CHAPTER ONE

 

INTRODUCTION

 

1.1  Background of the study

The logical pursuit of a set of national goals is what foreign policy is all about. The word “pursuit” connotes actions, steps, and roles that will define a state’s attitude or behavior in the external world. Foreign policy may be compared to a wedding ring, with which a nation’s domestic setting solemnizes its marriage with the rest of the world. The goals and objectives of nations underpin such political “marriage,” thus foreign policy is a means to an end for governments. Academics have defined foreign policy as a pattern of behavior that a state adopts in its interactions with other nations, a notion that other scholars interpret as the state’s strategy and tactics in dealing with other states in the international system. As a result, foreign policy is a state’s strategy or program of activities that defines the sum of the state’s goals in the international system. To put it another way, they are a state’s acts toward the outside world and the circumstances, typically domestic, in which such actions are formed. This seems to accord with Henry Kissinger’s oft-quoted assertion that the domestic structure is assumed in foreign policy analysis because foreign policy starts where domestic politics stops. Simply said, foreign policy refers to a country’s stance toward the rest of the world. The ultimate aim is to enhance the country’s advantage. To this aim, a developing country’s foreign policy should be oriented toward national economic growth in order to gain more clout in international affairs.

Because the idea of globalization lacks a widely recognized definition, there are many definitions of globalization, roughly equal to the number of writers on the topic. One of the definitions given is by Fawole (2003), who defines globalization as “the process of change toward increasing international economic integration via commerce, financial flows, technology exchange, information, and people mobility.” This concept encapsulated the dynamic that lies at the heart of globalization. Globalization is a dynamic process. It’s a tidal wave of interconnection that’s just getting bigger. The globe is shrinking as globalization expands. Liberalization of trade, finance, and investment, as well as increasing global inter-connectivity as a result of technology advances, have altered the game and pace of foreign policy across the globe, threatening and undermining state sovereignty and territorial integrity. “The globe has been described as a ‘global village’ as a result of this integration, which has been accelerated by extraordinary advances in information and communications technology” (Lawal and Daiyabu, 2015). Since the late 1980s, Nigeria has been experiencing the effects of globalization. However, the country’s political economy was structured along the liberal capitalist line by the country’s former colonial ruler, Britain (Lawal and Daiyabu. 2015). The realities of today’s ever-widening wave of globalization are manifesting not only in the country’s economic design, but in all national concerns, including Nigeria’s “range of actions, as well as a set of principles influencing these actions, taken with reference to external situations and factors” (Frankel, 1978); i.e., Nigeria’s “range of actions, as well as a set of principles influencing these actions, taken with reference to external situations and factors

 

1.2  Statement of research problem

The new globalization process, aided by information and communication technology, had put in motion new development dynamics. To face the difficulties of globalization, the government should realize that in order to attain competitiveness and guarantee effective resource allocation, the Nigerian economy’s growth and development must be based on the global economy. The challenges facing the nation’s economic managers, however, are to put the economy on a path of competitiveness and strengthen it so that it can participate effectively and compete favorably within the global system, update the nation’s infrastructure, improve access to telecommunications, and stabilize power supply, and corruption and inefficient monopolies must quickly give way, through privatization and liberalization. In order to develop a pool of competent people who will use the country’s rich resources and restore it to the road of success, social investment in education and health must be increased. Nigeria’s foreign policy has been marked by a re-definition of some of the concepts that guide the country’s international behavior. One potential explanation is that public criticisms have been made that the effect of Nigeria’s foreign policy efforts has not been felt by ordinary Nigerians. Nigerian foreign policy aid to other nations has not always been well received, and has been marred by antagonism and mistreatment of innocent Nigerians across the globe. Another motive may be to safeguard Nigeria’s interests in international politics. Whatever the case may be, the government has revisited the principles of reciprocity in Nigeria’s foreign policy, adopted a new attitude toward official development assistance, introduced a new criterion for possession of Nigeria’s international passport, and reviewed the terms of production sharing contracts.

 

1.3  Objectives of the study

The primary objective  of this study is to examine the influence of  globalization on Nigeria’s foreign policy: Specifically:

1.        To find out what globalization is all about

2.        To find out the impact of Globalization on Nigeria’s foreign policy.

3.        To investigate the role played by globalization in Nigeria foreign policy formulation.

4.        To investigate globalisation and its challenge to Nigerian Foreign Policy

 

1.4  Research questions

1.        What do you think globalization is all about?

2.        What impact has globalization made  to Nigeria foreign policy?

3.        Do you think globalization has played a role  in Nigeria’s foreign policy formulation?

4.        What is challenge of globalisation to Nigerian Foreign Policy?

 

1.5  Significance of the study

The significance of this study cannot be underestimated as:

l  This study will examine  the influence of globalization on Nigeria foreign policy

l  The findings of this research work will undoubtedly provide the much needed information to government organizations, ministry of foreign affairs and academia.

 

1.6  Scope of the study

This study will examine the influence of globalization on Nigeria foreign policy, hence it seeks to understand the relationship between  globalization and foreign policy and the study will be split into five chapters

 

1.7  Limitations of the study

This study was constrained by a number of factors which are as follows:

 just like any other research, ranging from unavailability of needed accurate materials on the topic under study, inability to get data.

Financial constraint , was faced by  the researcher ,in getting relevant materials  and  in printing and collation of questionnaires

Time factor: time factor pose another constraint since having to shuttle between writing of the research and also engaging in other academic work making it uneasy for the researcher

 

1.8  Operational definition of terms

Influence: the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behaviour of someone or something, or the effect itself.

Globalization:  the word used to describe the growing interdependence of the world’s economies, cultures, and populations, brought about by cross-border trade in goods and services, technology, and flows of investment, people, and information.

Foreign policy:  general objectives that guide the activities and relationships of one state in its interactions with other states. The development of foreign policy is influenced by domestic considerations, the policies or behaviour of other states, or plans to advance specific geopolitical designs.