| | The national and international press report the recent upsurge of youth-led ethnic violence in Nigeria as if it were new. Briefing argues that in view of the catastrophic fall in Nigeria's GDP from US$ 93.1bn in 1980 to US$ 40bn in 1997, youth's proclivity for violence is hardly surprising. Indeed, youth-led rebellions are not new. A political economy approach shows that developed economies exploitation of peripheral economies supplying raw materials sustains under-development and conditions spawning periodic revolt. Poverty makes people depend for assistance on customary (kin-based) relationships between superior elders and junior youths. But educated (unemployed) youth are finding that dependency on elders thwarts their own development and that of their people. Militant youth articulate a general perception that development is being obstructed by 'selfish' elders and chiefs who 'chop' on government contracts for their own gain, not their people's advancement. |
