Nigeria Foreign Policy and the Politics of Debt Relief

Abstract: With the return of civilian rule in 1999, Nigeria embarked on a relentless campaign for debt relief. As at December 2004, Nigeria’s external debt stood at US$35.94 billion. The unsustainability of the external debt necessitated President Olusegun Obasanjo’s quest for making debt relief a priority, upon assumption of office in May 1999. With President Obasanjo’s concerted efforts coupled with the ministry of finance, national assembly, debt management office, the economic management team, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other stakeholders, the credible implementation of the country’s National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (NEEDS) as well as security of an IDA only status for Nigeria, the creditors and multilateral financial institutions began to positively consider Nigeria for debt relief. The campaign for debt relief reached a climax in 2005, when the Great Britain, acting as chairperson of Group of Eight Industrialized Nations brought to fore the African debt issues. At their meeting on Wednesday, June 20, 2005 the Paris Club Creditors announced its decision to grant debt relief to Nigeria. By 2006, this determination of President Obasanjo to obtain debt relief came into manifestation, when Nigeria was granted debt relief by the Paris Club creditors under the “Naples” term. That is 60$31bn, Nigeria then paid arrears which was about $6bn and then bought-back the remaining debt stock of about$7bn. Nigeria had virtually exited the debt owed the London Club Creditor countries on Thursday, 4th of April 2007, after it paid $82m in oil warrants (Faloseyi, 2007). While the Debt management office estimated Nigeria’s remaining external debt at about$3.035bn made up of $2.65bn multilateral agencies debt,$326m owed bilateral agencies and $101m of other commercial debt This paper attempt to analyse Nigeria’s foreign policy and the politics of External Debt Relief and its implication on national development.Key words:Debt Relief; Foreign Policy; Politics; National Development; Nigeria. Résumé: Avec le retour du régime civil en 1999, le Nigeria a lancé une campagne acharnée pour l’allégement de la dette. Au Décembre 2004, la dette extérieure du Nigeria s'est élevée à 35.94 milliards de US dollars. La non-durabilité de la dette extérieure a exigé le président Olusegun Obasanjo de faire l’allégement de la dette une priorité du pays, lors de sa prise de fonctions en mai 1999. Grâce aux efforts concertés du Président Obasanjo, couplé avec le Ministère des finances, l’Assemblée nationale, le Bureau de gestion de la dette, l'équipe de gestion économique, les organisations non-gouvernementales (ONG) et d'autres intervenants, la mise en œuvre crédible de la Stratégie de renforcement de l’économie nationale et de développement (SRED) ainsi que la sécurité d'un statut AID seulement pour le Nigeria, les créanciers et les institutions financières multilatérales ont commencé à envisager positivement l’allégement de la dette du Nigeria. La campagne pour l'allégement de la dette a atteint un point culminant en 2005, lorsque la Grande-Bretagne, en présidence du Groupe des huit nations industrialisées a mis l’accent sur la question de dette des pays africains. Lors de leur réunion le mercredi 20 Juin 2005, le Club de Paris a annoncé sa décision d'accorder un allégement de la dette au Nigeria. En 2006, la décision du président Obasanjo d’obtenir un allégement de la dette est en marche, lorsque les créanciers du Club de Paris a accordé au Nigeria un allégement de la dette dans le cadre des "Termes de Naples". C'est une annulation de 60% de la dette, ce qui a fait que la dette finale vis-à-vis du Club de Paris était d’environ 31 milliards de dollars. Puis le Nigeria a payé des arriérés qui était d'environ 6 milliards de dollars, et racheté le stock de la dette restante d'environ 7 milliards de dollars. Le Nigéria a pratiquement sorti de la dette des pays créanciers du Club de Londres le jeudi 4 avril 2007, après avoir payé 82 millions de dollars en bons de pétrole (Faloseyi, 2007). Bien que le bureau de gestion de la dette a estimé la dette extérieure restante du Nigeria est d’environ 3.035 milliards de dollars, composée de 2.65 milliards de dollars de la dette des organismes multilatéraux, 326 millions de dollars envers les organismes bilatéraux et 101 millions de dollar d’autres dettes commerciales. Cet article tente d’analyser la politique étrangère et la politique de l’allégement de dette extérieure du Nigeria et ses implications sur le développement national. Mots clés: Allégement de la dette; Politique étrangère; Politiques; Développement national; Nigeri

