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Begin New Search Topic State Formation Journal The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development

1. Attractions and Limitations of Nigeria’s Soft Power

Author:
Oluwaseun Tella
Publication Date:
07-2017
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development
Institution:
Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (CESRAN)
Abstract:
Academic scholarship on Nigeria’s regional credentials and influence has focused on its hard power (economic and military capability). Despite the increasing relevance given to soft power in the 21st century, this aspect of the country’s status has been neglected. This article contributes to the literature on Nigeria’s foreign policy by engaging the currencies of its power of attraction and the limitations that constrain the optimization of this source of power. It employs constructivism as its theoretical lens and concludes that addressing challenges such as ubiquitous corruption and Boko Haram terrorism would enhance Nigeria’s credibility and ultimately its soft power projection in the international arena.
Topic:
Corruption, State Formation, Regionalism, and Power
Political Geography:
Africa and Nigeria

2. Debating State Capacity and Intrastate Wars in South Asia

Author:
Azhar Ali
Publication Date:
07-2016
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
The Rest: Journal of Politics and Development
Institution:
Centre for Strategic Research and Analysis (CESRAN)
Abstract:
In South Asia the notion of intrastate wars are prevalent and prolonged. Most of the countries in the region have faced or are still struggling with such wars. Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebellion movement in Sri Lanka, till very recently, violent Nexal movement and Maoist insurgency in India and sectarian violence in Pakistan, Taliban and Al-Qaida in Afghanistan have all been the part of intra-state wars. These wars challenge the authority and the integrity of the state. The state’s monopoly over the means of violence seems eroded in South Asia due to certain developments in the international system. The issue of intra-state war has become major problem for the states in South Asia to deal with. This paper argues that these intra-state wars challenge and influence the power of the state particularly in South Asia. It further analyses the state capacity and tries to look that how state finds itself constrained to in dealing with such intrastate wars. In a precise manner this paper also attempts to understand the changing conceptions of security due to the changed nature of modern warfare.
Topic:
Globalization, War, State Formation, Information Technology, and Intrastate Wars
Political Geography:
Pakistan, South Asia, India, and Asia