Number of Pages: 94

File Size: 74 KB

File Type: MS Word & PDF

Chapters: 1 - 5

5,000.00

ABSTRACT

Nigeria’s foreign policy under General Ibrahim Babangida was one in which Nigeria played active role in the crises in West African sub-region especially Liberia and Sierra-Leone.  Nigeria’s involvement in the internal affairs of other countries got rekindled in 1988.  First was to settle the border conflict between Burkina Faso and Mali.  In this instance, Nigeria brokered a peace agreement acceptable to both sides but which was frustrated by France using Code d’ivore.

Nigeria renewed interest in global and African affairs throughout the period of General Babangida.  Nigeria’s foreign minister shuttled between Tripoli and Abidjan each time there crises in Africa who are French speaking people.  Nigeria negotiated more with former colonial powers than the country that crisis is emanating from.  Our former colonial masters still exercise much influence than the other African countries.

Today, Nigeria has responded to virtually all the calls by the United Nations, African Union, ECOWAS and other bodies for peace and conflict resolution.

Also, Nigeria has as well responded to the calls of distress by countries that are undergoing one natural disaster or the other.  Nigeria recently demonstrated such swift response by providing aids to earthquake ridden Chile and Haiti.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page                                                                                                                  i

Certification                                                                                                                        ii

Dedication                                                                                                               iii

Acknowledgement                                                                                     iv

Abstract                                                                                                                    vii

Table of Contents                                                                                                   ix

CHAPTER ONE:    INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background of Study                                                                                 1

1.2       Statement of Problem                                                                               6

1.3       Objective of Study                                                                                      7

1.4       Research Proposition/Hypothesis                                                         8

1.5       Significance of Study                                                                                9

1.6       Scope and Limitations of Study                                                 9

1.7       Research Methodology                                                                             10

References                                                                                                                11

CHAPTER TWO:

Literature Review and Theoretical Framework                                             13

References                                                                                                                25

CHAPTER THREE

3.1       Nigeria’s Foreign Policy under the Military                                       26

3.2       Nigeria’s foreign Policy 1966 – 1975                                                     33

3.3       Foreign Policy in the SecondRepublic                                       37

3.4       Nigeria in Chad                                                                                          39

3.5       Cameroon – Nigeria Border Dispute                                                    46

3.6       Nigeria’s Foreign Policy 1983 – 1985                                                    56

References                                                                                                                59

CHAPTER FOUR

Nigeria’s Foreign Policy under Gen. Ibrahim

Badamosi Babangid                                                                                               60

4.1       Chadian Crisis                                                                                            61

4.2       The Liberian Crisis                                                                         61

4.3       Sudanese Crisis                                                                                           64

4.4       Nigeria – Cameroon Crisis                                                                      65

4.5       Nigeria – France Relations                                                                      66

4.6       Nigeria and International Creditors                                                     68

4.7       Nigeria and Peace keeping Operation                                                  70

4.8       Babangida and Samuel Doe                                                                    75

4.9       Nigeria’s Relations with North and South                                          76

4.10    Nigeria and the Rest of Africa                                                                77

4.11    Nigeria and the Major Powers                                                                78

4.12    Nigeria and International Organisations                                            79

References                                                                                                                82

CHAPTER FIVE

Summary, Conclusion and Recommendations                                              83

5.1       Summary                                                                                                      83

5.2       Conclusion                                                                                                   84

5.3       Recommendations                                                                                     84

Bibliography                                                                                                            86

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

  • BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Africa as noted by Chaplan (1966:376), “is an important strategic arena in contemporary world politics”.  Osuntokun (1999:19) argues further “being the most populous black country in the world, Nigeria is being compelled to shoulder willingly and unwillingly the leadership of the black world.  This led to Nigeria’s feeling that she had a responsibility far beyond her borders as noted by Joe Nanven Garba…”  In all our dealings with international organisations we are guided not by selfish national interests, but a high sense of responsibility and concern for countries (particularly in Africa) whose needs in some respect are greater than ours”.

