A few major factors overlap:

Weak institutions: Rules often aren't enforced consistently.

Corruption and poor accountability: Public resources can be lost through misuse or weak oversight.

Oil dependence: Nigeria became heavily dependent on oil revenue instead of building a more diversified productive economy.

Population growth: The population has grown rapidly, putting huge pressure on jobs, housing, schools, healthcare, and infrastructure.

Infrastructure gaps: Electricity, transport, water, and other systems have not expanded fast enough to meet demand.

Economic policy problems: Inflation, currency pressures, fuel costs, and policy changes can hit ordinary people hard.

Historical and regional tensions: Nigeria inherited major political and economic challenges and has had repeated periods of military rule, conflict, and instability.

But there’s an important part people sometimes miss: Nigeria is not simply a “bad country.” It has enormous human talent, natural resources, entrepreneurs, musicians, filmmakers, farmers, engineers, and businesses. The problem is that the country's institutions and infrastructure often haven't converted those resources into broad living-standard improvements.