DOMESTIC ENVIRONMENTAL VARIABLES AND NIGERIA’S FOREIGN POLICY: A STUDY OF THE MUHAMMADU BUHARI’S ADMINISTRATION (2015 – 2021)

This study sets out to ascertain the impact of the domestic environmental variables on Nigeria’s foreign policy, with reference to the Buhari’s administration (2015-2021). To this end, it examined the dependent character of Nigeria’s economy and her security challenges, with a focus on the Boko-Haram insurgency, because not much have been written on the subject, therefore, this study seeks to fill these yawning knowledge gaps. We anchored our analysis on the linkage theory as espoused by Rosenau (1967), Frankel (1972), and adopted the descriptive research design. The study employed the secondary/qualitative method of data collection, while content analysis was utilized for the analysis of data. Essentially, we discovered that the economic down-turn which the Buhari’s administration inherited in 2015, prompted it to seek more financial succor from its bilateral and multilateral partners such as the USA, China, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). This trend fosters the dependent status of the Nigerian economy which tends to undermine the development of a consistent and dynamic foreign policy. The rise in the wave of insecurity occasioned by the Boko Haram phenomenon, kidnapping, armed robbery, among others, had a negative impact on Buhari’s economic diplomacy, following the exit of some major foreign investors to other countries with peaceful and stable economic environments. Consequently, the study recommends among others, the transformation of the weak, fragile and dependent economic structure of Nigeria, in other to achieve economic self-reliance.