Nigeria, April 12 -- A recent conversation with an international colleague made me reflect on how my country is perceived on the world stage. She had never been to Nigeria - which meant that all her impressions, assumptions, and expectations (prejudices too) were second-hand, as shaped entirely by media from afar. After the call ended, I found myself wondering: What kind of Nigeria had she imagined?

To many, Nigeria is oil and gas - spilled. Vast platforms and scorched wellheads. Smoke on the horizon. Industry without restraint. Nigeria is forests, felled. Minerals and gold, corruption and power. A land of foreign interests feeding on local complicity. Filthy riches. "Bring the money." It's a phrase that's haunted Nigeria's resource stor...