Historical Context of Counterterrorism Measures in Nigeria: The Need for Restorative Justice

Many approaches have been adopted to address the problem of terrorism in Nigeria, but none seems to be very effective in totally eradicating terrorism and its despicable effects on the safety and well-being of the people. To prevent the prevailing cycle of retribution and violence, the author makes a case for the employment of restorative justice principles and practice in responding to terrorism. Restorative justice is a contextualized and negotiated justice system that seeks to restore a sense of harmony and well-being among all those affected by the harmful act. All the primary stakeholders to the conflict, namely the victims, offenders, the affected community and relevant governmental agencies must actively participate in the definition of the harm, and the search for a resolution acceptable to all concerned. This article examines the military, criminal justice and conciliatory counterterrorism models employed by various government administrations in Nigeria starting from the 1980’s until the present time. It theoretically analyzes restorative justice and Amalatocracy, as alternative measures to countering terrorism in Nigeria. Relying on secondary data from open-source historical documents, existing literature, various government sites and other databases, it concludes that a combination of synchronized policies that suits the national circumstances of Nigeria could be effective. The findings emphasize the need for government leaders, policy makers, and researchers, to support the adoption of the tenets of restorative justice in countering terrorism. Keywords: Terrorism, Restorative Justice, Amalatocracy, Counterterrorism, Re-integrative Shaming, Repressive Measures, Retribution, Nigeria DOI: 10.7176/PPAR/11-4-08 Publication date:May 31st 2021

Critical Analysis of Nigeria’s Terrorism Prevention Acts of 2011 and 2013 (Amendment) and Implications on Human Rights

Terrorism is defined as acts of violence or threatened use of violence against a target population in an attempt to achieve political, religious or socio-economic objectives. Nigeria is presently experiencing what is considered its worst security situation since the 1967–1970 civil war due to the surge in terrorists’ activities. As a result, the Nigerian government has strategically developed measures including the Terrorism Prevention Act of 2011 and its Amendment Act of 2013 to end the scourge of terrorism. This study examines the legal frameworks for the prevention of terrorism in Nigeria vis-a-vis the principles of fundamental human rights outlined in the Nigerian Constitution and the International Human Rights Laws. It significantly highlighted the lack of balance between the provisions of security and protection of human rights as evidenced in the Acts. Some irreconcilable approaches border on charges punishable by death sentences, life imprisonment, search and arrest without court warrants, detention of terrorism suspects, deprivation of citizenship, interception of communications, proscription of organizations, and excessive powers accorded to government agencies. Some provisions of the Acts are found to be incompatible with Nigeria's constitutional provisions on human rights and international human rights obligations. Among others, this study recommends the need to address excessive punishments, undue powers of government agencies, and the lack of clarity in the definition of terrorism in both the Principal and the Amendment Acts and strive to balance the protection of human rights and the provision of security in Nigeria. Keywords: Terrorism, Human Rights, Terrorism Prevention Acts, Nigeria Constitution, International Human Rights Law DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/109-04 Publication date:May 31st 2021

Antimicrobial effects of components of the bark extract of neem (Azadirachta indica A. J uss)

Preliminary phytochemical analysis showed that the leaves and bark of A. indica possess saponins, tannins and phenolic compounds. The antimicrobial spectrum of the aqueous, methanol and acetone extracts of leaves and bark of the plant was determined by agar diffusion method. The methanol and acetone extracts of the bark at 1 Omg/ml concentration showed significant antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans and Trichophyton mentagrophytes. The minimtim inhibitory concentration (MIC) values ofthe methanol extract of the bark (0.3-0.4 mg/ml) were same or lower than those of ampicillin, erythromycin and griseofulvin (0.2-0.5 mg/ml). The minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values (0.3-0.9 mg/ml) and the minimum fungicidal concentration 'values (MFC) (0.3-2.0 mg/ml) of the methanol extract were comparable to those of ampicillin, erythromycin (0.2-0.6 mg/ml) and griseofulvin(0.8-l.O mg/ml). Isolation of antimicrobial substances from the methanol extract of the bark was studied by thin layer chromatography (TLC) developed by using benzene and methanol mixture (4:6). Two fractions (A, B) were obtained. Fraction A (the upper band in TLC plate) showed significant activity (diameter of zone 4.0-5.0 mm at 2.0 mg/ml concentration) against C. albicans and T mentagrophytes when compared to crude extract (diameter of zone 3.0-5.0 mm at I 0 mg/ml concentration). So it may be concluded that there is a scientific basis for traditional use of extracts of bark and leaves of A. indica in skin infection and the active principles in the extracts may be purified by using TLC method

