Commonwealth Integration and Nigeria’s Foreign Policy, 1999-2007

Commonwealth Integration and Nigeria’s Foreign Policy, 1999-2007.

ABSTRACT

This study examines the interface between the Commonwealth integration and Nigerian foreign policy. The thrust of the study however is to ascertain whether the enthronement of democracy in Nigeria has significantly impacted on Nigeria’s Common-wealth economic relations.

The study also investigates the extent to which the frameworks of democracy have enabled the Commonwealth impact on social welfare in Nigeria.

Relying on Dependency theory derived from the political economy paradigm which focuses on the socio-economic dynamics of metropolitan and peripheral countries the study argues that the developing countries are still tied to the apron string of their former imperial master in a more subtle manner than was the case during the period of naked and direct colonialism.

As such, the benefits of international economic relations between the two sets of countries are distributed asymmetrically in favour of the metropolitan countries.

This continued asymmetry in the distribution of benefits, the study maintains, forms a basically exploitative relationship between the dominant and dependent states. Adopting observational technique and depending on secondary sources, relevant data were generated and analyzed.

On the basis of this, the study unveiled that though the frameworks of democracy have positively improved the Commonwealth – Nigeria relations, such have neither enhanced significantly the economic relations with Nigeria nor contributed in improving social welfare of the citizenry.

Therefore, granting that the Commonwealth of Nations comprise sovereign countries that use the framework of the organization to pursue their national interest unmindful of the interest of other members, the study maintains that the developing member countries of the Commonwealth should synchronize their interests and as such foster and enhance relations among them also.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page…………..…….i
Approval Page…………..…ii
Dedication………………iii
Acknowledgements……………..iv
Table of Contents…………v
Abstract………………..….vii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction……………………….…1
1.2 Statement of Problem……….….4
1.3 Objectives of Study………….…6
1.4 Significance of Study……….……..7
1.5 Literature Review…………8
1.6 Theoretical Framework………….22
1.7 Hypotheses………….25
1.8 Method of Data Collection ………………25

CHAPTER TWO: DEMOCRATIZATION AND THE STRUCTURE OF NIGERIA COMMONWEALTH ECONOMIC RELATIONS

2.1 Commonwealth and Democratization Process in Nigeria……………………32
2.2 Nigeria-Commonwealth Relations and the Promotion of Economic Development and Trade Initiatives in Nigeria…35
2.3 Commonwealth and the Patterns of Direct Investment in Nigeria…………..45

CHAPTER THREE: SOCIAL WELFARE AND NIGERIA COMMONWEALTH RELATIONS

3.1 Commonwealth and Promotion of Education and Capacity-Building in Nigeria ..51
3.2 Commonwealth Programmes and Poverty alleviation in Nigeria…………..59
3.3 Commonwealth and the Fight against HIV/AIDS in Nigeria……………….68

CHAPTER FOUR: FRAMEWORKS OF DEMOCRATIZATION AND NIGERIA-COMMONWEALTH RELATIONS

4.1 The Millbrook Commonwealth Action Programme: Implications for Nigeria Foreign Policy………..73
4.2 The Durban Communiqué and the dawn of Nigeria-Commonwealth Relations 80
4.3 CHOGM 2003 and Nigeria-Commonwealth Precious Partnership…………..87

CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

5.1 Summary…………….95
5.2 Conclusion…..98
5.3 Recommendation………..99
Bibliography…………..101

INTRODUCTION

Historically, the Commonwealth was an evolutionary outgrowth of the British Empire. However, though the evolution of the organization started in 1867 when Canada attained dominion status, it was rather in 1931 when the statute of Westminster was passed that the organization was known as the British Commonwealth of Nations (Osuntokun, 2001: 56).

The Commonwealth of Nations is a free association of sovereign states comprising Great Britain and a number of its former dependencies who had chosen to maintain ties of friendship and practical cooperation and who acknowledged the British Monarch as the symbolic head of their association.

Thus, the ties that bind the Commonwealth are highly diverse. Blood ties provide sentimental attachments to Britain while common judicial and educational systems as well as the use of the English Language as official language provide strong ties for others.

These ties were further cemented and strengthened by trade and investment, currency agreements, population, migrations and sports.

The informal links between the countries of the Commonwealth were further consolidated when in 1965 a Commonwealth Secretariat was established in London and a lean bureaucracy was developed to assist the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth in responding to questions of peace, democracy and development, particularly in the developing member countries in Asia, Pacific, Africa and the Caribbean.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anyaoku, E (1999) “The Commonwealth and Africa,” in Raph Uwechue (ed), Africa Today (2^nd edition) London: Africa Books Ltd.

Anyaoku, E. (1999) The Missing Headlines: Selected Speeches. Nigeria: Heneiman Educational Books

Asika, N. (2006) Research Methodology in the Behavioural Sciences. Lagos: Longman.

Badejo, A.B. (1989). “Nigeria and India relations, 1960–1985: A study in South- South cooperation”. In Akinyemi, A.B. et al. (Eds.). Nigeria since Independence: The First 25 Years: International Relations. Vol. X. Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd.

Ikeagwu, E.K (1998). Groundwork of Research Methods and Procedures. Enugu: Institute of Development Studies.

Ingram, D. (1962) The Commonwealth Challenge. London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd.