Nigeria and the world: An appraisal of the position of Nigeria in international political and economic relations in the 21^st century

Nations interact in the international arena politically using their most advantageous positions and tools (the economy) to direct the actions and behaviors of others in the system. Nigeria entered the international system through the world body (UNO) in 1960 after her independence conscious of these tools of international relations, but year in year out, the initial hopes, vigor and zeal propelled by the abundant natural and human resources gradually wane as the system becomes more and more complex for smaller unfocussed nations to strive in the system due the impulses of capitalism derived from the basic desires of capitalism to expand to less developed areas of the world in order to tap and exploit their abundant resources, this is made possible through such coinage as aid relations, foreign direct investment and transfer of technology, and the menace of bad governance and misrule.