Covenant University Journal of Politics and International Affairs

The Dynamics of Domestic Politics and China-Nigeria International Trade Relations

Princewill Okwara — 2025-06-16

This paper examined the dynamics of domestic politics and China– Nigeria international trade relations. The general objective of this paper was to offer an explanation regarding the dynamics shaping external trade relations between China and Nigeria. The paper adopted a qualitative method of collection, and data were sourced from archival and documentary sources, which included online and print scientific journal articles, and were excluded based on China-Nigeria external trade relations. The study findings revealed that there is significant evidence suggesting that politics at the international and domestic levels are interlinked and have also played a critical role in shaping the trends of trade between Nigeria and China. In conclusion, the paper revealed that politics has had an important role to play in the synthesis of the trends of trade relations between China and Nigeria. The dynamics of these interconnected political factors, therefore, offer a fuller explanation for the existing trade imbalance between both countries, growing trade notwithstanding. The paper therefore recommended that grassroots avenues of China-Nigeria interaction for trade should be created, sustained, and improved both in China and Nigeria.

Climate Litigation and Multi-level Governance Systems Dynamics in Nigeria and South Africa

Ogonna Beauty Ogbologu — 2025-06-17

As courts in Africa play an increasingly important role in resolving cases related to climate change and environmental protection, their rulings have significant impact on the power dynamics in multi-level governance systems. This paper focuses on climate litigation and explores how judicial decisions influence federal-state relations within multilevel governance systems in Nigeria and South Africa. Climate Litigation is an emerging field of environmental law which refers to legal actions taken to address issues related to climate change. The paper embraces interpretivism, and recognise that although legal frameworks possess objective realities, subjective interpretations and social contexts shape our understanding. To examine climate litigation in these African countries, the study adopts a mixed-method approach-doctrinal and socio-legal approach. Doctrinal is used to uncover legal principles and precedents, while a socio-legal approach explores the impact of judicial decisions on federal-regional dynamics and climate governance. The paper underscores the importance of judicial decisions in managing complex federal dynamics amidst global environmental changes. The research findings conclude that judicial decisions have significantly impacted federal-state relations by enforcing policy alignment with environmental protection goals. Key findings indicate that, despite the existing tensions between the national government and its regions, the judiciary plays a crucial role in shaping climate policies and reconciling national and regional interests. Nevertheless, the primary challenge confronting these judicial rulings is the lack of enforcement.

Pervasive Violence in Contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa, Impediments to Peace-Building and Socioeconomic Development

Celestina Ekene CHUKWUDI — 2025-06-18

This study explores the pervasive violence and its impact on peacebuilding and economic development. A qualitative method of data collection is adopted. Content and descriptive analysis are used to analyse the data collected. Conflict theory was chosen for the underpinnings of the study. Findings have shown that attempts to tackle these issues encounter notable obstacles such as corruption such as where Nigerian elites are alleged to be behind most violent activities for selfish interests, lack of political will, and weak institutional capacities such as the failure of the judiciary to stand firm as the hope of the people by ensuring justice and openly undermining the rule of law. Complex power dynamics, mistrust among parties, and entrenched interests benefiting from instability frequently make peacebuilding projects difficult to implement. Conclusively, the challenges that emanate from pervasive violence in Sub-Saharan Africa highlight the pressing necessity for all-encompassing approaches that give peacebuilding equal weight with socioeconomic advancement. All stakeholders should promote efforts toward grassroots, national and international peacebuilding. Rules on violence must be clear, and sanctions should be applied to defaulters. The findings of this study will provide valuable insights for policymakers in making policies that will enhance unity, peacebuilding efforts and promotion of socio-economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Poverty, Insecurity and its Implications on Democracy in Nigeria

