In some colonial territories, for instance nigeria, the strategy of decolonization gave impetus to political ethnicity. Ethnicity, variants, political economy, nigeria, development 1. Pdf ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state. Issues on ethnicity and governance in nigeria flash. For a more detailed discussion on gender and politics in nigeria see. A theoretical framework of structure, culture, agency, intersectionality, and social identity theory underpinned this research. This article focuses on the plight of the igbo ethnic group of southeast nigeria.
Eldering and knorth 1998, for example, demonstrate that the risks of marginalization of immigrant youth in europe vary with ethnicity, irrespective of the particular host countries, or of degree of acculturation. In the realm of nigerian politics no word or phrase has been so abused as the word marginalisation, especially as it relates to groups of people. Influence of ethnicity and religion in nigerian elections and. Conflict in northern mali appears increasingly intractable, allowing violent extremist. The history of ethnicity and ethnic conflicts in nigeria also traces back to the colonial transgressions that forced the ethnic groups of the northern and southern provinces to become an entity called nigeria in 1914. Last collected in 2012 by the nigeria national bureau of statistics, the total population. Marginalization breeds suspicion, distrust, heightens ethnic tensions and may eventually lead to conflict over the sharing and allocation of power and. Abstract this study examines what has now turned to be a deliberate strategy of denial against the igbos in nigerias politics. Ethnicity in africa oxford research encyclopedia of african. It identifies salient issues to the full actualization of the political aspiration of ndigbo in nigerias political space. Introduction ethnicity as a problem engendering national unity in nigeria is manifest in all aspects of national life in the political, economic and social sense. Nigeria is a multiethnic and culturally diverse society that has witnessed conflicts arising from this ethnic and cultural diversity. Hermeneutic phenomenological methodology was adopted within which 40. Under the constitution, each of the three regions retained a substantial measure of selfgovernment.
Research on humanities and social sciences issn 22221719 paper issn 22222863 online vol. Ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state, length. Jun 27, 2010 who are the marginalized peoples of nigeria. The politics of marginalization in nigeria politics nigeria. Akonai2004 argues that the colonial politics of divideandrule is mainly responsible for the propagation of ethnicity and ethnic rivalry in nigeria as the british. Ethnicity, cultural diversity and poverty in south africa. The country, from all indications, has not attained her set targets of unifying the diverse ethnic groups in virtually all facetssocially, economically, politically among others. Introduction the vilification of ethnicity as the scapegoat of all vices associated with the nigerian body polity has made the subject a dominant theme in the study of nigerian political economy. Ethnicity itself is an abstract concept which includes an implicit reference to both collective and individual aspects of the phenomenon. Ethnic conflict and distrust is identified as the bane of former democratic experiments in nigeria. Politics of integration and marginalization in a federation. The position maintained by angaye 2003 is that conflict occurs when deprived groups or individuals attempt to increase their share of power and wealth or to modify the dominant values, norms. Moreover, since the late 1980s, ethnicity in nigeria has assumed disturbing new dimensions.
Akonai2004 argues that the colonial politics of divide and rule is mainly responsible for the propagation of ethnicity and ethnic rivalry in nigeria as the british. Nigeria is made of numerous ethnic groups which include the yorubas, ibos, hausas and many other groups numbering up to two hundred and fifty world fact book, n. Ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state, author. Sep 30, 2019 in sociology, ethnicity is a concept referring to a shared culture and a way of life. Nigeria is purportedly at peace, yet, it is perennially embroiled in skirmishes that threaten its geostability. It is the norm everywhere and anywhere you go in nigeria.
Pdf womens marginalization in nigeria and the way forward. The most crucial of these arc the issues of marginalisation and agitations by ethnic minorities. Boko haram has devastated livelihoods in the lake chad basin. The concept ethnicity and tribalism has always been a confused matter. Demographic data are politically sensitive in nigeria and the last census, conducted in 2006, did not collect or analyze data disaggregated by ethnicity, religion or language. It is also the reason he ordered the admission of women to the nigerian defence academy nda for the first time in nigeria history.
Managing ethnic and cultural diversity for national. A political history of nigeria and the crisis of ethnicity in. Download citation ethnic conflict and democracy in nigeria. The lgbt population in nigeria has been further marginalised and stigmatised by the. The country of nigeria features over five hundred different ethnic groups, many different languages, and declared its independence from the united kingdom on october 1, 1960. The most crucial of these are the issues of marginalization and agitations by ethnic minorities. Since the various ethnic groups living in these provinces were not consulted regarding the merger, this british colonial policy. It is a basis either for national separation or for political subordination. Stella oduah, was reported to have purchased, through the nigerian civil aviation authority ncaa, her two latest and most expensive. Ethnic identity refers to ethnicity as an individually experienced phenomenon. Last collected in 2012 by the nigeria national bureau of statistics, the total population of citizens in nigeria was around 166.
