-gbp]

Nigeria huge population growth helped in populating city, hope the people removed will get necessary facilities in the future

[@jakubznojemsky4936]

Just like Simon stated at the end most of planned cities fail just because they were build just as a flex for sh!ts and giggles without any real need for them. Well planned city have far higher potential than spontaneously built ones where road grid devolves into clusterf*ck and it's pain to supply centre or even travel there in general. Many cities tried to fix the issue by rebuilding which took demolishing whole quarters while starting on empty land would be far easier.

[@zachreederau2531]

Check out Australia’s Capital, Canberra (Can-Bruh). It sounds fairly similar. It was built as Sydney and Melbourne were fighting over who would be the capital pre-federation.

[@onyiiilo378]

Abuja was was actually developed like Canberra, Brasilia and Washington DC.

[@ourunstablemind]

Chapters on the timeline would be nice 😊

[@thelegend-e7919]

10:03 This is a pretty big oversight, you didn’t take inflation into account which would be significant for any currency over a 50 year time period but especially so for the niara which suffered extreme inflation. 1000 N in 1975 is worth about 1,531,196.40 N today, which is about 1700 USD. Far cry from 2 bucks and completely changes the impact of that statement (even if the overall point about people being kicked out from their homes is valid).

[@jojopaliyo]

Damn!

[@slightlyaboveavrage-110]

This exactly

[@benrockefeller6334]

Even if it's 1700 dollars, that still isn't much. Far less than the value of a new house. Sure, the statement is wrong, but the correct amount is still pathetically low.

[@slightlyaboveavrage-110]

@@benrockefeller6334 you don't still understand? It's 1700 in 1975 money That's about $9,722 in today's money And given that a standard home in Lagos as of rn is about 10-30 million It was actually quite enough for them back then That's even if it was actually given to them tho 🤷🏻

[@benrockefeller6334]

@@slightlyaboveavrage-110 That's still at most a mortgage downpayment. How is a member of the urban poor expected to make the rest of that money? They destroyed numerous villages and compensated them a mortgage payment's worth of money with no hope of making enough to cover the rest of the cost. They took away everything from them and gave them practically nothing in return regardless of whether it's 1700 dollars or 2 dollars. The government is still evil in this instance, regardless of the specific amount. You're also treating this as a single incident in 1975, when in reality it is a slow process that's occurred over the course of the fifty years that the project has been ongoing. In 2016 there were major protests in Abuja by the native Gyabi people, as reported by Aljazeera.

[@anamsakalonu4518]

1 thousand Naira was not 2 US dollars in 1970s. It was more than 1 thousand us dollar.

[@charleshart8641]

Well narrated ❤

[@handsonlabssoftwareacademy594]

Great Review man! Keep it up!

[@MubarakAlhassan]

Abuja is awesome! That's a fact! 🏭

[@blueberryhill6948]

This was awesome ❤

[@thesadiqful]

This video made me move to Abuja 🎉

[@dogwu2099]

I live in Abuja and have renovated and built a few houses...building codes and regulations are very strict.

[@georgealakhume7924]

Fair analysis .. 45% .. cheers

[@AndrewGrantt]

I enjoyed this content. Thank you Simon and for the insights about Abuja. I’m curious, is it possible to purchase African stocks? Who trade the financial market?

[@StefanClyde]

I trade the financial market. I own some Chinese stock and Ev stocks. Which aspect of the financial market are you referring to?

[@AndrewGrantt]

I was referring to the stock market and willing to try out other aspects of the financial market. I’ve been profitable from Nvidia this year and got my eyes on Solana. How do you trade?

[@StefanClyde]

Nvidia was superb this year! I also profited from it. Solana spiked recently. Good picks. I trade based on the season of the market. It gives me a direction on implementing the right strategies for long or short term. I also trade based on the volatility of the market. Although it wasn’t easy till I came across a mentor who helped to keep me in the market loop. My mentor is Bernard Paul.

[@AndrewGrantt]

@@StefanClyde Interesting. This would definitely help to act like a guide when implementing your strategies. It’s a deciding factor to consider when trading a bullish or bearish market.

[@AndrewGrantt]

How can I access Paul? Do you have factors you consider when purchasing a stock?

[@TytixAutosAndTech]

I'm so wowed by this video very very informative

[@shadeblackwolf1508]

I raise you Lelystad, a city that was founded before there was land to build any foundations.

[@lukaakure1009]

A long time fan here, you thought me more about my back yard than nigerians schools lol😂. And hey i'm planning on moving abuja.

[@yipmabaruya1148]

Happy new year 2024 from PAPUA NEW GUINEA. . May God bless you.

[@Overworkedandunderpaid]

OOOOOOH!!!! ARCHITECTURE!!!🎉🎉🎉

[@nathansamson8798]

Do a video on Nusantara!

[@quinnglaze9920]

Hey, Simon. Gaston Glock (yes, that Glock) just died and I think it’d be really amazing if you did a video on him and/or the gun itself.

[@williestyle35]

This sounds like a Simon video waiting to happen!

[@CodingExpress]

Great content

[@kenliljekvist255]

Planned cities that seemed to work: St Petersburg, Minsk, Washington DC.

[@okoyechigozie1775]

Hey big fan, can't believe you are talking about my country, nd I think Lagos is 26 million in population, and my name is chigozie..

[@Mikigator]

Watching this video from my family house in Abuja

[@christ_inspire_daily]

Great video! As someone from the gbagyi ethnic group I find this video very interesting. However one are a you got wrong is that Bauhari is no longer president of Nigeria. He handed over power to Pres. Bola Tinubu on May 29th, 2023.

[@Hillbilly001]

Posted 23 seconds ago and no views. That'll change quickly. LoL. Cheers from Tennessee

[@Lupis6377]

276 at five minutes lol

[@Hillbilly001]

@@Lupis6377 Simon is the master of the Algorithm. Allegedly. I don't know how he does it. He must be in league with the Lizard Overlords. Or he is one. Allegedly. Cheers

[@realdreamerschangetheworld7470]

What a cool topic!

[@Danorous]

Thank you Simon

[@sammycrowngold8]

I am so glad to have a property there.

[@paulwestwood4417]

On a much smaller scale, United Kingdom has a planned town in south west England called Cranbrook. It has a railway station and it is close to Exeter Airport. The first new town in England for hundreds of years.

[@iangregory3719]

Sorry, but you're incorrect on that last bit. Milton Keynes is a planned town, recently elevated to city status, that was started just over 50 years ago, Then there are the two "Garden Cities" of Welyn and Letchworth...though they might be close to a hundred years old. I think Cumbernauld in Scotland is also a planned town.

[@davidkayode2737]

Buhari left the presidency this year, that fact was wrong. But the video was perfect. Thanks to explaining the construction of my city.

[@thekorsh4230]

They should build train tracks from Abuja to lagos

[@ade-ade]

Actually an ongoing project

[@african-history-fountain]

The entire country is having railway lines built, in a sort of frenzy which reminds one of the US railroad revolution of the 19th century.