I have a long connection to Nigeria. Not only was I Ambassador there, I have travelled to and from Nigeria for a number of years and have a deep and abiding vital emotional attachment to the Nigerian people, their magnificence, their courage, artistic brilliance, their irony, sense of humour in the face of challenges etc.

I hope that we keep that in mind when I say some things that I think are counter to what we normally say about Nigeria. I say that with all due respect to Eric Silla, who is doing a magnificent work at State Department (as Special Adviser to the Assistant Secretary of State for Africa).., because I have a feeling that we both, Nigerians and Americans, may be doing Nigeria and Nigerians no favor by stressing Nigeria’s strategic importance.

I know all the arguments: it is a major oil producer, it is the most populous country in Africa, it has made major contributions to Africa in peacekeeping, and of course, negatively, if Nigeria were to fall apart the ripple effects would be tremendous.

But I wonder if all this emphasis on Nigeria’s importance creates a tendency to inflate Nigeria’s opinion of its own invulnerability. Among much of the elite today, I have the feeling that there is a belief that Nigeria is too big to fail, too important to be ignored, and that Nigerians can go on ignoring some of the most fundamental challenges they have – many of which we have talked about: disgraceful lack of infrastructure, the growing problems of unemployment, the failure to deal with the underlying problems in the Niger Delta, the failure to consolidate democracy – and somehow will remain important to everybody because of all those reasons that are strategically important. I am not sure that that is helpful.Let me sort of deconstruct those elements of Nigeria’s importance, and ask whether they are as relevant as they have been.

We often hear that one in five Africans is a Nigerian. What does it mean? Do we ever say one in five Asians is a Chinese? Chinese power comes not just for the fact that it has a lot of people but it has harnessed the entrepreneurial talent and economic capacity and all the other talents of China to make her a major economic force and political force.Yes, Nigeria is a major oil producer, but Brazil is now launching a 10-year program that is going to make it one of the major oil producers in the world. And every other country in Africa is now beginning to produce oil.

Angola is rivalling Nigeria in oil production, and the United States has just discovered a huge gas reserve which is going to replace some of our dependence on imported energy.And what about its influence, its contributions to the continent? As our representative from the parliament talked about, there is a great history of those contributions. But that is history.Is Nigeria really playing a major role today in the crisis in Niger on its border, or in Guinea, or in Darfur, or after many, many promises making any contributions to Somalia? The answer is no.

Nigeria is today NOT making a major impact, on its region, or on the African Union or on the big problems of Africa that it was making before. Now, of course, on the negative side, the collapse of Nigeria would be enormous, but is that a point to make Nigeria strategically important? Years ago, I worked for an Assistant Secretary of State who had the longest tenure in that job in the 1980s and I remember in one meeting a minister from a country not very friendly to the United States came in and was berating the Assistant Secretary on all the evils of the United States and all its dire plots in Africa and was going on and on, and finally the Assistant Secretary cut him off and said: “You know, the biggest danger for your relationship with the United States is not our opposition, but that we will find you irrelevant. “The point is that Nigeria can become much less relevant to the United States. We have already seen evidence of it. When President Obama went to Ghana and not to Nigeria, he was sending a message, that Ghana symbolised more of the significant trends, issues and importance that one wants to put on Africa than Nigeria.

So the handwriting may already be on the wall, and that is a sad commentary. Because what it means is that Nigeria’s most important strategic importance in the end could be that it has failed. And that is a sad, sad conclusion. It does not have to happen, but I think that we ought to stop talking about what a great country it is, and how terribly important it is to us and talk about what it would take for Nigeria to be that important and great. And that takes an enormous amount of commitment. And you don’t need saints; you don’t need leaders like Nelson Mandela in every state, because you are not going to get them. I served in South Korea in the middle of the 1960s and it was time when South Korea was poor and considered hopeless, but it was becoming to turn around, later, to become to every person’s amazement then the eleventh largest economy in the world. And I remember the economist in my mission saying, it did not bother him that the leading elites in the government of South Korea were taking 15 – 20 percent off the top of every project, as long as every project was a good one, and that was the difference.

