Political Economy of Nigeria

This paper takes a historical foray into the prevailing conditions that form the bedrock of collective actions and organized violence against the Nigerian authority. The analysis here presented situates the problem with the Nigerian state since independence in reference to corruption and mismanagement of the country’s human and natural resources. Thus, in the quest to understand the economic predicates of Nigeria’s current security challenges, this paper provides a general description of Nigeria’s political economy and its tendency to fuel violence—including terrorism, as presently observed in the country and threatening its very existence. Presented differently, we conclude here that the historical trajectory to date of Nigeria’s political economy has fueled terrorism in its geopolitical space through its characteristic alienation and frustration of its citizens, due mainly to the general lack of accountability and systemic corruption.