Ambassador Jolaoso stated further that Africa has always been the centre-piece of Nigeria’s foreign policy, with West Africa being the most crucial sector of this piece.  He further stated that since foreign policy, represents the initiatives or responses by a country to issues which directly affect the interest of the country to that extent, it is related to the domestic as well as the international system.

Aghahowa (2007:59) posits that “the nature of man compels interaction and mutual dependence.  According to him, man cannot survive in isolation, therefore, the associational tendencies of man manifest locally, nationally and globally.

Nigeria’s understanding of her leadership position in Africa compelled Prime Minister Tafawa Balewa to declare while answering questions on Africa’s involvement in the cold war:

“We shall make every effort to bring them together so that having been made aware of the danger we may find a way to unite our efforts and prevent Africa from becoming an area of crises and world tension”.

Nigeria in the African continent belongs to the global world of interdependence.  Its relations externally can best be illustrated thus:

“If you drive a ford Escort, chances are that your transmission was made in Japan, your wiring in Taiwan, your door lift assembly in Brazil, your steering gears in Britain, and assorted other parts elsewhere?.

A states foreign policy is not operated in a vacuum.

How far has Nigeria been able to carry out this rather uneasy responsibility and what have been the obstacles to Nigeria’s proclaimed position as “the giant of Africa?”

It is the position of this research paper, therefore, to examine Nigeria’s foreign policy over the years and General Ibrahim Babangida’s era vis-à-vis development in the International system.

According to Mr. Kunle Adeyemi of the Ministry of External Affairs, Nigeria as a result of her size, status and economic potential has a number of corresponding responsibilities she cannot shy away from.  This responsibility is more significant considering that one of every five African is a Nigerian while one of every six black persons is a Nigerian.  This in fact is the basis of Nigeria’s historical responsibility to Africa and the black diaspora.

The foreign policy of Nigeria as a merchant state was to consolidate traditional external market for Nigeria’s cash crops, establishing favourable conditions for attracting foreign participation in the economy and then of course, adopting an international image required to attract and sustain the good will of foreign friends and donors.

According to Vital (1968:100) “while foreign policy traditionally speak of a well planned action as that most foreign policy behaviour of states shift from the general to certain specifics, because of the exigencies of time”.  He further stated that, the realities of states behaviour decisions and policies being formulated in a disjointed fashion, largely in response to immediate pressures and event in a number of separate structures and issue areas.  The resume here is that, while long term planning characterizes foreign policy of developed nations, majority of the developing countries like Nigeria deal with issues as they arise/approach.

While presenting a paper on Nigeria’s foreign policy at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NPSS) Kuru, Jos, Dr. A. Gana asserts that imperialism is the major obstacle to the realisation of Nigeria’s foreign policy practice negates her foreign policy principles because of her flirtation with imperialism and that, despite Nigeria’s non-aligned foreign policy posture, she is closely aligned to the West.

The many facets of Nigeria’s foreign policy to a given extent is influenced by the nature of its population.  In the old era, nation’s power was calculated by its population.  This was so because it determined the strength of nations particularly its influence on the number of mobilisable people for wars.  Nigeria’s large population of more than 140 million people is attractive to the foreign merchant class.  A commitment to non-alignment inspite of a pronounced pro-western streak as well as strong Afro-centrism and was not merely on orientation, it was also seen especially from the 1970’s as a national call for leadership of the Africa continent.

To some extent, this was backed up by certain notable foreign policy achievement in the areas of liberation of Africa from the shackles of colonialism, the anti apartheid struggle, the formation of the Organisation of African Unity, now African  Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and of course, Nigeria’s leadership role in various areas of international economic relations as they affect the African continent.  One significant area where Nigeria displayed decisive involvement in the fratricidal war in Liberia is the initiative of Babangida that informed the ECOMOG operation in Liberia.  This was of course a reflection of many interests and values.  Again, General Babangida came up with Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in 1986

  • STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

It is evident that there is a general dissatisfaction with the conduct of Nigeria’s foreign policy.  However, in the conduct of Nigeria’s foreign policy, there is an over emphasis on subjective factors.  In this light, Nigeria’s foreign policy under General Babangida became problematic because of the level of Nigeria involvement in Regional issues.  Many people viewed the ECOMOG operation as an undue disobedience of the international law of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries by the mediation committee members of ECOWAS and Nigeria in particular.  This Babangida initiative has been criticised by many Nigerians because of the scale of involvement, particularly in a period of economic crisis, and more so when “Economic Diplomacy” became the major stand of foreign policy.

1.3       OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

This research work is mainly seeking to do the following:

  1. Examine the background of Nigeria foreign policy of the post independence era.
  2. Analysing the foreign policy of Babangida’s regime and the factors responsible for its style and orientation.
  3. Identify the political and economic implications of Babangida’s foreign policy for the country.
  4. Examine the relationship between dictatorship and foreign policy orientation.
  5. Suggest lasting solutions for purposeful and result oriented foreign policy formulation and implementation.

1.4       REEARCH PROPOSITIONS/HYPOTHESIS

for the purpose of this study, the following propositions are generated:

  1. That the nation’s external image was an attempt at asserting Nigeria’s presence and importance in the sub-region.
  2. That 5 members ECOWAS standing mediation committees was sponsored by General Babangida through the Banjul Summit to deal with the Liberian crisis.
  3. That Nigeria’s extra-continental interference and interventions became an urgent necessity, and indeed a responsibility.

1.5       SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDY

The major significance of this study is that it will examine and highlight the reasons behind the foreign policy of General Babangida.  It will also suggest some ideas on how political leaders can manage crisis to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.  The research also hopes to contribute to the academic literature on Nigeria’s foreign policy through a coverage of a turbulent period in Nigeria recent history.

1.6       SCOPE AND DELIMITATIONS OF STUDY

While acknowledging the myriad of problems posed by the spectacle of the foreign policy of Nigeria towards other countries, this research limits itself to the issue of the Nigeria’s foreign policy.

Thus, for a time frame, we locate our research from 1985 to 1993 in order to achieve an objective, unbiased and elaborate analysis of Nigeria’’ foreign policy under General Babangida.

1.7       RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The analysis of this study will be based on historical analysis, using secondary data.

Historical analysis is necessarily employed because we must look at the past in order to best appreciate and analyze the present and where, if necessary, predict the future analysis of secondary data will be useful in this regard.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL WORK

DISCLAIMER: All project works, files and documents posted on this website, UniProjectTopics.com are the property/copyright of their respective owners. They are for research reference/guidance purposes only and some of the works may be crowd-sourced. Please don’t submit someone’s work as your own to avoid plagiarism and its consequences. Use it as a reference/citation/guidance purpose only and not copy the work word for word (verbatim). The paper should be used as a guide or framework for your own paper. The contents of this paper should be able to help you in generating new ideas and thoughts for your own study. UniProjectTopics.com is a repository of research works where works are uploaded for research guidance. Our aim of providing this work is to help you eradicate the stress of going from one school library to another in search of research materials. This is a legal service because all tertiary institutions permit their students to read previous works, projects, books, articles, journals or papers while developing their own works. This is where the need for literature review comes in. “What a good artist understands is that nothing comes from nowhere. All creative work builds on what came before. Nothing is completely original.” - Austin Kleon. The paid subscription on UniProjectTopics.com is a means by which the website is maintained to support Open Education. If you see your work posted here by any means, and you want it to be removed/credited, please contact us with the web address link to the work. We will reply to and honour every request. Please notice it may take up to 24 – 48 hours to process your request.

WeCreativez WhatsApp Support
Administrator (Online)
I am online and ready to help you via WhatsApp chat. Let me know if you need my assistance.