Alexander Wancelous Avong — 2025-06-19

Nigeria’s democracy has been plagued by pervasive poverty and debilitating security challenges, which have undermined the country’s socio-economic development and stability. This study examines the intricate relationships between poverty, insecurity, and democracy in Nigeria, highlighting the ways in which poverty has fueled insecurity and compromised democratic governance. The study is based on qualitative research approach, utilizing secondary sources of data which includes journals, official reports, as well as relevant textbooks. The study utilized qualitative content method of data interpretation and analysis. Relative Deprivation Theory was adopted as a framework of analysis. The study found that the prevailing unpleasant socio-material conditions pertaining to survival, economic deprivation, structural inequities, and governance deficits in the country led to Boko Haram terrorism, Fulani herdsmen attacks, sectarian violence, political/electoral violence, ethnic, communal and religious conflicts, Niger-Delta crisis, kidnapping and armed robbery. These anomalies are hindrances to active economic activities and democratic processes. The study concludes that addressing poverty and insecurity is critical to consolidating democracy and achieving sustainable development in Nigeria. The study recommends the reduction in poverty through the provision of employment opportunities and the provision of basic infrastructure and services that are efficient, improving on synergy between security organizations, there should be greater investment in human development, increase recurrent and especially capital expenditures on internal security, workable anti-terrorism measures, build strong and legitimate institutions that can safely curb the menace of insecurity, there should be good governance by been transparent and accountable to the people, and genuine fight against corruption among others.

The Globalization of Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery: An Analysis of the Psycho-Politico-Economic Implications

Hyginus O. Ogbonna — 2025-06-20

The paper examines the globalization of human trafficking and modern slavery, with the specific objectives to; identify the psychological, political and economic implications of human trafficking and modern slavery globally. To achieve its objectives, Mixed Methods-- qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection were adopted in its methodology. In the qualitative method, the study employed content analysis of UNODC and ILO reports, along with peer-reviewed journals on migration and trafficking. Observational data were drawn from documented case studies and news reports in Africa, Europe, and the Americas. While the quantitative data entailed tabulated numeric figures on the global prevalence of human trafficking and modern slavery, adapted from document screening of Statista (2025): spanning the countries of the African region, Europe and Central Asia, and the Americas. The paper made some findings, a few of these include: the globalization of human trafficking and modern slavery are interlinked with certain psychological, political and economic implications that are deleterious at various multiple levels of the individual victims, national, and global level; besides, unbridled nature of 'global capitalism' (the dark side of globalization) was identified as the chief causal driver of the prevailing globalization of human trafficking and modern slavery; inter alia. The paper therefore recommends as follow: there should be stricter anti-human trafficking policies and sincere commitment of global leaders towards curbing the menace; National governments should commence awareness campaigns for their citizenry on strategies of the traffickers to prevent them from falling victims; inter alia.

Transformational Political Leadership and Sustainable Development in Africa: A Comparative Analysis of Rwanda and Botswana

Aaron Ayeta Mulyanyuma — 2025-06-23

This study addresses the role of various political leadership approaches to informing sustainable development in Africa using comparative case studies of Rwanda and Botswana. It uses critical comparative case studies of government types—Rwanda's technocractic centralism and Botswana's democratic consensus—to compare core development achievements such as economic growth, social well-being, and resilience of institutions. Rwanda under Paul Kagame has pursued a model of centralized, highperforming governance with high macroeconomic performance as expressed through mean GDP growth rates of 7–8% during the past decade (World Bank, 2023). This has been balanced with improvements in health, education, and gender equality. All have been at the expense of draconian constraints to political freedoms and freedom of the press (Freedom House, 2023). Meanwhile, Botswana's liberal democracy built around free elections and high anti-corruption levels has been followed by high life expectancy and literacy rates (UNDP, 2022), balanced by responsibly managing revenue from the extraction of minerals. Botswana still grapples with income inequality and economic dependence on the extractive sector (Molutsi, 2014). Utilizing qualitative comparative data and secondary data, we examine the role of various leadership patterns and governance modalities in impacting sustainable development pathways. We find that whilst leadership is fundamental, sustainable success is ultimately contingent on institutional maturity, vision-oriented policy-making, and adaptive governance. This study contributes to the existing literature in the area of African development by creating a nuanced understanding of the complex relationship between political leadership frameworks and sustainable development outcomes, with policy reform implications for the continent at large.

