Political Violence and Oil in Africa: The case of Nigeria

Event details

Dr Zainab Mai Bornu will introduce her research into oil and political violence in African conflicts, including a synoptic overview of a number of resource-rich countries in Africa. Her recent book, 'Oil and Political Violence in Africa: The Case of Nigeria' presents the theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of conflict and then concentrates the discussion on the Nigerian Niger Delta, outlining the core issues at the centre of the contestations. Her book offers an in-depth empirical analysis on the interaction between the narratives on nonviolence versus violence, the nature of leadership styles, and the organisation of the Ogoni and Ijaw movements at the heart of the conflict in Nigeria.

Dr Mai Bornu argues that in order to better understand the undercurrents of the Niger Delta conflict, it is imperative to analyse the dynamics of choice in terms of the distinct courses of action taken by the Ogoni and Ijaw. Given the similar structural constraints, the author considers why the Ogoni adopted nonviolent resistance, and the Ijaw violent resistance, in their struggles in the conflicts over oil.

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