JSPES, Vol. 31, No. 3 (Fall 2006 )
pp. 279 - 293

ON AFRICA: 3
National Integration and the Survival of Nigeria in the 21st Century

Adebola Babatunde Ekanola

University of Ibadan. Nigeria

Nigeria is bedeviled by myriad problems which, despite its oil riches, inhibit its development and even threaten its continued existence as a sovereign state. The author examines Nigeria's socio-political and economic circumstances and concludes that many of its problems stem from its origin as an artificial colonial construct which lumped together a variety of separate peoples. Fragmentation is seen as a distinct possibility unless its citizens can be induced to accept a new sense of Nigerian identity, involving a commitment to the survival of the present state as a cohesive entity. This would necessitate a number of radical changes, not only in the political and economic structure of the country but also in the psychology of the people.