Has Nigeria Sold Its Soul To China?
As African countries have repeatedly encountered their economic crises, they have turned to rich nations for help. The only one that has come to their rescue and then played their cards well is China. This is also because China made it easy for the African countries. Nigeria was no exception. The need for help came from IMF and the World Bank but with a lot of conditions like Structural Adjustment Programs , spurred endless controversies and gained eternal infamy. Nigeria also grew dependent on the Western world support as well as lending institutions like these. In 1956, when it discovered oil, its dependency on oil exports also grew. But with that came price fluctuations and then other kinds of dependencies as well. This dangerous dependence on a single commodity for fiscal and monetary stability meant sudden or prolonged drop in oil prices automatically triggered an economic crisis in the country. This made Nigeria a regular client of the IMF and World Bank. And with the...