Emma Emeozor
In his first term in office, President Muhammadu Buhari made several trips abroad, attending international conferences, holding private talks with his foreign counterparts and negotiating (or signing) bilateral agreements.
Similarly, Aso Rock played host to foreign heads of state, including the President of France, the Prime Minister of Britain, the Chancellor of Germany, and some African leaders. Undoubtedly, the President’s foreign engagements put Nigeria in the spotlight and boosted its image abroad.
Could there be a communication gap between government and the people or are Nigerians not schooled enough to appraise and appreciate the performance of the Buhari government in foreign affairs? Do Nigerians understand the thrust of the Buhari administration’s foreign policy?
The man in the street does not believe that Nigeria has gained much from the international community. Rather, the thinking is that the international community, particularly the big powers and the Asian Tigers, including China, India, and Japan, have continued to exploit the country.
Would Buhari use his second term in office to change the perception of the people? What are the aspirations of Nigerians regarding the country’s foreign relations? Daily Sun sought the views of some experts on Nigeria’s foreign policy and what is expected in the President’s second term.
Professor of International Relations and dean, College of Humanities, McPherson University, Seriki Sotayo, Ogun State, Olusola Ojo, believes the national interest of Nigeria was not advanced enough during the first term of Buhari.
He said: “Foreign policy generally is designed to advance a country’s national interest. National interest is the real target point. It is not a question of which area to concentrate on. The most important thing is to identify the country’s national interest.
“In other words, the starting point of any foreign policy is the objective it intends to achieve. But do we have a clear objective? The foreign policy area is not just a place to dump issues. You must have a clear vision, there must be appropriate policy package(s). You don’t rely on trial and error practice.”
Noting that no country, no matter how powerful, can achieve all its needs at once, Ojo said government needs to prioritise its agenda, after identifying the national interest, and concentrate on the pressing areas, devising tactics and strategies that can be used to promote its agenda.
He said no country can advance without the cooperation of other countries, therefore, a country must mobilize its foreign policy to achieve its economic interests.
This, he said could be achieved if there is a very strong team to advise the President on foreign policy. He said, besides making Africa the focus of Nigeria, having a strong and prosperous economy should be thrust of the country’s foreign policy.
“The ministry of foreign affairs should not be headed by just anybody. The minister had to be a career diplomat or an ex-career diplomat who has real knowledge of foreign policy. Foreign policy is not an area where people should come to experiment.
“Sometimes, you don’t know who is in charge, whether it is the foreign minister or not. You hear more from people who are outside the foreign ministry talking of foreign policy more than the foreign affairs minister. The foreign affairs minister ought to be the chief adviser on foreign matters to the President. But it seems we have too many cooks. The government must harmonise the system to have a direction. I’m not implying that foreign policy is the exclusive business of the foreign ministry, but the ministry must lead accordingly. Perhaps, sometimes, the ministry does abdicate its responsibilities.”
He wants government to draw support and assistance from the relevant institutions across the country. In addition to the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), the federal government should seek advice from experts in universities and other related institutions on international relations, diplomacy, foreign policy formulation, international political economy, he suggested.
The professor drew attention to the “decay into which our foreign missions have fallen into,” stressing “this is not good enough for a country like Nigeria.”
He wondered how the government could ever implement its foreign policy without functional foreign missions.
He wants Buhari to personally look into the plight of the foreign missions and ensure they are adequately funded: “It is not good to have missions and the salaries and allowances of the staff are not paid, whereas other poor African countries are funding their missions adequately.”
“From reports I have, many of our missions are in debt. And back home, the staff of the foreign affairs ministry are not well motivated. They must be motivated for them to put in their best. This is not good for our image. Now is the time for the government to address these issues,” he said.
Kunle Wahab, professor emeritus, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, and former Special Adviser on Budget Monitoring and Price Intelligence to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, while agreeing with the views of Ojo, said he wants Buhari to rejig his foreign policy to promote the nation’s economy.
He said there was nothing wrong making Africa the focus of Nigeria’s foreign policy, but “we should also zero it to the development of the country. He was particular about agriculture and agriculture-related procedures and processes.
He said Nigeria could use agriculture to transform its relations with other African countries: “I’m emphasizing agriculture as a core foreign policy tool because that is the sector where a number of our children can get employment. We have fertile land but many of them are laying waste.
“ Through a good foreign policy, we can benefit from the experience of countries like Israel, Costa Rica, Brazil, Germany and a host of other countries. So, why can’t the government drive a foreign policy that will enable Nigeria have access to technology in the area of agriculture such that we can become major exporters of finished agricultural products of international standard? he queried.
I have always said it that we don’t need what we cannot produce because it makes us to remain dependent on other countries. So, the incoming government must put in place a foreign policy that will boost the nation’s agriculture.”
Former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr. Obadiah Mailafia, was in accord with Ojo and Wahab when he said foreign economic relations are part of a country’s foreign policy.
He said: “We need to know the determinants of foreign policy. Foreign policy must, first and foremost be based on a definition of the national interest. Unfortunately, Nigeria has never defined its national interest. Infact, I doubt if our leaders know what our national interest is.
“That of course, first and foremost, it has to be our fundamental interest, the interest of survival as a country, our vital economic interest including infrastructures such as power, bridges etc.”
Expatiating on what national interest is, Mailafia said: “Anything that will advance our economy, our vital development and our survival as a country is part of our national interest. These are the things that should seek what we do and what we claim to in the international arena.”
The former CBN deputy governor saud what is expected of the incoming government in the area of foreign economic relations is that: “It should promote trade and make our goods welcome in the international market. Secondly, it should build alliances that will help Nigeria to grow as a country, like some of the advanced countries . . . with the emerging markets like China.
“The government should build strong alliances that will help boost our domestic investments, free flow of capital, etc. These are the things the government should pursue internationally, in terms of economic diplomacy.”
Mailafia commented on the flow of illegal migrants into Nigeria and said the government should overhaul its immigration policy to address the problem of porous borders. He said though he was not opposed to the presence of citizens of neighbouring countries in Nigeria, the government should take cognizance of the ECOWAS Protocol of Free Movement of Persons and Goods which states that a citizen of ECOWAS has three months to stay free in another member state. But after the expiration of the three months, he should either apply to regularise his stay or return to his home country.
Hear him: “I’m not a preacher of the gospel of xenophobia. But people should not remain illegally in a country after three months. We must send them back to wherever they came until they are prepared to regularise their stay, in accordance with the laws of ECOWAS and according to our own domestic laws as well.”