The leadership at the time was determined to solve the fundamental economic issues of South Korea economy and turn its economy around. It has not happened in Nigeria today. You don’t need saints. It needs leaders who say “You know we could be becoming irrelevant, and we (have) got to do something about it.”


Source: https://usafricaonline.com/2010/01/08/nigeria-usa-interests-princeton-lyman/

CC lalasticlala Mynd44 OAM4J

pls help us tell them if they will listen...... Nigeria has become a mockry in the world.

Osobi32:
pls help us tell them if they will listen...... Nigeria has become a mockry in the world.

Nigeria a mockery? Only poor people say that, You are very ignorant, do you know what it is to have 200 million people in a region, Nigeria’s Population makes over half of West Africa, Obama chose to go to Ghana good luck to him, Lagos Economy alone, & GDP is bigger than Ghana’s.

Lets not forget the US's influence is diminishing as well.

When UK and America stop our leaders from finding succor in foreign lands and make theiving politicians to not feel at home in foreign lands , only then would we have development in this country.

Abiodunspectre:
IS NIGERIA STILL RELEVANT?

“We often hear that one in five Africans is a Nigerian. What does it mean? Do we ever say one in five Asians is a Chinese?...Nigeria is today NOT making a major impact, on its region, or on the African Union or on the big problems of Africa that it was making before…When President Obama went to Ghana and not to Nigeria, he was sending a message, that Ghana symbolised more of the significant trends, issues and importance that one wants to put on Africa than Nigeria.”

“So, the handwriting may already be on the wall, and that is a sad commentary. Because what it means is that Nigeria’s most important strategic importance in the end could be that it has failed. And that is a sad, sad conclusion. It does not have to happen, but I think that we ought to stop talking about what a great country (Nigeria) is, and how terribly important it is to us and talk about what it would take for Nigeria to be that important and great…You don’t need saints. Nigeria needs leaders who say “You know we could be becoming irrelevant, and we have got to do something about it.”

Culled from “Realities of Nigeria’s Diminishing Relevance to U.S., Africa” by Princeton Lyman (first published on January 8, 2010. Link: https://usafricaonline.com/2010/01/08/nigeria-usa-interests-princeton-lyman/)

CC lalasticlala Mynd44 OAM4J

Purest form of the truth. That giant of Africa tag has fallen off our existence since

Nigeria is a blessed country in terms of natural and human resources. But the poor leadership choices the led elect turns these potentials to a wild dream.

So because Obama visited Ghana, that has made Ghana more influential than Nigeria? Nonsense!

Even though Nigeria is currently at the bottom of all times, no Africa country is more influential. From our entertainment, positions at UN, IT experts, medical etc no other African nation can match that output.

Nigeria influence is growing and tends to challenge superpowers in the future, the reason why western media even those from Asia are not reporting anything good about the nation. We don't care about Obama and whatever he represents.

This person should focus on the biggest truth, it's USA that loosing her influence so fast not Nigeria

Hmm!



And our leaders are always interested on next election once they feed fine with their household.

Very parthetic!

Sad realities.

So what is important now is to stay relevant at the face of United States of America...Isn't that a savitude mentality after gaining our independence...why not Try to be where USA is?

bad political leaders

Damnnnnn niggarrr
Isoright

Verdict: Slaughter all our leaders and ban their generation from government...



A united youth is an unstoppable force


#NYM


Nigerians are suffering and smiling

God bless Nigeria

favor914:
Nigeria a mockery? Only poor people say that, You are very ignorant, do you know what it is to have 200 million people in a region, Nigeria’s Population makes over half of West Africa, Obama chose to go to Ghana good luck to him, Lagos Economy alone, & GDP is bigger than Ghana’s.

You guys keep bragging bout population...

Tell me what way in which this mammoth of populations we got has helped us...

Like those with mushroom population aren't doin wonders?

C'mon, I still don't get it really buddy.

This thread will be few.
Too intellectual for the average Nigerian.

Even the US itself have started loosing its world relevance.

