article · Africa Review
This study examines the effectiveness of regional integration in West Africa, noting its limited success in fostering economic growth since the 1960s. It investigates the interplay between democratic governance and regional integration in shaping a country's security exposure, focusing on Nigeria. Drawing on expert interviews and a survey, the research found a significant correlation between perceived democratic governance quality, regional integration effectiveness, and Nigeria's perceived security exposure. Regional integration demonstrated a stronger association. The study concludes that Nigeria's security is jointly dependent on the resilience of its own democratic institutions and the capacity of ECOWAS to consistently enforce governance norms across the subregion.
Understanding the complex relationship between democratic governance, regional integration, and national security is vital for stability in West Africa. This research provides insights into how these factors collectively influence security, particularly for Nigeria, the region's most populous country and largest economy.
The abstract does not indicate a direct application pathway for commercialisation or technology transfer, as the research focuses on political science, governance, and regional security dynamics.
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Abstract Since the 1960s, West African leaders have viewed regional integration as a vehicle for economic growth and subcontinental development. However, more than six decades later, integration has yielded marginal returns. Democratic governance and regional integration have been examined as separate contributors to security outcomes, but how the two interact to shape a specific country’s security exposure has rarely been tested. As West Africa’s most populous country and largest economy, Nigeria’s national security is directly threatened by the region’s institutional fragmentation. Drawing on expert interviews and a survey, and grounded in assemblage theory and general systems theory, this study shows that perceived democratic governance quality and regional integration effectiveness are significantly correlated with Nigeria’s perceived security exposure, with regional integration indicating the stronger association. It argues that governance and integration are interacting subsystems and that Nigeria’s security depends jointly on the durability of its own democratic institutions and ECOWAS ’s capacity to consistently enforce governance norms across the subregion.
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DOI: 10.1163/09744061-bja10337
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