PERSONALITY TRAITS AS DETERMINANTS OF STRESS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN ANAMBRA STATE

The purpose of this study is to find out whether personality traits such as achievement drive, high competitive tendency, high level of anxiety and self concept are determinants of occupational stress. The study was guided by four hypotheses. The population of the study covered all the 6,036 teachers in 265 public secondary schools in the state. The sample consisted of 1,000 teachers made up of 450 males and 550 females; drawn through multi-stage sampling technique. The instrument for the study was a structured questionnaire tagged ‘Personality Traits and Stress’ (PTS) which was duly validated. Mean and t–test were used for data analysis. The findings of the study revealed that teachers with high achievement drive exhibited a significantly higher level of stress than those with low achievement drive; teachers with high competitive tendency exhibited a significantly higher level of stress than those with low competitive tendency; teachers with high level of anxiety exhibit a significantly higher level of stress than those with low level of anxiety; teachers with a low self– concept exhibit a significantly higher level of stress than teachers with high self–concept. Based on the findings it was recommended among others that teachers should be exposed to stress management techniques through seminars and workshops

PERSONALITY TRAITS AS DETERMINANTS OF STRESS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN ANAMBRA STATE

The purpose of this study is to find out whether personality traits such as achievement drive, high competitive tendency, high level of anxiety and self concept are determinants of occupational stress. The study was guided by four hypotheses. The population of the study covered all the 6,036 teachers in 265 public secondary schools in the state. The sample consisted of 1,000 teachers made up of 450 males and 550 females; drawn through multi-stage sampling technique. The instrument for the study was a structured questionnaire tagged ‘Personality Traits and Stress’ (PTS) which was duly validated. Mean and t–test were used for data analysis. The findings of the study revealed that teachers with high achievement drive exhibited a significantly higher level of stress than those with low achievement drive; teachers with high competitive tendency exhibited a significantly higher level of stress than those with low competitive tendency; teachers with high level of anxiety exhibit a significantly higher level of stress than those with low level of anxiety; teachers with a low self– concept exhibit a significantly higher level of stress than teachers with high self–concept. Based on the findings it was recommended among others that teachers should be exposed to stress management techniques through seminars and workshops

Selection and Acquisition of Electronic Resources in University Libraries in Southeast Nigeria: Challenges

This study surveyed the challenges faced by the university libraries in South East Nigeria in selecting and acquiring electronic resources. The descriptive survey research method was adopted for the study. The population consisted of 86. Questionnaire and interview were used for data collection. Data collected from the questionnaire were analyzed using simple statistics (mean). The findings revealed that the university libraries under study had considered all the thirteen criteria when selecting electronic resources in the library which had mean values ranging from 2.70 to 3.41 and are all above the cut-off point of 2.50 on a 4-point rating scale. The findings also showed that the university libraries use multiple tools to select the e-resources, and the overall mean showed that the use of trial offers by mounting a link to their resources without cost (mean = 3.12) is ranked highest and used mostly by the libraries, while the use of reviews provided through electronic resources (mean =2 .57) is ranked lowest as tools used in sound electronic resources selection in libraries; that the libraries use different methods to acquire the e-resources which include, through subscription, purchase and open internet source. None of the libraries under study was into a consortium with one another. However, the study revealed twelve challenges with cost as a major challenge of selection and acquisition of electronic resources. The study recommended that the university libraries in South East Nigeria should improve on the libraries budget in order to attain to the cost of electronic resources and for the training of staff that will handle the electronic collection development. That the libraries should take a drastic initiative of acquiring electronic resources through a consortium in order to enjoy the discount associated with consortium subscription

Economic Integration in the ECOWAS: Implications for Financial Intermediation in Nigeria

