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EU democracy promotion in Nigeria: between realpolitik and idealism

18/12/2007 By Anna Khakee

In recent years, both the EU and its member states have paid allegiance to the goal of democracy and good governance in Nigeria. Like elsewhere in Africa, this pursuit - last reiterated at the recent EU-Africa Summit - has met with limited success, as the recent, fundamentally flawed Nigerian presidential, parliamentary and state elections testify.

Issouf Sanogo/AFP/Getty Images

This study examines how European democracy promotion has played out in Nigeria and asks to what extent has democracy been important for relations between the two. It finds that democracy promotion is not a top priority and that in reality oil is widely regarded as paramount, followed by trade relations. Concerns over migration, Nigeria’s role as a regional power, its fragile internal balance, and attainment of the Millennium Development Goals are also considered important.

This pragmatic approach, with glimmers of idealism, may represent the art of the possible in the complex relationship between the European power bloc and the African giant. However, it is a delicate balance to keep.

Today, international democracy promotion is not viewed with the same scepticism in Nigeria as it is in the Middle East or Russia, for example. The EU and EU states can therefore hope to make an (albeit modest) impact, both through assistance projects and politics.

If European governments pursue their security and economic interests - including the interests of European oil giants active in the volatile Niger delta - too persistently and without regard for social and environmental concerns, this could change.

As governance, peace and security, environmental degradation, poverty, migration, and energy security are all intertwined, the price to pay for tilting the balance too heavily in favour of the short term could be high.

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Keywords

Democracy Democracy promotion Energy Security EU Nigeria Poverty West Africa

Bio author: Anna Khakee

Anna Khakee is an associate researcher at FRIDE. She holds a PhD in International Relations from the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva. She is a specialist on democratisation and democracy promotion. Anna is also an Associate of The Policy Practice, a development consultancy.