Porous Borders and the Crisis of Sovereignty: Reexamining Nigeria's Border Governance in the 21st Century

Nigeria’s porous borders present enduring challenges for state authority, security, and governance across its land and maritime frontiers. Historical legacies from colonial boundary demarcations, entrenched crossborder social and economic networks, and evolving regional political and economic dynamics have produced structural porosity, creating a multidimensional crisis of sovereignty. This crisis is characterised by uneven territorial control, limited institutional capacity, and contested authority, where formal state institutions coexist with informal actors, traditional authorities, and armed groups, blurring the boundaries between legal and illegal activity, internal and external security, and state and non-state power. Drawing on postcolonial border studies, sovereignty theory, and hybrid governance frameworks, the paper employs a thematic synthesis of secondary literature, policy documents, and official reports to examine how state agencies, local communities, and transnational networks interact to shape authority, mobility, and governance along Nigeria’s border corridors. It concludes that sustainable border management requires a multi-level approach that integrates institutional reform, community engagement, and regional cooperation, balancing security imperatives with local socio-economic realities. The paper contributes to knowledge by reconceptualising Nigeria’s borders as hybrid social and political spaces, highlighting the intersection of historical legacies, state capacity, and local governance in shaping contemporary border challenges.