An updated edition of this book is now available. Nigeria is the African country of greatest strategic importance to the United States. And it is in danger of failing as a state. John Campbell, former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, in Nigeria: Dancing on the Brink, analyzes the hollowing out of Nigerian governance, the insurrection in the oil patch, and religious and ethnic conflict in the North. Looking forward to the elections in 2011, he suggests policy options for the United States to help Nigeria escape state failure.
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"Nigeria, the United States' most important strategic partner in West Africa, is in trouble. While Nigerians often claim they are masters of dancing on the brink without falling off, the recent vacuum in government authority, the upcoming 2011 elections,and escalating violence in the Delta and the North may finally provide the impetus that pushes it into the abyss of state failure." "John Campbell explores Nigeria's post-colonial history and presents a nuanced explanation of the events and conditions that have carried this complex, dynamic, and very troubled giant to the edge. Central to his analysis are the oil wealth, endemic corruption, and elite competition that have undermined Nigeria's nascent democratic institutions and alienated an increasingly impoverished population. State failure would damage the interests of the United States, but it is not inevitable. Campbell suggests concrete policy options that would allow the United States to help Nigeria avoid state failure and promote political, social, and economic development."--BOOK JACKET.
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