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AN ANALYSIS OF CITIZENS PHYSICAL NEEDS
An analysis of the physical needs of Nigerian and Brazilian citizens
Kevin Athy
University of Dayton

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AN ANALYSIS OF CITIZENS PHYSICAL NEEDS
Abstract
This essay examines the relationship between physical well-being and education rates in Nigeria
and Brazil. A brief political background of each country is provided to show that social
institutions were not invested in. Physical well-being is measured in several different ways
including infant mortality rate, physician density rate, and health expenditures. Education levels
are measured by literacy rates and expected years of schooling in each country. The hypothesis
of this essay is that with higher rates of caring for citizen’s physical well-being, levels of
education will rise. This is then proven by comparing the rates of physical well-being with rates
of education in each country. After examining both, it is seen that the hypothesis is correct and
that education is in direct correlation with physical well-being. In order to raise education levels
around the world, each country must better provide for their citizens physical being.

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AN ANALYSIS OF CITIZENS PHYSICAL NEEDS
Introduction
Throughout the world, there are many different forms of government and societies that
exist and function in very different ways. Some countries have authoritarian regimes while
others follow democratic systems, each form having variations within themselves. One form of
democracy is a weak democracy, in which there is an illusion of true democracy; citizens are
given the right to participate in elections, however, corruption within the government itself
usually overrules the citizen’s participation. Another form of democracy is an electoral
democracy. This form is very similar to a weak democracy in the sense that citizens have the
right to vote, but more power is held at the state level and has higher autonomy. Nigeria is
considered to be a weak democracy whereas Brazil is considered an electoral democracy. When
comparing countries, a major question is raised: In what ways can these societies be compared
and on what basis can they be judged. In this paper, I will compare Nigerian society to Brazilian
society by examining measures of physical well-being in each country in order to determine
which society (if either) adequately provides for its citizens and how physical well-being relates
to education in each country.
Method
Nigeria has been a war torn country for many decades after gaining independence from
Great Brittan in 1960. Since then, militaristic regimes dominated the area through use of
intimidation and force. It wasn’t until 1999 that a permanent constitution was set into place,
setting up Nigeria as a democratic state (Freedom House). However, Nigeria is far from what

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AN ANALYSIS OF CITIZENS PHYSICAL NEEDS
American citizen’s consider a democracy. In this country, each citizen has the right to vote in
elections but their vote usually amounts to nothing. Due to corruption, government officials are
elected and hold office by rigging the electoral process in a number of ways, for example,
stuffing ballot boxes with votes for a certain candidate, intimidating citizens not to vote, and by
giving loyal supporters government positions for their services (usually for funding provided)
(UNODC). As a result of corruption, institutions for citizens needs are not provided, ultimately
lowering the citizen’s ability to thrive in this country.
Very similar to Nigeria, Brazil was subject to European imperialism. Brazil was first
colonized in the 1500’s by the Portuguese, and did not gain independence until 1822. Since then,
the country has faced waves of militaristic rule and various presidents attempting to progress the
country via industrialization. It wasn’t until 1989 that there was a direct, popular election of a
president (Draper Ramsey 2008). In accordance with Nigeria, the citizens of Brazil have faced
similar set-backs due to corruption, in particular clientelism: providing loyal supporters with jobs
in exchange for their vote in an election (Draper/Ramsey 2008). Until recent years, social
institutions were not invested in, resulting in negative effects on its citizens.
In order to compare these societies, I will examine different variables that pertain to
citizen’s physical well-being. First, I will look at each countries total dependency ratio. This
ratio determines what percentage of the society is dependent on the adult working class of that
society. Next I will look at what percentage of each country’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is
spent on health expenditures. Also, physician density and hospital bed density are factors to be
looked at. Both physician and hospital bed density account for how many physicians/hospital