Geopolitical Power Struggles and Regional Sovereignty: A Historical Analysis of Russia-Ukraine Relations since 1991

Orighmisan Eyesan — 2025-06-24

The result of combining modern development with a complicated historical backdrop is the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine. The desire for war and bloodshed has never come from any nation-state or population; rather, it has come from selfish people in positions of authority who are unaware of the implications of their influence. This article throws more light on the understanding of both Russia's and Ukraine's historical backgrounds from the imperial era to the USSR to the complex history that unites and divides them. It went further to address Ukraine's turbulent post-independence history and their relationship that speaks volumes about the struggle at hand, from the 10^th - 19^th, early 20^th, soviet, post-soviet, and 21^st centuries, among other eras, with their historical disagreement and implication of the war lead to the global issue. For the benefit of clarity, however, the theory of realism in international relations is modified to explain the situation more in line with their perspective of the conflict and makes contributions on the part of Ukraine, Russia, the US, NATO, and the EU about the implications and potential for ending conflict and war. Because of the underlying tensions, which are financial and economic, and also the timing of the conflict is a major worry to the international community, it is impossible to ignore the global shift in the global economic order, lessons learned and solutions toward the war negotiation in Ukraine and Russia.

Migration, Identity, and Belonging in Nigeria: The Ife- Modakeke Example

Ayowole S. Elugbaju — 2025-06-25

The Ife and Modakeke conflict has, between the mid-19th and the early 21st centuries, witnessed a series of reoccurrences, peacemaking efforts and textual documentations. Nevertheless, more than two decades after the last outbreak of a violent conflict, the nature of the Ife and Modakeke relation has continued to oscillate between concord, contests, and in certain instances, the outbreaks of violent skirmishes associated with divergent identities with consequences on land ownership and territorial autonomy which appear to be emerging ferment for a renewal of the crisis. Therefore, this study was conducted to interrogate the place of migration, identity, and land conflict in the Ife and Modakeke relations. This study adopted a descriptive historical research method, and data were obtained from primary and secondary sources. The findings of the study revealed how the crystallisation of identities among these groups has intensified disputes over land ownership both in the Ife metropolis and farmlands, which, after the outbreak of the last conflict in 2001, has become a source of contention. Furthermore, in addition to the dispute escalating into significant tension and violence at several points over the years, it has continued to push the Ife and the Modakeke populations to the brink of another round of violent conflict. This article concludes that addressing the question of identity and land ownership requires concerted efforts from both the government and stakeholders to foster integration, promote shared values, and ensure justice for the concerned parties. Recommendations include leveraging shared cultural practices to smooth cleavages and promote communal harmony.

Impact of Corruption on Public Service Delivery in Nigeria: Implications for Political Leadership and Economic Development

Ibrahim Echu — 2025-06-26

This paper interrogates the impact of corruption on public service delivery in Nigeria, and the implications for political leadership and economic development. The paper argues that corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of Nigerian society, as ‘almost a third of the nation’s population pay bribes when they come in contact with public officials’, according to Transparency International. Political office holders use their offices to divert public funds to private use, while corruption cases drag for years without the suspects being punished. This has encouraged members of successive governments to steal as their individual and collective greed dictate. As a result, social services have been crippled in critical sectors like education, health, agriculture, transport. The paper also demonstrates that pervasive corruption has had far-reaching implications for political leadership and economic development. Hence, the citizenry has lost confidence in the capacity of political leaders to provide even its most basic needs. The paper relies on secondary sources for data, and uses Percentage, Table, Frequency and Comparison to analyze the trajectory of Nigeria’s corruption empire, with emphasis on the uninterrupted years of so-called democratic rule (1999 - date). The study reveals, among other things, that the failure of government to punish offenders is responsible for the unending menace of official corruption in Nigeria. It concludes that leadership failure is inevitable, so long as corruption remains unchecked. Practical and practicable recommendations are then made, for dealing with the menace of corruption.