The entire world is now a knowledge based global economy. Countries like Nigeria with enormous educated illiterates have no say. With our declining standard of education, we are heading for an absolute collapse if the trend is not reversed soon enough.

A country where quota system is preferred to merit in job selection process can NEVER progress.

Gone are the days when oil producing nations were a force to reckon with. We had all the opportunity to diversify our economy but we didn't. The future of this nation is bleak honestly.

FACT: A barrel of oil is now cheaper than a pint of beer in Canada and almost everywhere else in the world.

favor914:
Nigeria a mockery? Only poor people say that, You are very ignorant, do you know what it is to have 200 million people in a region, Nigeria’s Population makes over half of West Africa, Obama chose to go to Ghana good luck to him, Lagos Economy alone, & GDP is bigger than Ghana’s.

200 million unharnessed, disempowered, disunited, misruled, oppressed people? Colonized from within, polarized by militant religion, plagued by rulers beating the drums of war and unconcernedly picking their teeth while violent and merciless marauders spill blood like water, with vanishing annual budgets and spiralling debt profiles? Did I forget a vocal band of praise singers who are paid peanuts?

Let's tell ourselves the truth before it's too late.

Okay

I read the article but the writer is more concerned with oil production n Nigeria involving itself in conflict resolution all over Africa .

Nigeria is quiet in Africa because the big brother we did in the 70s,80s n 90s has not favoured us instead we get a lot of disrespect from smaller African countries especially the French colonized ones calling us bullies. Time that we should have used to plan for the future were wasted doing big brother upandan.

Nigeria's relevance to America was based on oil.

They needed a cheap flow of oil. Those era are over.
Obama stopped it.
Nigeria has no economic relevance to America.

Though Nigeria is now becoming relevant to the Pentagon thanks to terrorism.

And those are two different things.

I

favor914:
Nigeria a mockery? Only poor people say that, You are very ignorant, do you know what it is to have 200 million people in a region, Nigeria’s Population makes over half of West Africa, Obama chose to go to Ghana good luck to him, Lagos Economy alone, & GDP is bigger than Ghana’s.

See your life? It shows that you never even read the writing by the American ambassador. Or maybe you
read but failed to digest what he had written. Go back and read slowly and carefully.

It is very easy to say Nigeria is the best country in the world after slice bread like most of the foreigners do when addressing Nigeria. Sometimes they say it just to massage our ego, because they know that is what we want to hear.

The guy seem to genuinely love Nigeria and actually wants to tell the country the truth and that is why he is giving examples using China and South Korea. But then, Nigeria and Nigeria don't like the truth. He better tell us lies instead

favor914:
Nigeria a mockery? Only poor people say that, You are very ignorant, do you know what it is to have 200 million people in a region, Nigeria’s Population makes over half of West Africa, Obama chose to go to Ghana good luck to him, Lagos Economy alone, & GDP is bigger than Ghana’s.

This is exactly what the article is talking about. You guys think only by being the most populous country in Africa is a strength. Nigeria needs to harness the talents within its population.

In fact, the relevance of Africa to the United States is based on China.

America only has interests in Africa because China does.

America's foreign policy in Africa is to counteract China, and not actually a focus on Africa.

If China leaves Africa today, America leaves.

brightdestiny96:


200 million unharnessed, disempowered, disunited, misruled, oppressed people? Colonized from within, polarized by militant religion, plagued by rulers beating the drums of war and unconcernedly picking their teeth while violent and merciless marauders spill blood like water, with vanishing annual budgets and spiralling debt profiles? Did I forget a vocal band of praise singers who are paid peanuts?

Let's tell ourselves the truth before it's too late.

Well said

Jeffyblaq:

You guys keep bragging bout population...

Tell me what way in which this mammoth of populations we got has helped us...

Like those with mushroom population aren't doin wonders?

I still don't get it really buddy.

The covert and overt plan of action is to elevate 4% of the population into almost godlike power and opulence while the 96% wallow in enforced penury.
They fail to understand that the fate of the 96% will be used to characterize the nation, and you cannot build walls high enough to keep the disenfranchised away from their country, even if you feel you and your preferred elements are not on the same level of humanity as they.