Centre for Nigeria Progress

Maryam Babangida "The international community has long considered Nigeria a narco-state," declared a 2007 report to the Canadian Parliament, which named then-ruler General Ibrahim Babangida and his wife, Maryam, as central figures in a suspected state-backed cocaine ring.The name Maryam Babangida, Nigeria's influential First Lady from 1985 to 1993, is often associated with her public …

Continue reading "Maryam Babangida, the “Stench of Drugs,” and the Shadows of Nigeria’s Past"

Israel is a small country with a big personality — the geopolitical equivalent of that compact uncle who insists on sitting with his back to the wall at every restaurant, just in case the waiters are plotting. Surrounded by neighbours who watch it like someone eyeing the last piece of suya, Israel has perfected the …

Continue reading "When Superpowers Play Cowboys: The Israelisation of American Foreign Policy by Lawson Akhigbe"

Ai image At the Washington prayer breakfast—an event that now doubles as a stand-up comedy open mic—Donald J. Trump, prophet of chaos and patron saint of unintended satire, found time to give a short out (not a shout-out, because even praise must suffer budget cuts) to African dignitaries in the room. Among them was Remi …

Continue reading "Nigeria, Trump, and the Gospel According to Validation"

Nigeria has many ghost stories. Not the Halloween kind with creaking doors and dramatic music, but the far more disturbing type—stories where real people simply disappear, and the state, having played a starring role in the opening act, suddenly develops amnesia. One of the most chilling of these is the case of Gloria Okon. In …

Continue reading "Gloria Okon: When the Nigerian State Looked Away"