AN APPRAISAL OF THE IMPACT OF NIGERIA’S FOREIGN POLICY UNDER PRESIDENT OLUSEGUN OBASANJO’S ADMINISTRATION, 1999-2007

Abstract:

  On assumption of office as president, Obasanjo made diplomatic moves to redeem the battered and shattered image of the country which  was  as a  result  of  the unending  transition  to democracy, increase  in  the  abuse of  fundamental human rights and  the regular killing of innocent citizens in  the  1990s. This led to  the  imposition of international sanctions on Nigeria. However,  with the  return to  democracy  and Obasanjo’s  shuttle diplomacy,  sanctions  placed  on  Nigeria  were removed. And as part of Nigeria’s commitment to make Africa the centre-piece of the country’s foreign policy, Obasanjo continued with Nigeria’s leading role  in  the maintenance of peace and conflict resolution in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Togo, Sudan, etc. This  work is  a review  of Nigeria’s  foreign policy  during Olusegun  Obasanjo’s  second era  and  its impact on Nigerian citizens. It examined the plight of Nigerians in some countries where the country participated in peace keeping operations  during  Obasanjo  second  era.  Other issues  that  affect  Nigerian  citizens  which were  discussed  in  this work include  the  case  of  Bakassi  and  the  country’s  diplomatic  moves  for  debt  relief and  investment.  The  central  question addressed in this  research is: What were the measures taken by  the government to protect Nigerian citizens in  Liberia, Sierra Leone and Sudan where Nigeria participated in peace keeping operations; and in the Bakassi Peninsula which was ceded to Cameroon?  However, the  main  focus of  this  research is to  review and assess  the impact of  Obasanjo’s  foreign policy formulation and implementation on national life. It includes how his foreign policy affected Nigerians economically, socially and politically. The work was designed among other things to provide the historical account of Nigeria’s foreign policy under  obasanjo civilian  era.  In  order  to achieve  this, it  applied  historical  narrative  and  descriptive  method  of analysis. With the use of available evidence drawn from oral interviews (with some diplomats, political office holders, and scholars of  international relations), books, and journals; this work has made  attempt to examine the various strategies put in  place to formulate and implement Nigeria’s foreign  policy  between 1999  and  2007.  The successful campaign for debt  relief  and  the  repatriation  of  looted  funds  are  prominent  among  the  results  of  his  diplomatic  maneuvering. Nevertheless,  it  has  been  argued  in  this  work  that  despite  the  recovery  of  looted  funds,  debt  cancellation,  and  the promotion  of  Foreign  Direct  Investment;  there  was  neglect  of  the  pursuit  of  vital  national  interests  which  include protection of territorial boundary and the lives of citizens, and the improvement of the well-being of citizens. And as part of the attempt to make  contributions to  knowledge, this work has provided the historical analysis of Obasanjo’s foreign policy between 1999 and 2007