The struggle for an independent ijaw state, or an ijaw state to be reckoned with, within a united nigeria entered another phase. Ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state. Theoretical perspective 79 languages, customs and traditions gives the country a rich cultural diversity. Confronting the problems of colonialism, ethnicity and the. For the past weeks since the incumbent aviation minister, ms. A major contributing factor to this reality could be attributed to. The marginalisation question this paper examines the issue of ethnic conl1icts. The revelation given above explains the role played by ethnicity or ethnic politics in encouraging marginalization in nigeria. In the spirit of indirect rule, the major administrative and political units of nigeria were made to coincide with the spatial locations of the three major ethnic groups. Archaeological perspectives from iron age palestine coenraad l van w scheepers u nisa abstract ethnic and cultural intolerance is still alive and well in postapartheid south africa. Hence when ethnic conflicts are minimal, they may be regarded as dynamic forces which help to propel the development of a society. In some societies the elders are given more respect compared to others.
Oct 28, 20 for the past weeks since the incumbent aviation minister, ms. Among todays scholars there is a near consensus that precolonial african identities were relatively fluid, permeable, overlapping, and complex. On the other hand, when these ethnic conflicts become extreme, either as a factor for impeding democracy like in nigeria, it becomes a major disintegrating force in society. Nigeria is said to be a british creation by uniting the various nationalities into a single country today known as the federal republic of nigeria. The politics of marginalization in nigeria by nobody. Ethnicity ethnicity has been perceived by various sociologists and anthropologists as a much corrtested concept. The nigerian media is not enamoured of the undercurrents that. Nigeria is marked by underlying ethnic cleavages and inter. Effects of ethnic conflicts on nigerian democracy research. Thus where and when any groups access to this accumulation process is denied or curtailed, a phenomenon popularly known in nigeria as marginalization, the group threatens to secede. Nigeria is well known for failing to convert its resource windfall into development. Ethnicity and poverty ote 231 2010, 161177 161 ethnicity, cultural diversity and poverty in south africa.
However, it is pertinent to note that there is a difference between ethnicity and tribalism even though the difference is water. But it is opposite in some society because of this situation old people are subject of marginalization. The idea of marginalization also varies in relation to elderly people living in different countries and cultures. No work is deemed scholarly that does not consider the salience or. This thesis examines gender and ethnic inequalities in the nigerian civil service through the lived experience of ijaw women and the strategies they adopt to combat perceived discrimination. Overall, the constitution supports the official policy of the total eradication of anything having to do with ethnic identification and the maturation of unity. Landmark university, omu aran, kwara state, nigeria. A federal constitution was promulgated to address and. Countering violent extremism in west africa in recent years the landscape of violent extremism in west africa has grown increasingly fractured and complex.
It identifies salient issues to the full actualization of the political aspiration of. In a young federation like nigeria, with diverse ethnic nationalities, there are social and. On the study of ethnicity in nigeria by ukoha ukiwo 1. Ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state issuu. Women and politics in nigeria in godwin onuh and abubakar momoh eds. Nigeria gained full independence in october 1960, as a federation of three regions northern, western, and eastern under a constitution that provided for a parliamentary form of government. Solution to ethnic problem in nigeria current school news. Perceived ways of reducing the impact of ethnicity in the management of universities in nigeria. At the base of this dilemma is the mutational interface of religion and ethnicity in motorizing tension. The virus of ethnicity has been one of the most definitive causes of social crisis, injustice, inequality and religiopolitical instability in nigeria. Marginalised minorities in development programming. The policy of deliberate exclusion which is the order of the day in nigeria, results in class struggle among the various ethnic groups. Ethnic and religious identities are often intertwined in nigeria, forming.
Influence of ethnicity and religion in nigerian elections and the imperative of media intervention. In practice, ethnicity tends to be used loosely to refer to commonality of language, religion, identity, national origin and even skin color. And the importance of ethnicity for success in the informal sector which previously escaped the attention of students of ethnicity, became very prominent. Constitutionalism, ethnicity and minority rights in africa. Stella oduah, was reported to have purchased, through the nigerian civil aviation.
Ethnicity has been perceived in general as a major obstacle to the overall politicoeconomic development of the country. Ethnicity, politics, religious introduction nigeria became independent in 1960. In sociology, ethnicity is a concept referring to a shared culture and a way of life. Pdf in every multiethnic society, the fear of domination, marginalization, subjugation and denial of rights, particularly those of the minorities. Four groups fulani fula, hausa, yoruba and igbo account for around 68 per cent of the total population. Ethnicity and marginalization within the nigerian state by. Introdution nature,and definition of marginalization. There are several basic dimensions which ethnicity includes, on either the collective or individual level. Feb 23, 20 research on humanities and social sciences issn 22221719 paper issn 22222863 online vol. This paper expounds such conceptual issues as ethnicity, cultural diversity, federalism and national integration and then presents the historical background to ethnic and cultural conflicts in nigeria. Ethnicity, marginalization, and ethnopolitical influence.
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