Women’s Political Participation and Politics of Disempowerment in Abia State of Nigeria

The paper examines women's political participation in Abia State of Nigeria with a view to determining the factors that constrain women’s equal representation in the political system. Women's political involvement in Abia State has remained increasingly low in spite of decades of struggle to ensure gender equity and women’s empowerment. This paper in addition to other known factors, situates the problem on the present trend of designating specific portfolios to women, which was intended to provide the women the opportunity of being represented in the policy making positions and processes in the polity. This in the opinion of the paper undermines, if not completely diminishes women’s drive to vie or aspire for other contestable (and even appointable) positions which would advance gender equity. In other words boxing women into one position dooms their chances. It is the view of the paper that there is need for a paradigm shift from the hitherto empowerment agenda to providing level playing ground that would enthrone gender equity. This has become necessary in view of the fact that women participation in politics has a potential of driving more and reasonable resource into community and national development. This study relied on the Chronological Analytic Approach in analysis and adopted the theory of representation as its theoretical guide. Keywords: Women, Political participation, Politics of disempowerment, Abia State

Ocean Governance and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): The Missing Links to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The oceans and seas are the source of life on earth and are therefore a crucial factor in determining global climate change, global economy and hence international relations.For these reasons, ocean governance must necessarily become part and parcel of the strategies for achieving the objectives sought in the Millennium Declaration of September 2000 and the new sustainable development project.This paper highlights the essence of the Law of the Sea and hence ocean governance and the role it could have played in achieving the objectives sought in Millennium Development Goals (MDGS) in Nigeria as well as the prospects for transiting to the current Sustainable Development Agenda (SDA).The paper thus equates ocean governance by means of the evolution of the law of the sea, which has progressively developed from two major principles to attend a climax with the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea otherwise known as UNCLOS III. The main thrust of the paper is that the opportunities provided by the law of the sea and hence ocean governance have provided impetus that can serve Nigeria as some of the most effective strategies for achieving SDGs having missed maximization in respect to the MDGs