GOVERNANCE, SECURITY AND ECONOMIC COOPERATION IN THE SOUTHEAST GEO-POLITICAL ZONE, NIGERIA

Abstract

Governance is politics in action and because it is a crucial determinant of authoritative allocation of resources such as public goods in a country or region. The southeast region of Nigeria is one that is endowed with different economic, natural and human resources which can be exploited for mutual benefits. Also, the existence of industrial clusters, state-owned public enterprises, and mineral resources which constitute considerable sources for revenue generation in the different states of the region should have been strong bases for economic cooperation among the states. This has not been the case as there has been serious disunity among the political  leadership and major stakeholder and also a rising level of insecurity within the region that has paralysed economic activities and posed a serious challenge to governance. This paper examined how the intertwining challenges of governance and security has impacted on the need for economic cooperation among the Southeast states in order to drive development. Methodologically, the study employed secondary sources of data gotten from literature assessment on our subjects of inquiry. The state fragility theory guided our discourse in the paper, while findings amongst others revealed that; failure of the political class within the southeast to form united block and pursue economic integration and development of the Southeast region has seriously affected negatively the development of the region; The insecurity in the region is as a fallout governance failure by the Governors and the political elites of the five Southeastern states who have failed to address the crisis of development within the region. The paper recommends that; there is need for the leadership of the Southeast to form a united front through cooperation in the areas of governance, economic and policy making and implementation that are geared toward the  development of the region. Also there is need for a united stand and common voice by the leadership against the rising levels of insecurity, as this will create a secure environment that will in turn engender development in the region.