When powerful, weak giants meet

It is obvious that the two giants in their various continents have seen the need to cooperate in a most strategic manner possible.  Nigeria supplies the U.S with crude oil while the U.S has supported Nigeria in public health and infrastructural development; capacity building in the oil sector; support to strengthening democratic institutions, among others. […]

It is obvious that the two giants in their various continents have seen the need to cooperate in a most strategic manner possible.

 Nigeria supplies the U.S with crude oil while the U.S has supported Nigeria in public health and infrastructural development; capacity building in the oil sector; support to strengthening democratic institutions, among others.

The ties which bind between Nigeria and the United States of America run deep. In 2009, Nigeria was the third topmost supplier of crude oil to the United States, even as its ‘sweet Bonny crude’ is of the highest quality in the world. Nigeria is the United State’s largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa and the US is also the largest foreign investor in the country. Additionally, the US is home to a growing number of Nigerians in the diaspora, with the most educated group of immigrants in the United States being Nigerians.

It is also worthy to note that with an estimated one million Nigerians and Nigerian-Americans who  live, study and work in the United States, while over 25,000 Americans live and work in Nigeria, it is obvious that these two giants understand the importance of fruitful bilateral relations.

Nigeria is known as a notable supporter of ideas and ideals championed by the United States at international fora, towards contributing to sustainable development in the world.Thus, the U.S commitment towards bilateral ties with Nigeria is not a fluke.

For example, the Nigerian government has lent strong diplomatic support to  the  U.S. government counter-terrorism efforts in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The government of Nigeria, in its official statements, has both condemned the terrorist attacks and supported military action against the Talibans and Al Qaida. Nigeria has also played a leading role in forging an anti-terrorism consensus among states in sub-Saharan Africa. Thess and many other efforts have been shown by Nigeria.

Confirming Nigeria’s support and partnership with the U.S, the Nigerian envoy to the U.S, Professor Adebowale Adefuye, said: “Indeed, the history of Nigeria’s 50 years of statehood will be incomplete without a mention of the proactive role of the United States in supporting us in our quest for sustainable political stability and economic development. The United States’ interest in our economic and political well-being has been one of the critical factors for the progress recorded in our efforts to consolidate our democracy and deliver its dividends to the people of the country.’’

On the part of the U.S, at a recorded hearing before its Senate Committee on Foreign Relations in February, John Campbell, Ralph Bunche Fellow For Africa Policy Studies, said“ Nigeria continues to be a major source of oil for the international market. It is the fifth, sometimes the sixth, largest supplier of imported petroleum to the United States. Interruptions in the flow of Nigerian oil to the world market can influence how much Americans pay at the pump for a gallon of gas. International oil prices deeply affect the American economy, as we saw during the summer of 2008 when we were paying more than $4 for a gallon.’’

He said “Nigeria and the United States influence each other in ways more than diplomacy, security and energy. People-to-people links between the United States and Nigeria are more extensive than with any other African country. There is a vibrant, productive Nigerian-American community in the United States that may number two million. It is a successful immigrant community characterized by entrepreneurship, strong family ties and an emphasis on education.’’

Regardless of the age long partnership between the two countries, it is not only timely, but necessary to collaborate so as to surmount the challenges facing Nigeria. The challenges are considerable. Nigeria has the world’s second-lowest rate of immunization coverage, is the global center of transmission of wild polio virus, and has the world’s second-highest maternal mortality rate. Malaria causes the preventable deaths of 300,000 children and 7,000 women each year, and Nigeria has the fourth-highest tuberculosis (TB) burden in the world, with 100,000 deaths each year. This is just in the area of healthcare alone.

Other challenges Nigeria faces are principally the ones on governance. As U.S Secretary, Mrs. Hillary Clinton, said “the most immediate source of the disconnect between Nigeria’s resource wealth and its population’s poverty is a failure of governance at the federal, state and local levels.” Endemic corruption is a known culprit, but so is the failure to hold political leaders accountable to the people.

Endemic corruption is a major factor behind Nigeria’s consistently low ranking (125 out of 183) in the World Bank’s “Doing Business” report The challenges Nigeria faces are principally ones of governance, Clinton said clearly.

During her August 2009 visit to Abuja, Mrs. Clinton agreed to establish a U.S.-Nigeria Bi-national Commission that will allow the United States and Nigeria to engage in key bilateral issues including regional security and counter terrorism, and advance discussions on governance and transparency issues, Niger Delta post-amnesty progress and general economic development.

Reacting to the economic benefit of such bilateral relations, Mr. John Bello, a onetime director in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Abuja, said the benefits are enormous but Nigeria and Nigerians needs to tap such benefits the right way. He disclosed that despite the aged long relations with America, some Nigerians, especially the business class have not really tapped into it. He said the flow has always been one- way instead of two.

“Of course, the Americans usually find a way to benefit from such ties. They do that even at the individual level. So, there has always been a deficit in the relations but you cannot blame it on the U.S.It is up to our government and people to tap from the opportunity.’’

“For example, Nigerian exporters have not fully tapped into the  African Growth and Opportunity Act(AGOA) ,opportunities made available by the US Government for African exporters to market their products  in the American markets at zero duty.’’

He said, “the AGOA was meant to increase trade to the USA, but unfortunately, we have not been able to exploit this because of lack of standardization and quality packaging on the part of our exporters. Only 10 percent of opportunities of AGOA is presently being utilized.’’

The emergence of Nigeria as an independent country in 1960 and its admission into the United Nations Organization (UN), signaled the beginning of the development of foreign policy positions on key issues of international significance.

 The Nigeria-U.S. relations began within the context of the Cold War rivalry between the United States and the erstwhile Soviet Union. Interaction between the two countries in the 1960s were influenced by  the U.S. policy of containment and Nigeria’s non-aligned posture.

Containment had been used as a policy by the United States to stop the spread of communism. While communism did not gain any foothold in Nigeria, even at the height of Soviet support for the federal government during the civil war, the desires of both countries was for good and cordial relations. America’s high level of development, technology and wealth, remains a source of attraction and assistance to Nigeria.