GLOBALISATION AND THE NIGERIAN STATE

Abstract

Globalisation is a multi-dimensional phenomenon with diverse consequences. The nature of the consequences has, however, remained contentious. There are contending perspectives on the effects of globalisation on modern states, particularly developing countries. In-depth studies that examined the cogency of these perspectives in relation to the Nigerian State are sparse. This study examined the manifestation of globalisation in Nigeria between 1985 and 2007 and its effects on the State and implications for democratic consolidation. The study was anchored on transformationalists’ theoretical strand and adopted a qualitative research design. It reviewed documents such as textbooks, journals, newspaper articles and Internet resources regarding globalisation and the Nigerian State. Other sources included official documents such as past and present Constitutions of Nigeria, policy statements by Presidents and Heads of States, Legislative Acts and Reports of the Political Bureau. Three components of globalisation, namely, global spread of ideas and norms, multiple sites of governance and the infrastructure of global technologies, were examined to ascertain their effects on the functions, power and State-Society relations in the Nigerian State. The data were content analysed. The infrastructure of new forms of technologies, adaptation of domestic policies to global developments and increasing involvement of non-state actors in the political process are manifestations of contemporary globalisation in Nigeria. The effects on the Nigerian State included stimulation of domestic policies as evident in the integration of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) into Nigeria’s development strategies, dispersal of governance and external scrutiny of domestic policies visible in the activities of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM). The ascendancy of issues of good governance intensified the anti- corruption initiatives while global spread of democratic ideas facilitated democratisation initiatives that led to restoration of civil rule in 1999. The implementation of privatisation and commercialisation policies since the 1980s transformed the role of the Nigerian State from direct provision of services to enabler and facilitator of a private sector driven economy and also spurred public-private partnership in service delivery and infrastructural development. Others included application of the internet and other Computer Mediated Communication (CMC) which engendered e-government and online transactions and reconstructed the administrative and organisational functions of government .The Internet and CMC also provided platform for social networking and political activism beyond the direct censorship of State. These trends redefined power relations between State and society in favour of the latter in Nigeria and capable of deepening democracy. Contradictions such as retrenchment of welfare policies and safety nets for the citizens generated by privatisation and commercialisation, diminishing state capacity and security challenges resulting from perversion of the Internet were identified as threat to democratic consolidation. Globalisation has engendered profound transformation of the character of the Nigerian State spawning contradictory effects on governance. Mitigating the observed contradictions and consolidating democracy in Nigeria require proper adaptation to the realities of globalisation and management of its processes.