Brandt, Berg and Militarisation in Nigeria

SUMMARY Nigeria's increasing militarisation is partly a consequence of the government's programme for economic recovery. This programme, influenced by the World Bank model of structural adjustment, aims at ensuring the conditions for long?run capitalist development, by actively seeking the participation of foreign capital. To earn the confidence of foreign capital and control the social consequences of an austerity package an authoritarian government is required. SOMMAIRE Brandt, Berg et la militarisation au Nigéria La militarisation croissante du Nigéria est grandement due au programme gouvernemental pour le redressement économique. Ce programme, influencé par le modèle de la Banque Mondiale d'adjustement structurel, a pour but d'assurer les conditions de développement capitaliste à long terme, en recherchant activement la participation du capital étranger. Afin d'avoir la confiance du capital étranger et de contrôler les conséquences sociales d'un programme d'austérité, un gouvernement authoritaire est obligatoire. RESUMEN Brandt, Berg y la militarización en Nigeria La creciente militarización de Nigeria se debe, en parte, al programa de recuperación económica del gobierno. Este programa — influenciado por el modelo de ajuste estructural del Banco Mundial — tiene como objectivo asegurar condiciones de desarrollo capitalista de largo plazo, mediante una búsqueda activa de la participación del capital extranjero. Se requiere un gobierno autoritario para obtener la confianza del capital extranjero y el control de las consecuencias sociales de un plan de austeridad

International Political Economy and African Economic Development: A Survey of Issues and Research Agenda 1†

The challenges of African Economic development feature prominently on the agenda of the international political economy (IPE). Adopting a political economy prism, this paper examines the literature and traces the policies and debates about Africa in three key areas: macroeconomic policy, financing for development and international trade. The review shows a continuing African subservience within the IPE even as the importance of 'ownership' is becoming increasingly recognised. Ownership is subverted by the dominance in Africa's internal policy debate of its external partners and also by the likelihood that overall development financing will continue to be heavily dependent on the national security interests of Africa's major external partners. The macroeconomic and trade policy frameworks within which Africa functions reflect its existential condition of subservience in the IPE. The prevailing orthodoxy has proved to be remarkably persistent over the last 25 years, so much as to have become internalised by African leadership even as it continues to propagate the ownership myth. The paper suggests a research agenda around four issues: the links between institutional dynamics and economic policy; the challenges of building a new comparative advantage; the modalities for effectively managing a windfall in the form of aid, and the importance of harnessing non-aid resources. Copyright The author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Centre for the Study of African Economies. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected], Oxford University Press.