The study employed the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach to co-integration to estimate a set of four models with a view to examining the impact of ECOWAS integration on financial intermediation in Nigeria, which was differentiated by type of financial development indicators (FD) used as dependent variable in the different models. The dependent variables were the proxies for financial intermediation in Nigeria, namely; ratio of credit to private sector provided by commercial banks to national GDP (CPS_GDP); ratio of broad money supply (M2) to GDP (M2_GDP); and ratio of commercial bank’s assets to the combination of commercial banks’ and central bank’s assets (COMB_ASSETS). A composite measure of the three financial intermediation indicator was also used in the fourth model. The study data ranged from 1960 to 2018, and comprised Nigerian and ECOWAS macroeconomic variables obtained from different sources.  ADF test was conducted to test for unit root and the result showed that the variables have a unit root. Across the four models, the results of the study showed that ECOWAS regional economic integration does not significantly influence the degree of financial intermediation in Nigeria, and may not be promoting development of the Nigerian financial sector. On the contrary, domestic macroeconomic developments are, however, more supportive of financial intermediation in Nigeria, and suggest the need to improve monetary conditions and credit access and availability. It has become imperative, therefore, to carry out a cost-benefit and impact analyses of the region’s integration to help reposition the country for its benefits. Keywords: economic integration, financial intermediation, autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL), co-integration, ECOWAS, Nigeria JEL Classification: E44, F36, G2, G32, G21. DOI: 10.7176/JESD/11-4-06 Publication date: February 29th 2020

Gender Discrepancy in Attitude towards the Use of the Internet for Learning among Secondary School Students in Selected Schools in Lagos State, Nigeria

This study investigated the gender differences in attitude towards the Internet usage among students in three secondary schools located in federal tertiary institutions in Yaba Local Government Area in Nigeria. The descriptive survey research method was adopted for the study. A sample of 450 students was randomly selected from the three secondary schools. One intact arm was selected from senior secondary one (SS1) to senior secondary three (SS3) in each of the three secondary schools. Of the 450 copies of questionnaire distributed, 355 usable copies of the questionnaire were returned giving an 78% response rate. The data collected were analyzed with frequency tables, graph, percentages and T-test analysis. The study established that the students had positive attitude towards Internet use and there was no significant difference in male and female attitude towards the use of Internet for learning. It was therefore recommended that the management boards and the parents-teachers’ associations in the schools studied should encourage the students to use the Internet for learning by connecting the schools and the school libraries to the Internet. Keywords: Internet, E-book utilization, secondary schools, gender discrepancy, Lagos Stat

Oxacillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus from Diverse Sources in Nnewi Nigeria: Susceptibility to Vancomycin, Linezolid, Teicoplanin and Medicinal Plant extracts

Background:  Methicillin (Oxacillin)-resistant S. aureus (MRSA or ORSA) remains a major public health concern. This concern has raised the need to continually monitor the susceptibility profile of local MRSA isolates to standard anti-MRSA therapeutic agents. Objective: To isolate MRSA from diverse sources in our locality and to determine their susceptibility to Vancomycin, Linezolid, Teicoplanin, and to extracts of Parkia biglobosa and Vanda roxburgii – medicinal plants commonly used in the treatment of wound sepsis in our locality.  Method: A total of 34 raw meat samples were randomly collected from butchers in Nnewi main market. Other samples collected included: water samples from the market supplies, nasal swabs from 15 butchers, nasal and oral swabs from 8 pet dogs, and surface swab from ten local currency notes. The samples were screened for ORSA. Inhibitory concentrations of Oxacillin to isolates were compared with those of other anti-MRSA agents and to medicinal plants extracts. Results: Results showed that 27 (79%) of meat samples yielded ORSA. The recovery rates of ORSA from other samples were as follows: pet dogs 7(88%), butchers 4 (27%), local currency notes 4(40%), and water supplies 1(50%). Thirteen (34%) of ORSA were of a classic phenotype (MIC ≥ 16 µg/ml). Linezolid MIC ranged from 0.015 – 4µg/ml, while Vancomycin ranged from 0.06 – 4µg/ml. All isolates (100%) were susceptible to teicoplanin. The MIC of the medicinal plant extracts ranged from 0.098 – 6.25mg/ml. Conclusion: Results suggests that plants could be a valuable source of anti-MRSA drugs and that, pet animals, currency notes, and raw meat, could expose to risk of acquiring ORSA