Ethnic/ Religious Insurgencies and Nation-Building In Nigeria

Abstract

Over the last decade, the activities of ethnic/religious insurgent groups have permeated the Nigerian nation, bringing into question the essence of survival of the Nigeria project. This ranges from the activities of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, the indigene/settler crisis in many states, and the Boko Haram saga in the North-East region. Several factors ranging from economic, political and cultural marginalization, widening social inequalities, lack of basic infrastructure and exclusion have been cited as reasons for these insurgencies in order to attract attention from the national government and the international world. It is the contention in this paper that employing tactics of violence and killings against innocent individuals, communities and armed conflict within the state creates long-term devastating consequences than the short–term goal of attracting attention to whatever genuine demands any group may hold. The paper further argues that insurgency results from leadership failure, lack of accountability, political exclusion and marginalization which create conditions where the most vulnerable, particularly women and children, are more at the risk of hunger, malnutrition, susceptibility to illnesses and death. Furthermore, countries in conflict suffer disruptions in livelihoods, infrastructure, schools, markets, assets, nutrition, health and loss of resources required for food production and distribution, including national development. The end result is that instead of the country advancing in building sustainable development, the perpetration of conflict and violence causes the country to suffer long-lasting losses, including losses to food production and societal advancement. The paper concludes with the recommendation that employing constructive non-violent dialogue and demanding accountability from leadership in all spheres of life and authority will go a long way in addressing socioeconomic challenges faced in the country. It will also galvanize our collective drive, energies and resources in generating more secure livelihoods for the population currently mired in poverty, hunger and insecurity.

Keywords: Insurgency, Nation-building, livelihoods, development, governance.