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beds there are per person. The last variable I will examine is infant mortality rate. This indicates
how well a society is able to care for babies in the birthing process and the days following. All of
these factors comprise data as to whether a country provides for its citizen’s physical needs
adequately. In accordance with variables that measure physical well-being, I will be examining
literacy rates and the average time spent in school for citizens of each country (accounts for
citizens age 15 and over). This shows a correlation between education and physical health. That
being said, if a country provides for its people’s physical being, then education levels in that
society will be higher.
Results
The first variable I examined was the total dependency ratio. Nigeria’s total dependency
ratio was 89% in comparison to Brazil’s 46.2% (CIA Factbook). A high dependency ratio means
that there is an increased burden on the adult working class and the economy ultimately suffers.
This also suggests that there are far fewer working class members in Nigeria than there are in
Brazil. Next, I looked at the how much of each country’s gross domestic product was spent on
health expenditures. On average, developed nations spend around 10% or more of their GDP on
health related expenses. Puny in comparison is Nigeria who spends 5.3% of their GDP and
Brazil spends 8.9% (CIA Factbook). Countries that don’t spend much on health care related
items cannot adequately support the physical needs of its citizens . After, I examined the
physician density and hospital bed density in each country. Nigeria had .395 physicians for every
1,000 people and .5 hospital beds for every 1,000 people, where as Brazil had 1.76 physicians
for every 1,000 people and 2.3 hospital beds for every 1,000 people (CIA Factbook). This shows

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that when citizens in these societies become ill, there are not enough resources to care for them.
The last variable for physical well-being I observed was infant mortality rate. In Nigeria, there
are 73 deaths for every 1,000 births and in Brazil there are 20 for every 1,000 (CIA Factbook).
In order to relate education to physical health, I examined both literacy rates and the
average years that citizen’s in each country attend school (primary to tertiary). Literacy rates in
Nigeria are extremely dismal to Brazil and the rest of the world. In Nigeria, 61.3% of the
population is literate whereas in Brazil 90.4% of the people are literate. Besides literacy, citizens
spent more time in school in Brazil than in Nigeria. On average, citizens of Brazil spend 14 years
in school, while on the other hand, citizens of Nigeria spend around 9 years in school (CIA
Factbook).
Discussion
Before examining data about each country, I believed that countries that better provide
for their citizens physical well-being would have higher education rates. As seen above, Brazil
provides for its citizens physical needs better than Nigeria does and Brazil also has higher
education rates (literacy and years spent in school). Increasing levels in education cannot occur
unless the physical needs of citizens are met first. If people are not in good health then they will
be unable to participate in educational institutions. This is a result of being too sick to learn, or
not having the means to provide for oneself due to the lack of work. I believe that Brazil ranked
better in meeting their citizens physical needs and achieving higher education rates than Nigeria
is a result of their political system. An electoral democracy is an intermediary between weak
(Nigeria) and strong democracies. Although this form of democracy does not provide as much as

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a strong democracy, they better appeal to the needs of their citizens than a weak democracy.
There still is corruption within an electoral democracy but not nearly as much as a weak one. In
order for each country to progress, I believe that corruption within the countries needs to be
eradicated but the means of doing that is very hard and at this point unclear.
Conclusion
Altogether, both Nigeria and Brazil do not adequately provide for their citizens physical
needs but Brazil does better than Nigeria. This results from the political systems in which each
society governs themselves, and the lack of investment in institutions that provide for citizens
physical needs. While examining each country, I examined a correlation between physical well-being
and levels of education. I hypothesized that the more a county provided for physical well-being
of their citizens would result in higher levels of education. In the case of Nigeria and
Brazil, this proved to be true. As a result, I believe that to achieve higher levels of education
throughout the world, each country needs to provide for their citizens physical needs.

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References
Draper, A & Ramsay, A (2008). The Good Society. An introduction to comparative
politics . United States: Pearson.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world- factbook/geos/br.html
http://www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2013/nigeria
http://goprs.unodc.org/goprs/en/nigeria-profile.html